Skip to content
Release: Australia · Updated: 2026-03-12 · Official documentation · View source

StandaloneClientMethods

Standalone client methods are methods that you can use within your client JavaScripts, such as reflistOpen, but aren't a part of any class or API.

You can directly access these methods within a client script without any constructor or other type of instantiation before use.

Parent Topic:Client API reference

Standalone - reflistOpen (String target, String elementName, String refTableName, String dependent, String useQBE, String refQualElements, String additionalQual, String parentID, String forceReference, String ignoreTargetValue)

Shows the reference field data in a standard pop-up window. This method is commonly used when selecting a magnifying glass icon, beside any reference field, in UI 16 forms.

For example, using this method you can display reference field data for a specific set of query criteria:

Image omitted: reflistOpen\_popup\_image1.png
Ref data in pop-up window

Similarly, you can use this method to display a search form that enables the user to enter their own set of query criteria for selecting the reference field data to display.

Image omitted: reflistOpen\_popup\_image2.png
Search in pop-up window

When opening the URL in the standard pop-up, if the URL length is greater than TinyURL length, 1024 by default, the URL is converted to TinyURL, such as:

"sys_user_list.do?sysparm_tiny=7ea02c4ff8a8b510f877c74d78b60460".

Note:

reflistOpen() isn’t supported in Workspace Client Script. Use the g_modal.showFrame() method instead.

NameTypeDescription
targetStringForm target reference field ID.For example, the `caller_id` parameter's target reference field ID is `incident.caller_id`.
elementNameStringForm reference field element name. For example: `caller_id`
refTableNameStringReference table to map to the form reference field. For example, for the reference field `caller_id`, sys\_user is the reference table. In this case, you would pass the value `sys_user`.
dependentStringConfigured dependent field for the specified target element. For additional information, see Make a field dependent.
useQBEStringFlag that indicates the type of information to return in the pop-up window.Valid values: - true: Display a query form with a search button. - false: Display the query results. Default: false
refQualElementsStringConfigured reference qualifier for the specified target element. The function appends the specified reference qualifiers to the URL and only displays the filtered results in the pop-up window. If you don't want to include a reference qualifier, pass an empty string.For additional information on reference qualifiers, see Reference qualifiers.
additionalQualStringOptional. Additional qualifier query to use to filter the results that display in the pop-up window.For example, for a `caller_id` reference field in an incident, you could pass the user's sys\_id `sys_id=62826bf03710200044e0bfc8bcbe5df1`. The function filters the User \[sys\_user\] table and shows the filtered results in the pop-up window.
parentIDStringOptional. Currently only an internal parameter, no need to pass a value.
forceReferenceStringOptional. Currently only an internal parameter, no need to pass a value.
ignoreTargetValueStringOptional. Currently only an internal parameter, no need to pass a value.
TypeDescription
Pop-up windowDisplays the returned reference field data in a standard pop-up window.

The following example shows how to invoke this method to show the caller field data in the pop-up window for the incident table (first image above).

function onChange(control, oldValue, newValue, isLoading, isTemplate) {
   if (isLoading || newValue === '') {
      return;
   }

   reflistOpen('incident.caller_id', 'caller_id', 'sys_user','company', 'false', '');
}

The following example shows how to invoke this same client script, but with useQBE = true, which displays a search button and associated search criteria within the pop-up window (second image above).

function onChange(control, oldValue, newValue, isLoading, isTemplate) {
   if (isLoading || newValue === '') {
      return;
   }

   //  Type appropriate comment here, and begin script below
   reflistOpen('incident.caller_id', 'caller_id', 'sys_user','company', 'true', '');
}