We would like to share an issue we have recently started experiencing with User Settings in AppSheet.
Across several applications where we use this feature (and where we previously never had any issues), we are now encountering the following error:
“Key field ‘_THISUSER’ is required”
What makes this confusing is that User Settings behaves like a virtual table, so in theory it should not require a key field like a regular table.
We have searched the community and found a similar case from 2021: Reference post (2021)
However, there does not seem to be a clear or confirmed solution in that thread. The discussion suggests possible causes such as required fields in User Settings without initial values or missing selections by the user (Google Developer forums), but nothing definitive.
In our case, the issue has been increasing over time:
Initially, it never occurred
Then it started happening occasionally
Now it has become more frequent across different clients and apps
So far, the only workaround we have found is:
The user restarts their mobile device
Then reopens the app
After that, the error disappears and everything works normally. However, this is clearly not an ideal solution.
We would like to ask:
Has anyone else experienced this issue recently?
Is there any known fix or better workaround?
Could this be related to a recent change or bug in AppSheet?
Any insights or experiences would be greatly appreciated.
It is quite normal to see these warnings. Since these fields are set as ‘Required’, AppSheet prompts the user to provide an input. This applies to all types, including Text, Enum, List, and Ref, to ensure the form is completed correctly before submission."
Make sure all of your users are using the latest version of the AppSheet app (or your white-labeled app if you’re supplying one). Ideally, they should all set the app to auto-update.
If the problem is happening even with the latest version, this is probably a bug introduced by a recent change at AppSheet. Contact Support for help. Good luck.
We understand your explanation, and from your screenshots we can see that in your case AppSheet is correctly indicating a missing required field (for example, “SO NO”), which the user needs to complete before saving.
However, our situation is different.
In our case, the error message refers to the field:
“[_THISUSER]”
The issue is that we do not have this field implemented in our User Settings or in any table, yet AppSheet is requiring it as if it were a mandatory field. Additionally, when this error appears, the user is unable to save the form at all, unlike your scenario where the user can simply complete the missing field.
This is what makes it confusing and leads us to believe it may not be a standard “required field” behavior.
Have you encountered a case where AppSheet requests [_THISUSER] even though it is not explicitly defined? Any additional insight would be very helpful.
As indicated in the articles provided by @Steve , there are two ways to use the USERSETTINGS columns:
USERSETTINGS(“A Setting Column Name”) - quotes are required
[_THISUSER].[A Setting Column Name] - [_THISUSER] is required
It is most likely that AppSheet converts the USERSETTINGS() format into the [_THISUSER] format for its internal use - which is why your message refers to it.
So, now the question is why are you getting the error message?
Could you be using the USERSETTINGS() format and NOT included the quotes? Could you be referencing a setting without either the USERSETTINGS() function or the [_THISUSER] qualifier?
Try checking the form table in the column that causes the message [_thisuser]. Look in the valid if section. There may be criteria that allow this message to appear. So your form cannot be saved because there are criteria in the valid if.
