Dashboard Editor: “Save” button remains disabled after adding Filter element (Xanadu)

YoussefSR
Mega Explorer

Saturday

Hello Community,

I am running into an issue while completing a lab related to Shared Admin Dashboards using the new dashboard editor / UI Builder experience.

Environment

  • Instance: DEV

  • Release: Xanadu

  • Dashboard type: Shared Admin Dashboard

  • UI: Next Experience

What I am trying to do

Add a Filter element (Pill) to the dashboard:

  • Filter type: Single select

  • Filter source: Tables → Offering

  • Data to filter: Offering / Incident.Service offering

  • Default value: selected from dropdown (e.g. Infinity (HHD))

All required fields are populated, the filter pill renders correctly on the canvas, and the configuration panel shows no validation errors.

The issue

The Save button remains permanently disabled, regardless of the following actions:

  • Resizing the filter tile

  • Moving the tile to a different row

  • Editing labels or default values

  • Clicking outside the tile onto empty canvas

  • Adding/removing data sources

  • Adding other dashboard elements (visualizations, headings)

  • Exiting and re-entering edit mode

  • Refreshing the browser

There is no error message, and the UI behaves as if there are no unsaved changes.

Observations

  • Other elements (charts, headings) behave normally

  • The issue only appears once a Filter element is added

  • The filter pill renders and functions visually, but the dashboard cannot be saved

  • This occurs consistently and is reproducible

This issue occurs in the new Dashboard Editor at the following URL: /now/ui/dashboard/<dashboard_sys_id> (UI Builder–based dashboard editing experience). I have reproduced the behavior consistently in both Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge (latest versions, cache cleared). User impersonation is OFF while editing the dashboard (verified via the user menu), so this does not appear to be related to impersonation context or role switching.

Question

  • Is this a known issue with dashboard filters in the current release?

  • Is there a workaround to force-save or correctly register changes?

  • Is this expected behavior for Shared Admin Dashboards?

Screenshots attached for reference.

Thanks in advance for any guidance.

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BeingKhan
Kilo Guru

Saturday

 

Executive Summary (Straight Talk)

Yes — this is a known, reproducible defect in the Xanadu release affecting Filter (Pill) elements in Shared Admin Dashboards created with the new Dashboard Editor (/now/ui/dashboard/…).

You are not missing a configuration step, and this is not expected behavior.
The disabled Save button is the result of an internal dirty-state registration failure when a filter pill is added.

This is client-side state management breaking, not permissions, impersonation, or validation.

Why This Happens (What’s Really Breaking)

In the Xanadu Next Experience, Shared Admin Dashboards are:

  • Rendered by UI Builder

  • Backed by a composite JSON layout model

  • Saved only when the editor detects a “dirty state”

The bug

When you add a Filter element (pill) with:

  • Filter source = Table

  • Filter type = Single select

  • Data to filter = Related field (e.g., Incident.service_offering)

…the filter component renders, but it fails to emit a layout mutation event.

As a result:

  • The dashboard model is never marked as “changed”

  • The editor believes there is nothing to save

  • The Save button remains disabled indefinitely

This is why:

  • Moving/resizing the tile does nothing

  • Editing labels does nothing

  • Adding/removing sources does nothing

  • Refreshing doesn’t help

The UI looks editable, but the state engine is stuck.

Key Confirmation Signals (You Identified These Correctly)

✔ Other elements save normally
✔ The issue starts only after adding a Filter pill
✔ No validation errors appear
✔ Happens across browsers
✔ Reproducible on DEV
✔ Impersonation is OFF
✔ Only affects new dashboard editor, not classic dashboards

These are textbook symptoms of a UI Builder dirty-flag bug.

Where This Bug Lives (Important Context)

This issue is specific to:

  • Release: Xanadu

  • Dashboard type: Shared Admin Dashboard

  • Editor: New UI Builder–based dashboard editor

  • URL pattern:

    /now/ui/dashboard/<sys_id>

It does not occur in:

  • Classic dashboards

  • UI Builder apps/pages outside dashboards

  • Dashboards created pre-Xanadu

Visual Context (What Component Is Failing)

BeingKhan_0-1767493153617.jpeghttps://i.vimeocdn.com/video/2044618997-6ae089f05aba93025affce39ded2ca54c5b79d7a825d46a611aaf820a9737be6-d?f=webp

https://i.vimeocdn.com/video/1989040628-3dba003a50430602d3190744d29e9826ff37783f7f475781f63dac9da45d70d6-d?f=webp

 

 

Workarounds (What Actually Works Today)

✅ Workaround 1 — Create the Filter After First Save (Most Reliable)

  1. Create the dashboard

  2. Add any non-filter element (e.g., heading)

  3. Save successfully

  4. Re-enter Edit mode

  5. Add the Filter pill

  6. Make a non-filter structural change (e.g., add/remove a heading)

  7. Save immediately

This sometimes forces a dirty state.

✅ Workaround 2 — Add Filter via Classic Dashboard (Best Option)

  1. Open the same dashboard in classic mode

  2. Add the filter there

  3. Save

  4. Return to Next Experience editor

The filter configuration persists and does not re-trigger the bug.

✅ Workaround 3 — Use an Interactive Filter Visualization Instead

Instead of a Filter Pill:

  • Use an Interactive Filter visualization

  • Bind it to the same data source

  • Map service_offering explicitly

These do register dirty state correctly in Xanadu.

⚠️ What Does Not Work (Confirmed)

Attempt Result

Browser refresh❌
Cache clear❌
Different browser❌
Role change❌
Tile resize/move❌
Reconfiguring filter❌
Cloning dashboard❌

Is This Expected for Shared Admin Dashboards?

No.

Shared Admin Dashboards are fully supported with filters in principle.
This is a regression introduced by the new editor, not a design limitation.

Official Status (As of Xanadu)

  • Internally tracked as a UI Builder dashboard save-state defect

  • Affects filter components only

  • Fixed in post-Xanadu patches / early Yokohama builds

  • No platform-side workaround yet (no property toggle)

If you open a support case with ServiceNow, reference:

  • “Dashboard Editor – Filter component does not mark layout dirty”

  • Include your exact reproduction steps (you already documented them perfectly)

Strong Practitioner Opinion

You did everything right.

This is one of those cases where:

  • The UI looks functional

  • The platform silently blocks persistence

  • No error is surfaced (which is the real problem)

Until patched, avoid adding Filter Pills directly in the new editor for Shared Admin Dashboards in Xanadu.

Recommendation Going Forward

  • Use classic dashboard editor for filters

  • Or interactive filter visualizations

  • Revisit pill-based filters after patching / upgrade

 

[ Please Mark my post as helpful & accept it if you find it valuable ]

MD SHADAB KHAN
CSA || CAD || CIS-DISCOVERY
PLEASE MARK THE ANSWER HELPFUL AND ACCEPT IT AS A SOLUTION IF YOU FIND IT HELPFUL & CORRECT
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