Journal field display limits

  • Release version: Australia
  • Updated March 12, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read

    • Journal fields can greatly increase the size of task records because they allow users to enter very large string values.

    Display limits prevent the instance from loading the entire journal field into memory. Administrators have the option to:

    • Set the length at which journal fields stop displaying the entire field's contents and instead only display a portion (called a preview) of the field's contents. Users can still access the field's entire contents by clicking a Show All button.
    • Set the size of the preview text the journal field displays.
    • Set the maximum number of journal entries journal fields can display.

    In Core UI, journal fields and the activity formatter must be in the same form section. You cannot place another field in between a journal field and the activities formatter. The Activity Stream is built to keep journal fields stacked on top of the activity formatter.

    Note:
    Journal field display limits are not supported in the legacy Comments and Worknotes field.

    Set the maximum display size for journal fields

    You can set the maximum display size for journal fields by adding a system property.

    Before you begin

    Role required: admin

    About this task

    When a journal field exceeds the length set in this property, the instance shows a preview of the journal field instead of the field's entire contents. The preview includes a Show All button to display the rest of the field's contents. A separate property determines the number of characters the preview displays.

    Procedure

    1. Add a system property with the following settings.
      Property Value
      Name glide.max_journal_list_size
      Description Size in megabytes when a journal field should display a preview rather than the field's entire contents.
      Type Integer
      Value 10
    2. Click Submit.

    Set the journal preview size

    Set the size of the glide.max_journal_list_size system property. When a journal field exceeds this size, the instance displays a preview rather than the field's entire contents. Users can click the Show All button to see the rest of the field's contents.

    Before you begin

    Role required: admin

    Procedure

    1. In the navigation filter, enter sys_properties.list.
    2. Select New.
    3. Set the values for the property as listed in the table.
      Property Value
      Name glide.shortened_journal_length
      Description Number of characters to display as a preview of journal fields.
      Type Integer
      Value 512000
    4. Select Submit.

    Set the maximum number of journal entries

    To set the maximum number of entries the system shows in the activity formatter, edit the following system property. The activity formatter displays the entries starting with the most recent entry up to the maximum number.

    Before you begin

    Role required: admin

    Procedure

    1. Enter sys_properties.list in the navigation filter.
    2. Search for the property glide.history.max_entries.
    3. Edit the Value of the property.
      Property Value
      Name glide.history.max_entries
      Description Maximum number of entries the system shows in the activity formatter. The default is 250.
      Type Integer
      Value 250
    4. Click Update.