bulk-widget-updates

name	bulk-widget-updates
description	Bulk Widget Property Updates — SHOW WIDGETS discovery and UPDATE WIDGETS dry-run/apply across pages and snippets
compatibility	opencode

MDL bulk widget editor — discover and modify widget properties across pages and snippets in bulk.

> EXPERIMENTAL commands for bulk widget discovery and property updates. Covers SHOW WIDGETS filtering, UPDATE WIDGETS dry-run and apply, property value types, and known limitations.

Load when: - User wants to find all widgets of a given type across a module - User wants to change a property on many widgets at once (e.g., hide labels on all comboboxes) - User needs a bulk-update workflow with preview before applying

EXPERIMENTAL: These commands are an untested proof-of-concept. Always use dry run first and backup your project before applying changes.

Widget commands require a full catalog build:

refresh catalog full;

<show_widgets>

-- Show all widgets
show widgets;

-- Filter by module
show widgets in MyModule;

-- Filter by widget type (case-insensitive LIKE)
show widgets where widgettype like '%combobox%';

-- Filter by name
show widgets where Name = 'myGrid';

-- Combine filters
show widgets where widgettype like '%DataGrid%' and Name like '%Overview%' in MyModule;

Output Columns

Column	Description
NAME	Widget name (may be auto-generated)
WIDGET TYPE	Full widget type ID (e.g., com.mendix.widget.web.combobox.Combobox)
CONTAINER	Page or snippet qualified name
MODULE	Module name

Common Widget Type Patterns

Pattern	Matches
%combobox%	ComboBox widgets
%datagrid%	DataGrid2 and related widgets
%textbox%	TextBox widgets
%dropdown%	DropDown widgets
%gallery%	Gallery widgets

</show_widgets>

<update_widgets>

update widgets
  set 'propertyName' = value [, 'propertyName' = value ...]
  where condition [and condition ...]
  [in module]
  [dry run];

Dry Run (Preview Changes)

Always preview changes first:

update widgets
  set 'showLabel' = false
  where widgettype like '%combobox%'
  dry run;

Output shows:

found 5 widget(s) in 3 container(s) matching the criteria

[dry run] The following changes would be made:
  Would set 'showLabel' = false on combobox1 (combobox) in MyModule.OrderForm
  Would set 'showLabel' = false on combobox2 (combobox) in MyModule.CustomerPage
  ...

[dry run] Would update 5 widget(s)

run without dry run to apply changes.

Apply Changes

Remove dry run to apply:

update widgets
  set 'showLabel' = false
  where widgettype like '%combobox%'
  in MyModule;

Property Value Types

Type	Examples
String	'contains', 'above'
Number	4, 100, 3.14
Boolean	true, false
Null	null

Examples

-- Hide labels on all comboboxes
update widgets
  set 'showLabel' = false
  where widgettype like '%combobox%';

-- Set multiple properties
update widgets
  set 'showLabel' = false, 'labelWidth' = 4
  where widgettype like '%textbox%'
  in MyModule;

-- Change filter mode on DataGrid filters
update widgets
  set 'filterMode' = 'contains'
  where widgettype like '%DatagridTextFilter%';

</update_widgets>

<important_notes>

Known Limitations (Experimental)

UPDATE WIDGETS functionality is not fully implemented.

• The DRY RUN mode shows which widgets would be matched
• Actual property updates require additional implementation work
• Use SHOW WIDGETS for discovery, then manually update properties in Studio Pro

After Making Changes

1. Refresh the catalog to see updated data:

   refresh catalog full force;
   

2. Open the project in Studio Pro to verify changes

Supported Properties

Only primitive properties (string, number, boolean) are supported:

• showLabel, labelWidth, placeholder
• filterMode, defaultValue
• Widget-specific configuration properties

NOT supported:

• DataSource properties
• Action properties (onClick, etc.)
• Nested object properties
• Expression properties

Finding Property Names

To find the correct property names:

1. Create a widget in Studio Pro
2. Use describe page Module.PageName to see widget structure
3. Or check the Mendix widget documentation

</important_notes>

<workflow_example>

-- 1. Build catalog
refresh catalog full;

-- 2. Discover widgets
show widgets where widgettype like '%combobox%';

-- 3. Preview changes
update widgets set 'showLabel' = false where widgettype like '%combobox%' dry run;

-- 4. Apply changes
update widgets set 'showLabel' = false where widgettype like '%combobox%';

-- 5. Rebuild catalog
refresh catalog full force;

-- 6. Verify
show widgets where widgettype like '%combobox%';

</workflow_example>

<output_rules>Output MDL code only in code blocks. Keep explanations concise.</output_rules>