- The SharePoint lookup field allows you to connect an identifier of one list and to display a different, friendlier field – such as name – for users to select. SharePoint 2010 adds the ability to create additional columns which display other fields from another list. (e.g.: In the case of a customer, it is possible to create a lookup on the ID of the other list and not only display the customer name but to also bring across multiple other fields).
- The second major improvement in lookup fields is that they now allow you to enforce relationships. You can choose to reject deletes which would otherwise orphan data – or you can have SharePoint automatically cascade deletes so that when you delete a customer all of their invoices are deleted as well. As a result SharePoint 2010 can now be used to create sites which have related data connected in ways familiar to users of traditional database tools – with the additional user interface options provided by SharePoint.
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