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Child Tables

Many Frappe DocTypes have child tables — embedded sub-records with multiple rows. Examples:

  • Sales Invoice → Items table (item, qty, rate, amount)
  • Purchase Order → Supplier Quotation Items
  • Project → Tasks table
  • BOM → BOM Items

Excel View lets you expand any parent row to reveal and edit its child table rows inline in the same grid.

Expanding a Child Table​

  1. Look for the ▶ expand arrow in the row header (far left) of any row
  2. If a row has child table data, the arrow is visible
  3. Click ▶ to expand

The parent row stays visible. Below it, child rows appear indented with a light blue background (#f4f8ff). Each child row represents one child table record.

The Child Table Panel​

When you click the expand arrow, a slide-down panel appears below the parent row showing:

  • A mini-grid with all child table fields as columns
  • One row per child record
  • Fully editable cells (same inline editing as the main grid)
  • A footer showing the child row count
  • A + Add Row button to append new child records
  • A Delete button (trash icon) on each child row to delete that child

Editing Child Table Cells​

Click any cell in the child table panel to edit it. The same rules apply as the main grid:

  • Link fields show autocomplete
  • Select fields show a dropdown
  • Date fields show a date picker
  • Text Editor / HTML fields show a rich text preview with a pencil button — click the pencil to open the Rich Text Editor modal

Changes in the child table panel save immediately when you click outside the cell (auto-save on blur). You do not need to press Ctrl+S separately for child table changes.

Adding Child Rows​

Click the + Add Row button at the bottom of the child table panel. A new blank row is appended. Fill in the required fields and click outside to save.

Deleting Child Rows​

Click the trash icon on the far right of a child row. A confirmation appears. On confirm, the child record is deleted from Frappe immediately.

warning

Child row deletion is immediate and cannot be undone from Excel View. Use the Frappe form's version history if you need to recover a deleted child row.

Collapsing​

Click the ▼ arrow (now pointing down, indicating expanded) to collapse the child table and hide the panel.

Scrolling in the Child Panel​

The child table panel has its own scroll. If the child table has many rows:

  • Scroll inside the panel using the mouse wheel while hovering over the panel
  • The main grid will NOT scroll while you are scrolling inside the panel (scroll isolation)

Child Tables and Export​

When exporting a DocType sheet to XLSX:

  • If child table expand is collapsed: only the parent row is exported (no child rows)
  • If child table expand is expanded: the parent row and its visible child rows are both included in the export

Supported Doctypes​

Any DocType that has at least one field of type Table (child table field) will show the expand arrow. If a parent record has zero child rows, the expand arrow is still present but the panel will show an empty state.