Activity Timeline Setup Assistant

With the Activity Timeline component, your users can view all activities related to a particular record.

The Activity Timeline Setup Assistant lets Litify admins customize this component so that users see the types of activities and information most relevant to them.

Using this setup assistant you can control the following:

• Determine which objects can be displayed by the Activity Timeline.
• For each object that can show the Activity Timeline, which records show up as "activities".
• Whether users can edit records for specific types of activities directly from the timeline.
• Whether users can add records for specific types of activities directly on the timeline.
• The key fields for each activity type that will be visible and searchable within the timeline.
• Whether text within the timeline should wrap or clip if longer than the column.
• How many activity records to show per page.

Glossary

Below is a list of helpful terms that we've collected to help you when reading this article.

Timeline Objects

Timeline Objects are the objects where you can view the Activity Timeline. For each Timeline Object, you can define which Activity Types should be included within the Activity Timeline.

Activity Types

Activity Types are the objects that are shown within the Activity Timeline. Different Activity Types can be shown for each Timeline Object. 

Field Mapping

The Activity Timeline shows records of the relevant Activity Types within a table. For each Activity Type, you can define which field should map to these columns within that table:

• Subject (i.e., name of the record)
• User (i.e., creator, owner, or assigned to)
• Date (i.e., created date, date of injury, or other important date)
• Body (i.e., description; can be longer)
• Additional Field 1
• Additional Field 2

Add the Activity Timeline Component to a Lightning Page Layout

You will need to add the Activity Type component to the Lightning page layout for that object.

1. Open a record of the object.
2. From the Salesforce settings menu, click Edit Page.
   
   
   
   
3. Add a new tab titled "Activity Timeline" (recommended but optional).
   
   
   
   
4. From the sidebar on the left, drag the Activity Timeline component to your desired location.
   
   
   
   
5. Click Save and then click <- Back.

Add a New Timeline Object

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the + Timeline Object button.
   
   
   
   
3. From the picklist, select the object on which you want users to be able to see the Activity Timeline.
   
   
4. Click Add.
   • This will take you to the detail view for this Timeline Object.
5. Add the Activity Types you want users to see from this Timeline Object (see below for detailed instructions).
6. Review the field mappings for your Activity Types (see below for detailed instructions).

Edit a Timeline Object

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the name of the Timeline Object you want to edit.
   • Alternatively, you can click the pencil icon next to that item under the Actions column. 

When editing a Timeline Object, you can do any of the following:

• Add Activity Types (using the Add Activity Types button)
• Remove Activity Types (using the trash can icon next to an Activity Type)
• Toggle on/off Allow Edit for any Activity Types
• Toggle on/off Allow Create for any Activity Types
• Switch the Lookup Fields connecting the Timeline Object to any Activity Type

Delete a Timeline Object

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the trash can (delete) icon within the row of the Timeline Object you want to delete. A confirmation window will appear. 
   
   
   
   
3. Confirm that you wish to delete the selected Timeline object, and click Delete. 
   
   

Add an Activity Type to a Timeline Object

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the name of the Timeline Object to which you want to add an Activity Type.
3. Click the + Activity Type button.
   
   
   
   
4. Choose the Activity Type you want from the picklist within the "Add Activity Type" modal.
5. Choose the lookup field that connects the two objects.
6. Set Allow Record Edit to control whether users should be able to edit records of this Activity Type from this Timeline Object (enabled by default).
7. Set Allow Record Create to control whether users should be able to add records of this Activity Type from this Timeline Object (enabled by default).
8. Click Add.

If this is the first time that this object has been added as an Activity Type, you should also customize the field mapping to ensure that the most important and useful fields are shown within the Activity Timeline. See "Customize the field mapping for an Activity Type" below for details.

Control Whether Users Can Edit Records for an Activity Type

The Activity Timeline respects users' permissions to view and edit records. Beyond this standard level of Salesforce control, you can also prevent users from editing records of a specific Activity Type (on a specific Timeline Object):

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the name of the Timeline Object where you want to turn on/off editing from the Activity Timeline.
3. Find the Activity Type for which you want to enable/disable editing from within the Activity Timeline, and toggle the Allow Edit control.

Control Whether Users Can Add Records for an Activity Type

In addition to adjusting if a record can be edited, you can also prevent users from creating new records of a specific Activity Type (on a specific Timeline Object):

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the name of the Timeline Object where you want to turn on/off adding from the Activity Timeline.
3. Find the Activity Type for which you want to enable/disable editing from within the Activity Timeline, and toggle the Allow Create control.

Remove an Activity Type from a Timeline Object

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant.
2. From the Objects and Lookups screen, click the name of the Timeline Object from which you want to remove an Activity Type.
3. Click the trash can (delete) icon within the row of the Activity Type you want to remove.
   • This will cause a confirmation to appear.
4. Confirm that you wish to delete the selected Activity Type, and click Delete. 

After removing an Activity Type from a Timeline Object, users viewing the Activity Timeline on that Timeline Object will no longer see records from that Activity Type.

Customize the Field Mapping for an Activity Type

1. Go to Litify Setup > Activity Timeline Setup Assistant
2. From the Default View & Field Mapping screen, click the pencil (edit) icon in the row of the Activity Type whose field mapping you want to customize
   
   
   
   
3. Choose the fields that are most relevant for each of the available columns in the Activity Timeline
4. Click Save
   

Default Settings

Firms who upgrade from an older version of Litify will need to set up the Activity Timeline from scratch, including configuring all Timeline Objects, Activity Types, and field mappings.

Firms beginning with Litify v21 or later will have our recommended default settings already configured:

• Default Number of Records to Load: 100
• Default Text Settings: Wrap Text

Filters

The final section on the Activity Timeline Setup Assistant allows you to adjust which default filters will be used when first viewing items on the Timeline.

To take advantage of this functionality, click the radio button next to the appropriate option. 

Related Articles

• Activity Timeline Setup Assistant FAQs
• Activity Timeline User Guide