{% Now %} Macro Not Displaying Current Date and Time in Form Field in Xperience by Kentico 29.3.0

2025/01/03 10:40 AM

Hello Kentico Community,

I am encountering an issue with the {% Now %} macro in Xperience by Kentico version 29.3.0. I am trying to display the current date and time in a form field when the form is rendered. However, instead of showing the current date and time, the {% Now %} macro is being displayed as a literal string in the form field, like this: {% Now %}.

Steps I have taken:

  1. Created a Text field in Form Builder.
  2. Set the Default Value of the field to {% Now %}.
  3. Ensured the form is published and cached properly.
  4. Tried clearing the cache and testing again.

Issue:

  • The {% Now %} macro does not resolve to the current date and time. Instead, it shows {% Now %} as plain text when the form is rendered.
  • I have tested with other macros (like {% DateTime.Now %}), but the issue persists.

Questions:

  • Is there any configuration needed in Xperience by Kentico 29.3.0 to enable the processing of macros in form fields?
  • Is the {% Now %} macro supported in this context for form fields, or is there a different macro that should be used to display the current date and time?

Any assistance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


Thank you

Answers

2025/01/03 2:48 PM
Accepted answer

As per documentation:

Macro expressions | Xperience by Kentico Documentation

In the current version of Xperience by Kentico, macro expressions are usable in:

They aren't widely used or available in other areas I'm afraid. Instead, you may need to use the Form Widget Customizations to detect your "time" field and set a value in them as it renders.

Try using the below to register a FormFieldRenderingConfiguration.GetConfiguration.Execute, and in it check for your field (either by a specific TYPE of field or actual field name) and then in there you should be able to set the default value dynamically to the time.

https://docs.kentico.com/developers-and-admins/development/builders/form-builder/form-widget-customization#add-contextual-markup-to-form-fields

2025/01/06 5:25 AM

Hello Team,

Could you please give practical example of below usecase?

In the current version of Xperience by Kentico, macro expressions are usable in:

Thank you

2025/01/06 2:11 PM

Trevor's answer is correct and there are examples in the documentation.

The Kentico Community Portal has a newsletter and you can sign up for. Since the code base for the Kentico Community Portal is open-source you can view the source code for that email template as an example of macro usage.

It's also worth noting that we are planning to release a native visual Email Builder in our February Refresh and potentially some improvements to the Form Builder later this year.

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