SuiteTalk (Web Services) Platform Guide - NetSuite

Records, Fields, Forms, and Sublists in Web ServicesWorking with Fields in Web Services57example, in the CalendarEvent record type, the eventAccess field is required in the UI.However, it is optional in Web services because it has a default value of Public.Important: The Required column in the SuiteTalk Schema Browser lists T or F (for true orfalse) to specify if a field is required. For information on using the SuiteTalkSchema Browser, see Using the SuiteTalk Schema Browser in the Help Center.Fields and OperationsFor simplicity, the SuiteTalk WSDL is designed with all available fields listed for each record ineach corresponding XSD. There is no differentiation as to what field is available for eachindividual operation. For example, add operations take a separate set of field values than thecorresponding update operation for some records. If your Web services request includes a fieldvalue for a field that is unavailable, an error is thrown for that submission.If you are using Web services for data migration where there may be fields that need to bepopulated that are unavailable during an add operation, you should perform two consecutiverequests. Submit an initial add or addList request, with values for all fields available for an addoperation, followed by an update or updateList request, with values for the fields available onlyduring an update operation.Default Field ValuesThe system provides default values only for fields that are not required. When applying adefault value, the system first tries to use a specified value. If none is given, the system uses thedefault. If no default is given, the system enters null.User-defined defaults through the UI do not apply to Web services.Hidden FieldsThe SuiteTalk API includes fields that are not visible in the NetSuite UI. In some cases, thesefields have been hidden through SuiteBuilder point-and-click customization. In other cases,hidden fields are just hidden by NetSuite. These types of hidden fields are used primarily forstoring system-generated information such as dates.For example, every SuiteTalk-support record contains either a dateCreated or createdDate field.These fields are NOT writeable. By default these fields are populated with a system-generatedtimestamp. Note that system-generated dates and times are preserved for audit trail purposes.Note: The Use Defaults Web service preference does NOT affect the behavior of hiddenfields. Even if the Use Defaults preference is not enabled, hidden fields arepopulated when a value is not supplied in the request. Also, for audit purposes, thetrue system date is always recorded for each record and can NOT be overridden.Note that for endpoints 2009.2 and lower, add and update operations follow UI edit formpermissions model. Get and search operations follow the view form permission model. As aresult, records are returned in view mode. If a field is not available in view mode in the UI, itwill not be returned in Web services.SuiteTalk Platform Guide