Object References in R-COM Gateway

Object References allow one Object to link to another Object in R-COM Gateway.

With this feature, an attribute in one Object Group can store a reference to an Object in the system. This makes it possible to model relationships between business entities, such as a delivery position linked to a delivery, an asset linked to a location, or a maintenance task linked to a machine.

Object References extend Object Groups beyond simple data storage. Instead of storing only values such as text, numbers, dates, or boolean fields, an Object can point to another Object and create a traceable relationship between records.

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What Is an Object Reference?

An Object Reference is an attribute value that links one Object to another Object by using the referenced Object’s OBJECT_ID.

Each reference points to one Object.

Example:

{
  "OBJECT_ID": "9ceb38ef-a325-4711-9d79-5610caf715bf",
  "positionNumber": 10,
  "itemNumber": "ITEM-001",
  "delivery": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

In this example, the delivery attribute stores the OBJECT_ID of a delivery Object. This links the delivery position to that delivery record.

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Why Object References Are Used

Object References are used when records in different Object Groups are related to each other.

Common examples include:

Use Case	Example
Delivery management	A delivery position references a delivery.
Asset tracking	An asset references a location.
Maintenance management	A maintenance task references a machine.
Healthcare	A medical device references a room or department.
Warehouse operations	A pallet references an order, shipment, or storage area.

Without Object References, related Object IDs would need to be stored as plain text. That approach does not create a real relationship between Objects. With Object References, R-COM Gateway can display the linked Object, allow users to open it directly, validate dependencies during deletion, and identify Objects that reference a selected Object.

Reference Column Type

Object References are configured using the Reference Column Type in the Object Data Designer.

A Reference column stores the OBJECT_ID of another Object. The referenced Object can belong to any Object Group in the system.

This means the same Reference column can point to Objects from different Object Groups, depending on the value stored in each record.

Example:

An Object Group named activityLog contains a Reference column named targetObject.

One activity log record may reference an asset:

{
  "activity": "Moved",
  "targetObject": "6f24f4ef-7a0f-46c3-8eaa-85ed421e3d67"
}

Another activity log record may reference a delivery:

{
  "activity": "Approved",
  "targetObject": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

Both records use the same Reference column, but each record can point to a different Object.

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How Object References Work

Reference Values Are Stored as OBJECT_IDs

A Reference column stores the OBJECT_ID of the target Object.

The OBJECT_ID is the unique system identifier of the Object being referenced.

Example reference value:

c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5

When this value is saved in a Reference column, R-COM Gateway uses it to identify and link the referenced Object.

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Each Reference Links to One Object

A single Reference column value can point to one Object.

Supported:

{
  "assignedRoom": "6f24f4ef-7a0f-46c3-8eaa-85ed421e3d67"
}

Not supported in a single Reference column:

{
  "assignedRooms": [
    "6f24f4ef-7a0f-46c3-8eaa-85ed421e3d67",
    "9ceb38ef-a325-4711-9d79-5610caf715bf"
  ]
}

If one Object must reference multiple Objects, create separate Reference columns or model the relationship using another Object Group.

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Each Record Can Reference a Different Object Group

The target Object Group is not fixed at column creation. The Reference column can point to any Object in the system.

Example:

Object Group	Record	Reference Column	Referenced Object Group
activityLog	Record 1	targetObject	assets
activityLog	Record 2	targetObject	deliveries
activityLog	Record 3	targetObject	locations

This is useful when a record may be related to different types of entities depending on the process.

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Configuring a Reference Column

Reference columns are configured in the Object Data Designer.

To create a Reference column:

1. Open the Object Group in the Object Data Designer.
2. Add a new attribute.
3. Enter the column name.
4. Select the ObjectReference column type.
5. Configure whether the column allows null values.
6. Save the Object Group structure.

Example configuration:

Add Object Referance

This configuration creates a Reference column that can store the OBJECT_ID of one Object.

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Displaying Object References

In the Object data view, reference values are displayed as clickable links.

View Object Referance

Clicking the link opens the referenced Object.

If No Unique Constraints

Is Defined

If the referenced Object Group does not have a Unique Constraint, the link text displays the referenced Object’s OBJECT_ID.

Example:

c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5

If a Unique Constraint Is Defined

If the referenced Object Group has one or more Unique Constraint fields, the link text displays the concatenated Unique Constraint values.

Example referenced Object:

{
  "OBJECT_ID": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5",
  "deliveryNumber": "DEL-10001",
  "year": "2026"
}

If deliveryNumber and year are configured as Unique Constraint fields, the reference link text may appear as:

DEL-10001, 2026

This makes references easier to identify in the Object data view.

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Viewing Objects That Reference the Current Object

Each Object includes an option to display all Objects that reference it.

Add referanced objected

This helps users identify where an Object is used before modifying or deleting it.

Example:

A delivery Object may be referenced by multiple delivery position Objects.

When viewing the delivery Object, users can open the reference overview to see all Objects that point to it.

Example result:

Referencing Object Group	Referencing Objects
deliveryPosition	POS-001, POS-002, POS-003
activityLog	LOG-10001, LOG-10002

This makes it easier to trace dependencies between Object Groups.

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Deleting Referenced Objects

R-COM Gateway checks Object References when an Object is deleted.

If an Object is referenced by another Object, deletion depends on whether the referencing column allows null values.

Deletion Fails When the Referencing Column Is Not Nullable

If another Object references the Object through a Reference column that does not allow null values, deletion fails.

This applies to:

• Deletion from the user interface.
• Deletion through the DeleteObject action.

Example:

A deliveryPosition Object references a delivery Object through the delivery Reference column.

The delivery column is configured with Allow Null = No.

If a user tries to delete the referenced delivery Object, the deletion fails because the delivery position requires that reference.

Why This Protection Exists

This prevents broken required references.

Without this validation, a required Reference column could point to an Object that no longer exists. That would create inconsistent Object data and may affect workflows, reports, or object views.

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Workflow Action Behavior

Object References can also be used through workflow actions.

GetObjectsOfAttributes

For Reference columns, the GetObjectsOfAttributes action returns basic reference information.

It returns:

• OBJECT_ID
• UniqueGroupName

The action does not automatically resolve and return the full linked Object.

Example result:

{
    "targetObject": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5",
    "targetObject_UniqueGroupName": "deliveries"
}

Use this result to identify the referenced Object. If the full Object data is required, retrieve the referenced Object separately.

SetObjectsOfAttributes

The SetObjectsOfAttributes action accepts the OBJECT_ID as the value for Reference columns.

Example:

{
  "targetObject": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

The provided OBJECT_ID identifies the Object that should be linked through the Reference column.

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Actions for Finding Referencing Objects

R-COM Gateway provides actions to find Objects that reference a selected Object.

These actions are useful for dependency checks, reporting, validation, cleanup workflows, and impact analysis.

GetReferencingObjects

This action accepts an OBJECT_ID and returns all Objects that reference it, grouped by Object Group.

Return type:

Dictionary<string, List<Guid>>

The dictionary key is the Object Group name.

The dictionary value is a list of OBJECT_IDs from that Object Group that reference the given Object.

Example return value:

res["T_GROUP1"] = [
  c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5,
  9ceb38ef-a325-4711-9d79-5610caf715bf
];

res["T_GROUP2"] = [
  6f24f4ef-7a0f-46c3-8eaa-85ed421e3d67
];

This means:

• Two Objects from T_GROUP1 reference the selected Object.
• One Object from T_GROUP2 references the selected Object.

Use this action when you need a system-wide overview of references to an Object.

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GetReferencingObjectsByGroup

This action accepts:

• An OBJECT_ID
• An Object Group name

It returns a list of OBJECT_IDs from the specified Object Group that reference the given Object.

Example input:

{
  "OBJECT_ID": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5",
  "objectGroupName": "deliveryPosition"
}

Example result:

[
  "9ceb38ef-a325-4711-9d79-5610caf715bf",
  "6f24f4ef-7a0f-46c3-8eaa-85ed421e3d67"
]

Use this action when you need to find references from one specific Object Group.

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Practical Example: Delivery and Delivery Positions

A common use case is linking delivery positions to a delivery.

Object Group: deliveries

Example Object:

{
  "OBJECT_ID": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5",
  "deliveryNumber": "DEL-10001",
  "status": "Open"
}

Object Group: deliveryPosition

Example Object:

{
  "OBJECT_ID": "9ceb38ef-a325-4711-9d79-5610caf715bf",
  "positionNumber": 10,
  "material": "MAT-001",
  "quantity": 25,
  "delivery": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

In this setup:

• deliveryPosition contains a Reference column named delivery.
• The delivery column references one delivery Object by storing its OBJECT_ID.
• Users can click the reference link in the Object data view to open the related delivery.
• The referenced delivery cannot be deleted if the delivery Reference column is not nullable and delivery position records still reference it.

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Best Practices

Use Object References When Records Are Related

Use Object References when one Object needs to point to another Object.

Examples:

Source Object Group	Reference Column	Example Target
deliveryPosition	delivery	A delivery Object
assetMaintenance	asset	An asset Object
patientDeviceAssignment	device	A medical device Object
activityLog	targetObject	Any related Object

This keeps relationships traceable and avoids storing linked Object IDs as plain text.

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Use Clear Column Names

Because a Reference column can point to Objects from any Object Group, the column name should make the expected relationship clear.

Good examples:

targetObject
relatedObject
linkedAsset
delivery
assignedRoom

Avoid vague names:

ref
object1
value
data

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Make Required References Non-Nullable

If a reference is mandatory for the business process, disable Allow Null.

Example:

A delivery position should always belong to a delivery.

Recommended configuration:

Column	Type	Allow Null
delivery	Object Reference	No

This ensures that users cannot create delivery positions without assigning them to a delivery.

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Check References Before Deleting Objects

Before deleting an Object, check whether other Objects reference it.

Use the reference overview in the Object view or the available reference lookup actions.

This helps avoid failed deletion attempts and prevents accidental disruption of related data.

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Store Relationships as References, Not Plain Text

Do not store related Object IDs in normal string columns when the value represents a link to another Object.

Poor approach:

{
  "deliveryId": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

Better approach:

{
  "delivery": "c7d6f1b2-08cd-4e7b-bd36-60c74021a4c5"
}

The second approach uses a Reference column, allowing R-COM Gateway to treat the value as a real Object link.

Related Articles

• Object Group Types in R-COM Gateway
• Setting Up an Event Rules
• Create a New Workflow
• Unique Constraints