Data Models

Models are the foundation of your Appivo application. Each model represents a type of data in your application and automatically becomes a database table.

What is a Model?

A Model defines a type of business object in your application, such as:

• Customer
• Order
• Product
• Task
• Invoice

When you create a model, Appivo automatically:

• Creates the database table
• Generates CRUD operations
• Provides API endpoints
• Handles data persistence

Creating a Model

1. Navigate to the Models section in the Application Builder
2. Click Add Model
3. Enter a name for your model
4. Add attributes (fields)
5. Save your model

Example: Customer Model

Model: Customer
├── Attributes (Fields)
│   ├── name (Text, required)
│   ├── email (Email, unique)
│   ├── phone (Phone)
│   └── status (Selection: active/inactive)
├── Relationships
│   └── orders (one-to-many with Order model)
└── System Fields (Automatic)
    ├── id (unique identifier)
    ├── created_at (creation timestamp)
    ├── updated_at (last modification)
    └── ver (version for conflict resolution)

Attribute Types

When adding attributes to your model, choose from these data types:

Basic Types

Specialized Types

Validation Rules

Protect data integrity with validation:

Example: Validated Customer Model

Attribute: email
Type: Email
Validations:
  - Required: true
  - Unique: true
  - Pattern: Must be company domain

Attribute: name
Type: Text
Validations:
  - Required: true
  - Min Length: 2
  - Max Length: 100

Relationships

Connect models together to build complex data structures.

One-to-Many

One record in the parent model relates to many records in the child model.

Customer (1) ──────> (*) Orders
One customer can have many orders

Many-to-Many

Records in both models can relate to multiple records in the other.

Students (*) <────> (*) Courses
Students can enroll in multiple courses
Courses can have multiple students

One-to-One

Each record relates to exactly one record in another model.

User (1) ────── (1) Profile
Each user has exactly one profile

System Fields

Every model automatically includes these system fields:

These fields are managed automatically by Appivo and cannot be modified directly.

Indexes

Appivo automatically creates indexes for:

• Primary keys (id field)
• Foreign keys (relationship fields)
• Unique constraints

You can add custom indexes for frequently searched fields to improve query performance.

Best Practices

Naming Conventions

• Use clear, descriptive names
• Use singular nouns (Customer, not Customers)
• Avoid abbreviations unless widely understood

Design Principles

• Normalize data: Avoid storing the same information in multiple places
• Plan relationships: Think about how models connect before building
• Set validations early: Define rules from the start
• Index search fields: Add indexes for frequently queried fields

Common Patterns

Reference Data Create models for lookup values:

Model: Status
- name (Text)
- display_order (Integer)

Audit Trail Track changes with audit models:

Model: ActivityLog
- action (Selection: create/update/delete)
- model_name (Text)
- record_id (Text)
- user (Reference to User)
- timestamp (DateTime)

Next Steps

• Quick Start - Build your first application
• Data Modeling Guide - Advanced modeling techniques
• Widgets - Display and edit your data