Task Issue 954 Cfields Used Type Lock

Task 954 — Forbid type/node-type change of custom fields already holding values (cfieldsView + cfieldsAssignView)

Issue: #954 Status: IMPLEMENTED & VERIFIED (2026-09-22) — branch task/issue-954-cfields-used-type-lock

The gap

Legacy edit of a custom field that already holds values locks both "Available for" (node type) and "Type" as read-only static text:

• gui/templates/dashio/cfields/cfieldsEdit.tpl:105-141 — when $gui->cfield_is_used the template renders the selected node-type/type labels as plain text plus hidden inputs cf_node_type_id / cf_type that carry the original values, so a do_update can never change them;
• lib/cfields/cfieldsEdit.php:37,280 computes cf_is_used via cfieldMgr->is_used() (lib/functions/cfield_mgr.class.php:1486), which returns 1 as soon as the field has a row in any of the four value tables (cfield_design_values, cfield_build_design_values, cfield_testplan_design_values, cfield_execution_values).

The modern screens dropped this: the shared edit modal (cfieldsView.html and cfieldsAssignView.html) always rendered editable Type + Node Type combos for used fields, and PUT /api/cfields/{id} (api/cfields/index.php:191-204 at fix time) wrote the submitted values straight into the DB — a used field could be silently re-typed.

Measured repro (fixture: Tier cf with one cfield_design_values row, is_used=1):

• GET /api/cfields/index.php/1 → {... type:0, node_type_id:3} — no is_used exposed;
• PUT /api/cfields/index.php/1 {type:8, node_type:'testcase'} → HTTP 200, re-GET shows type=8 — silent re-type.

Implementation

BFF — api/cfields/index.php (Refs #954)

• usedFieldIds() (helper, index.php:76-90): resolves once per request the set of field ids that appear in any of the four value tables — a single UNION query replacing one is_used() SQL per row on list endpoints. Table names come from tlObject::getDBTables([...]) (cfield_mgr->tables is protected, lib/functions/object.class.php:78).
• cfToJSON($cf, $isUsed) now emits 'is_used' => 1|0 on every payload: GET list (:135), GET /{id} (:149), POST create result (:223), PUT result (:309), and GET /assignment linked + available rows (:408,:423).
• PUT /{id} guard (:269-288): when is_used, the submitted type / node_type are normalised to int (intval — the node map returns DB strings like '3', which would have tripped the strict !== compare) and compared against the stored values. If either genuinely differs → HTTP 400 {status:'error', code:'warning_no_type_change', message: lang_get('warning_no_type_change', assignLocale())} (the legacy localized warning). If unchanged (the normal UI save always sends the preserved values) the attributes are force-preserved from $existing while every other attribute (label, possible values, flags) saves normally.

Screens — cfieldsView.html + cfieldsAssignView.html

• Modal adds #editTypeText / #editNodeTypeText static-text elements and a #typeLockWarning banner (cf.msg.warningNoTypeChange, hidden by default).
• New setTypeEditable(editable) toggles selects ↔ static text + warning.
• editCf() fills the static text (typeMap[cf.type], resolved node name) and calls setTypeEditable(!cf.is_used); showCreateModal() (list screen) resets to editable mode.
• saveCf() error mapping: BFF response code === 'warning_no_type_change' → the localized bundle text cf.msg.warningNoTypeChange.
• The assign screen's name links in both the Assigned and Available tables use the same editCf(), so the lock applies everywhere the field is editable.

i18n

cf.msg.warningNoTypeChange added to all 10 bundles (gui/templates/i18n/{en,ro,de,fr,es,it,pt,ja,zh,ru}.json), wording adapted from the legacy $TLS_warning_no_type_change (locale/en_US/strings.txt:816, de_DE:722, fr_FR, es_ES:775, pt_PT:845, ja_JP:884, zh_CN); ro/it had no legacy translation and get a fresh faithful translation. All bundles validated with python3 -m json.tool.

Verification evidence (browser + API, fixture tmp/fixtures_954.php)

• cfieldsView, used field (Tier): modal shows Type string + Node Type testcase as static text (selects display:none) + warning banner.
• cfieldsView, value-less field (TierEmpty): selects editable, no banner.
• Normal save on used field (label change): toast "Custom field saved", label persisted, type/node_type_id untouched, no modal error.
• BFF backstop: PUT {type:4} and PUT {node_type:'build'} → HTTP 400 code:warning_no_type_change; stored values unchanged.
• cfieldsAssignView: used field locked from the name link in the Assigned table and, after an unlink, from the Available table (verified, then re-linked).
• Non-used field re-type still allowed (no scope regression).
• German locale (?locale=de): banner localised Dieses benutzerdefinierte Feld enthält bereits Werte; ….
• Event Viewer/events: 18 rows, all log_level=16 (audit INFO), 0 rows > 16 (no Error/Warning).
• Browser console clean (only pre-existing a11y hints); inline JS node --check clean; all 10 bundles valid.

Suite 954 in tmp/TLU_Test_Cases.md — 9/9 PASS.

Refs #954.