Inactive vs. Delete — Key Differences
| Delete a Value | Mark as Inactive |
Disappears from new-record dropdowns | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Existing records that used it | Rewritten to a replacement | Untouched — keeps original value |
Can the value be brought back | ❌ No — must be re-created | ✅ Yes — one click to reactivate |
Reports and history | Original data is gone | Original data is preserved |
Risk if you change your mind | High | None |
✅ Best Practice: Prefer Inactive over Delete in almost every case. Use Delete only when you actively want every existing record to be rewritten.
Who Can Use This Feature
Role | What They Can Do |
CRM Administrator | Marks values inactive, reactivates them, manages the picklist list. Only role that sees the Active/Inactive toggle |
End Users | See the result — inactive values no longer appear in their dropdowns. Records they own that already use an inactive value continue to display it normally |
Where to Find Picklist Field Values
Sign in to the CRM as an Administrator
Go to CRM Settings → Module Management → Picklist Field Values
In the Select Module dropdown, pick the module that owns the picklist (e.g., Leads, Contacts, Intake Opportunities)
In the Select Picklist dropdown, pick the specific field (e.g., Lead Source, Sales Stage)
Reading the Picklist List
Column | What It Means |
Value | The text users see in the dropdown |
Active | Checkbox toggle — checked = visible in dropdowns; unchecked = hidden (inactive) |
Status Label | Reads Active or Inactive next to the checkbox |
Edit | Rename the value. Only available when the value is Active and user-editable |
Delete | Permanently removes the value — existing usage will be rewritten to a replacement |
Visual cues:
Active rows display normally (full opacity)
Inactive rows are dimmed (about 45% opacity) for easy scanning
System values can be toggled Active/Inactive but cannot be renamed
How to Mark a Value Inactive
Navigate to the picklist (see steps above)
Find the value you want to retire
Uncheck the Active toggle on that row
A confirmation popup appears asking you to confirm the change
Click Yes to confirm or Cancel to back out
The row dims, the status label flips to Inactive, and the Edit button is removed. The change takes effect immediately on the next page load for all users.
What end users see:
New records: the inactive value no longer appears in the dropdown
Existing records: records that already have the value continue to show it in detail views, lists, reports, and workflows — nothing changes
Editing an existing record: if the user doesn't touch the field, the record saves normally with the original value preserved
How to Reactivate a Value
Navigate to the same picklist
Find the inactive row (dimmed and labeled Inactive)
Check the Active toggle
The row brightens, the status label flips to Active, and the Edit button is re-added
The value reappears in every dropdown on the next page load. There is no confirmation popup because reactivation is non-destructive.
How Inactive Values Behave Across the CRM
Surface | Behavior |
Detail-view & edit-view dropdowns | Inactive values hidden |
Quick Create modals | Inactive values hidden |
List View column filters | Inactive values hidden |
Reports — field used as a filter | Inactive values hidden in filter picker; existing report data shown normally |
Existing records that already had the value | Value preserved and shown as before — no rewriting |
Saving a new record via UI with an inactive value | Field is silently dropped from the save |
Saving an existing record where inactive value didn't change | Save succeeds with original value preserved |
Workflow tasks (Update Fields) | Inactive values are skipped with a warning written to the workflow log |
REST API — creating a new record with an inactive value | API call rejected with HTTP 403 ACCESSDENIED |
REST API — updating an existing record without changing the inactive field | Allowed — value passes through unchanged |
CSV Imports | Same as API — new rows with an inactive value are rejected; updates that don't touch the field are allowed |
Role-based picklists | Inactive values hidden for every role regardless of role mapping |
Common Tasks
Retire an Obsolete Lead Source Value
Go to Settings → CRM Settings → Module Management → Picklist Field Values
Select Module: Leads → Picklist: Lead Source
Find the obsolete value (e.g., "2023 Trade Show Booth")
Uncheck its Active toggle and confirm in the popup
Result: Reps no longer see the value in new Lead dropdowns. Every existing Lead with that source still shows it in detail views, lists, reports, and dashboards.
Reactivate a Value Mistakenly Deactivated
Open the same picklist screen
Find the dimmed row
Check its Active toggle
Result: The value is immediately available in every user dropdown again.
Audit Which Values Are Deactivated
The Picklist Field Values list always shows every value including inactive ones. Dimmed rows with the Inactive label are your audit trail — no separate filter needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Will marking a value inactive change any existing records?
No. Inactive values stay on records that already had them. The CRM never rewrites historical data.
Q: Can I bulk-deactivate many values at once?
Not in this release. Use the per-row toggle — each toggle is one click with a confirmation popup.
Q: Can end users see which values are inactive?
No. The Inactive label and dimmed style are visible only in the admin Picklist Field Values screen. End users just see a shorter dropdown.
Q: What if a workflow tries to set a picklist field to a now-inactive value?
The workflow runs but the inactive picklist field assignment is skipped. A warning is written to the workflow log. Other tasks in the workflow continue normally. Update the workflow to use a current active value.
Q: What if an API integration sends an inactive value on a new record?
The API responds with a 403 ACCESSDENIED error. Updating an existing record that already carries the inactive value without changing the field is allowed.
Q: Does this work for every picklist?
Yes, for all single-select picklists. Multi-select picklists are out of scope for this release.
Q: Does deactivating a value affect Role-Based Picklists?
Yes. An inactive value is hidden from every role. Role-based visibility still works for active values exactly as before.
Troubleshooting
Symptom | Likely Cause | What to Do |
Active toggle not visible on rows | Older cached version of the Picklist UI | Hard-refresh the browser (Ctrl + F5) |
End users still see the value in a dropdown | Browser cached the previous dropdown options | Ask them to refresh the page once |
Toggle reverts back immediately | Save failed on the server | Check the error toast and try again. Contact support if it persists |
Confirmation popup doesn't appear | JavaScript failed to load | Hard-refresh the browser and try again |
Workflow log shows "skipped inactive picklist value" warnings | A workflow Update Fields task is trying to set a deactivated value | Edit the workflow task to use an active value |
Import rejecting rows with "Access Denied" | CSV is sending an inactive picklist value on new rows | Reactivate the value or update the CSV to use an active value |
Related Resources
How to Change Sales Stages in CRM Settings
Why New Picklist Values Don't Appear in Dropdowns with Dependencies
Contact Dazos Support — reference CRM-2839