--- title: "How do I create pre-populated free text metadata fields in upload profiles?" date: "2025-01-09T16:49:51+00:00" summary: "Learn how to create pre-populated free text metadata fields in upload profiles for improved consistency. This step-by-step guide shows you how to set up, implement, and use standardized text options in your DAM system." image: type: "page" url: "/acquia-dam/how-do-i-create-pre-populated-free-text-metadata-fields-upload-profiles" id: "a96aab4c-814a-43e2-8847-9e91610b62f2" --- Free-text fields are often necessary but present opportunities for inconsistency in your metadata. To help provide more consistency in your free-text fields, pre-populated fields could be the solution. Pre-populated free-text fields are possible when using a dropdown metadata field with a free-text field dependency. Dependent fields need to be created first before you create pre-populated metadata fields. (Learn more about dependent metadata fields, including how to create them, [here](What-are-dependent-metadata-fields).) Once you’ve created free-text dependent fields, approved, standardized text options can be added to the dependent text fields in [upload profiles](/acquia-dam/how-do-i-create-upload-profiles "How do I create upload profiles?"). This allows the options to appear in the metadata fields for the assets uploaded using that upload profile.   Create pre-populated free-text metadata fields  ----------------------------------------------- In the Admin app, create a new upload profile, or choose an existing one to which you wish to add standardized text options, then edit the default metadata of the upload profile. ![Select to edit the default metadata for an upload profile.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/brxb8z6rd1/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk1.png?v=eddc37a9-d7f8-4399-ac3d-e51eb3a4d5b9) Find the dropdown field with free-text dependencies to be pre-populated and select one of the controlled vocabulary options in the dropdown field. ![Select one of the controlled vocabulary options from the dropdown field.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/jvnfaa9cw0/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk4.png?v=80f12d04-750a-44af-a0de-8bef066319fb) This will open the dependent free-text field.  ![The free text dependent field opens after you select one of the controlled vocabulary options.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/sf3kuktl3b/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk2.png?v=0ebe43c6-55f0-4254-9cd7-79be26ec3444) Add the standardized text that should be used when that controlled vocabulary option is selected. ![Enter text in the field.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/phtlfkvhik/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvkB.png?v=83d2dc88-d0fc-403e-ae79-01022d991419) Repeat these steps for all of the desired dependent free-text fields.  ![Continue to select a controlled vocabulary field, then enter associated text for each option.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/i2firmchea/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk9.png?v=c99a340a-922a-4e7d-aa41-76278b575ed9) To keep the free-text field blank until the uploader chooses the desired dropdown value, unselect any values from the dropdown field before updating the upload profile. ![To keep the free-text field blank until the uploader chooses the desired dropdown value, unselect any values from the dropdown field before updating the upload profile.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/gpsp3boz2j/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk7.png?v=8848ded6-04ee-4fe0-b0e2-8e5d33fc3891) Click Update to save the changes to the upload profile. ![Click Update to save the changes to the upload profile.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/pfncsmvhdr/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005LvkA.png?v=c6b821f1-14b9-4b8c-b1ee-66d1327f16fc) Use pre-populated free-text metadata fields ------------------------------------------- For the pre-populated text to appear in the metadata for an asset, the asset must be added to the Acquia DAM (Widen) using the upload profile to which the pre-populated text has been added. ![uploader screen showing upload profile selection and lifestyle photos selected as the profile](https://acquia.widen.net/content/u0bmdd9moc/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk3.png?v=a3529844-b209-4bc4-9912-cad77f4f302d) It can be added to individual assets that have been uploaded using the pre-populated upload profile by going to the [Asset Details page](/acquia-dam/where-can-i-see-asset-details "Where can I see asset details?") and editing the metadata. ![Pre-populated fields can be added on the Asset Details page when you're editing metadata.](https://acquia.widen.net/content/0hikxfogvo/web/ka0Pb0000006uFd00N6g00000WDN1a0EM6g000005Lvk0.png?v=6fe4d39c-1605-452b-8827-c664291d452a) As a reminder: * Pre-populated text can only be selected when the asset was uploaded using the pre-populated upload profile. * Changes to the pre-populated text within the upload profile do not change the text in existing assets. If changes are required to pre-populated text on existing assets, a batch edit can be performed to update the text. * The pre-populated text can still be edited at any time on assets once they're in the DAM.