> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.saphion.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Templates > Start repeatable work from a template board, bring a template's rows into a Project, and generate Word and PDF documents from a record. A template saves work you do again and again. There are two kinds. A **board template** holds boards of rows, such as the standard Actions for a kind of job, that you can bring into any Project. A **document template** is a Word or Excel file with placeholders that fills itself from a record to produce a finished document. > [!NOTE] > > Anyone who can open a template can read and use it, and only Organisation Admins make, extend, replace and delete templates. ![Templates table with a sample board and document template.](https://mintcdn.com/saphion/F5a0XE-YKidXHEWP/images/work/templates-1.webp?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=F5a0XE-YKidXHEWP\&q=85\&s=8db996e4dbd637f59aa991b5c89ff397) Templates ## Find your templates Choose **Templates** in the Tools group of the sidebar. Each row is one template. | Column | What it shows | | - | - | | **Name** | The template's name, or the name of a board in it. | | **Kind** | **Board template** or **Document template**. | | **Belongs to** | For a board, the template that holds it. For a document template, the board it fills from. | | **Items** | How many rows its boards hold. | | **Updated** and **Updated by** | When it last changed, and who changed it. | Search and filter the table like any board. Select a board template to open its first board. Select a document template to open it in a panel. ## Create a board template **1. Start the template** Choose **New template**. Only Admins see it. **2. Name its first board** The dialog is titled **New template** and says a template starts with one board, named for it. Enter the **Board name** and choose an **Item type**: the kind of record the board holds, such as Actions. **3. Create it and fill it in** Choose **Create template**. The board opens. Add rows to it like any board. See [Boards, tables and views](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/boards-and-views.md). **4. Add more boards** Open the template's row menu in the table and choose **Add board** to give the template another board. ### Row numbers A template row is numbered by its section and its place in it, such as 3.4. A flat template just numbers its rows, such as 4. When you bring rows into a Project, they keep the template's numbering. ## Bring a template's rows into a Project Use this to start a Project's Actions from a standard list without copying every row. **1. Open the board** Open the board that should receive the rows, such as a Project's **Actions** tab. **2. Choose Import from template** Open the board's **⋯** menu and choose **Import from template**. Pick a template. If no template holds that kind of record yet, Saphion says so and offers **New template**. **3. Tick the rows you need** The dialog is titled **Import from** and the template's name. Every row starts ticked. Untick what you do not need, use **Search rows** to find one, and **Select all** or **Select none** to tick or clear the rows shown. The button counts what will be added. **4. Import** Choose the button, for example **Import 12 actions**. Saphion files copies of the ticked rows in the Project, and says how many it made and which template they came from. To pull in a single row later, use **Add from template** in a Project's board menu. It lists only the rows the Project does not hold yet, and says "Every row of this template is already in the Project" when none are left. See [Import and export](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/import-and-export.md). ## Upload a document template A document template turns a record into a Word or PDF document. **1. Start the upload** Choose **Upload document template**. Only Admins see it. **2. Choose the board and the file** Pick the **Board** whose records fill the template, enter a **Template name**, and choose a `.docx` or `.xlsx` file. Put placeholders in the file where a record's values should go. Each placeholder is checked against the board's fields. **3. Add written sections if you want them** A written section has a **Section name** and **What to write**. Beacon writes the text for it when the document is made. **4. Save and check the mapping** Saphion opens the template's panel. **Placeholders** says how many are in the file and whether they are all mapped. Under **In this file**, each placeholder shows what it resolves to, **Mapped** or **Not mapped**. Under **Copy a placeholder**, copy a field's placeholder with the copy button to paste it into the file. **5. Preview and publish** Choose **Preview** to open a sample document. When every placeholder is mapped, choose **Publish**. The template is a draft, "not yet used for documents", until you do. To change the file later, open the panel's **⋯** menu and choose **Replace file**, or **Put back previous file** to return to the last one. ## Generate a document from a record Open a record on the board a published document template belongs to. In its **More** menu choose **Generate document**, or **Generate** and the template's name where the board has several. Saphion renders the document on the server and opens it. The Word and PDF files appear in the record's **Documents** section, and making it again replaces the files in place. A template with written sections cannot be made from a button, and Saphion says so. ## Delete a template Open a board template's row menu and choose **Delete**. Saphion asks you to confirm. The template and its boards are deleted permanently, but Projects already made from it are not changed. > [!WARNING] > > Deleting a board template cannot be undone. ## How it works * **A template is not a Project.** Bringing rows in copies them. Later changes to the template do not alter work already done. * **Rows are read each time.** The dialog reads the template as it is now. * **Documents never publish half-mapped.** A document template cannot be published while any placeholder is missing from its board. * **Old documents stay.** Publishing a new file changes documents made from then on. Documents already issued are not rewritten. ## Ask Beacon * "Import the standard site set-up rows into the Harbour Road Project." * "Generate the handover document for this record." ## FAQ > **Why can I not see New template?** > > Making templates is for Organisation Admins. Ask an Admin to make one, or to give you the access. > **Why does the Import from template choice not list my template?** > > Only templates that hold the kind of record on this board are listed. Make a template for that kind of record first. > **Can I change the look of exported documents?** > > Yes. Admins set the design of the documents and workbooks Saphion produces in **Settings > Administration > Exports**. See [Import and export](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/import-and-export.md#change-the-design-of-exports). ## Related * [Import and export](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/import-and-export.md): Bring records in from a spreadsheet, or take them out. * [Projects](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/projects.md): Bring a template's rows into a Project. * [Boards, tables and views](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/boards-and-views.md): Build the boards a template holds. * [Record panel and attachments](https://docs.saphion.co.uk/work/record-panel-and-attachments.md): Where generated documents appear. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.