Freezing Checklists by Status - Nextedy Documentation

When to Freeze

Freezing is useful when you want the checklist to reflect exactly what was verified at a point in time. For example, once a work item is marked as “Approved”, the checklist should not change even if the underlying template is updated.

Step 1: Disable Merge at a Specific Status

Open Polarion Administration > Configuration Properties and add a property using this pattern:

nextedy.checklist._TYPEID._FIELDID._STATUS.mergeTemplate=false

Replace the placeholders:

_TYPEID — work item type ID (for example, requirement) or omit for all types
_FIELDID — checklist custom field ID (for example, dod)
_STATUS — workflow status ID where merging stops (for example, reviewed)

Example — freeze the “dod” checklist at the “reviewed” status:

nextedy.checklist.dod.reviewed.mergeTemplate=false

This tells Checklist to stop merging template items into the dod field when the work item has the reviewed status. The checklist displays only the data stored so far.

Step 2: Disable Merge After Resolution

Alternatively, freeze the checklist when a work item receives any resolution (for example, “Done”, “Won’t Fix”, “Duplicate”):

nextedy.checklist._TYPEID._FIELDID.mergeTemplateResolved=false

Example:

nextedy.checklist.dod.mergeTemplateResolved=false

Property	Freeze Trigger	Scope
`nextedy.checklist._TYPEID._FIELDID._STATUS.mergeTemplate`	Specific workflow status	Per status
`nextedy.checklist._TYPEID._FIELDID.mergeTemplateResolved`	Any resolution set	All resolved states

You can use status-based and resolution-based freezing together. For example, freeze at the “reviewed” status to lock the checklist during review, and also disable merge after resolution to prevent changes on closed items.

Step 3: Ensure the Checklist Is Initialized Before Freezing

A frozen checklist shows only the data that was stored at the time of freezing. If the template was never applied, the checklist may appear empty. To ensure the template is applied before the freeze takes effect, add the ChecklistApplyTemplate workflow function to the transition that moves the work item into the frozen status.

Configure the workflow function:

Open the workflow editor for the relevant work item type
Select the transition that leads to the frozen status (for example, “Approve”)
Add the workflow function ChecklistApplyTemplate
Set the checklist parameter to the field ID(s):

checklist = dod

Adding a workflow function to the transition

Setting the checklist parameter with comma-separated field IDs

This ensures the latest template content is synchronized into the checklist immediately before the status changes and the freeze takes effect.

Step 4: Make the Checklist Read-Only (Optional)

Freezing stops template merging, but users can still edit checklist items manually. To fully lock the checklist, combine freezing with read-only mode:

Use Polarion’s built-in read-only field configuration to make the custom field non-editable at certain statuses
Use Polarion’s field-based permissions to restrict write access by role

See Read-Only Mode for complete configuration details.

The mergeTemplate=false property only disables automatic template merging. Users can still add, remove, or change checklist items manually. To fully protect the checklist, combine freezing with read-only mode or field permissions.

Type-Specific Freeze Configuration

You can freeze checklists for specific work item types while leaving others unfrozen:

# Freeze DoD for requirements at "reviewed" status
nextedy.checklist.requirement.dod.reviewed.mergeTemplate=false

# Freeze DoD for tasks at "closed" status
nextedy.checklist.task.dod.closed.mergeTemplate=false

# Keep DoD unfrozen for defects (no property needed -- merge is on by default)

Multiple Checklists Freeze

If a work item has multiple checklist fields, configure each one independently:

nextedy.checklist.dod.reviewed.mergeTemplate=false
nextedy.checklist.dor.reviewed.mergeTemplate=false
nextedy.checklist.reviewChecklist.approved.mergeTemplate=false

Freeze and Baselines

Freezing works well alongside baseline tracking. The typical compliance workflow is:

Apply template at a workflow gate to ensure completeness
Freeze the checklist at the approval status to lock the template state
Create a baseline to capture a permanent record of the checklist at that point

This ensures auditors can verify exactly what was checked at each milestone. See Baselines and Comparison for details on creating and comparing baselines.

Verification

After configuring the freeze properties:

Open a work item that is in the frozen status (for example, “Reviewed”)
You should now see the checklist displaying only the items that were present when the status was reached
Modify the template work item by adding a new item
Reopen the frozen work item — the new template item should not appear
Move the work item back to an unfrozen status (for example, “Open”) — the template items should merge again

​When to Freeze

​Step 1: Disable Merge at a Specific Status

​Step 2: Disable Merge After Resolution

​Step 3: Ensure the Checklist Is Initialized Before Freezing

​Step 4: Make the Checklist Read-Only (Optional)

​Type-Specific Freeze Configuration

​Multiple Checklists Freeze

​Freeze and Baselines

​Verification

​See Also

When to Freeze

Step 1: Disable Merge at a Specific Status

Step 2: Disable Merge After Resolution

Step 3: Ensure the Checklist Is Initialized Before Freezing

Step 4: Make the Checklist Read-Only (Optional)

Type-Specific Freeze Configuration

Multiple Checklists Freeze

Freeze and Baselines

Verification

See Also