Rich Text Formatting Loss - Nextedy Documentation

Symptoms

When editing rich text fields in Risksheet, you may notice one or more of these problems:

Line breaks disappear and all text runs together into a single block
HTML formatting (bold, italic, lists, headings) is stripped from the field content
The formatting loss persists in the underlying Siemens Polarion ALM work item XML after saving
Saving the work item from Risksheet permanently removes the original rich text formatting
Content that appeared formatted in the Polarion work item editor looks like a single paragraph in the grid

Understanding the Root Cause

Risksheet does not fully support editing rich text fields. The grid cell editor treats all content as plain text, which means HTML tags and formatting markup are stripped when you edit and save the cell. Because the save operation writes the edited plain text back to the Polarion work item XML, the formatting loss is permanent — the original HTML is overwritten. This behavior affects any field that Polarion stores as rich text (Text type), including description, custom rich text fields, and any field where users have added HTML formatting through the Polarion work item editor.

Once you edit and save a rich text field through the Risksheet grid, the original HTML formatting cannot be recovered. The plain text value replaces the rich text content in the Polarion work item. Always use one of the workarounds below before allowing users to edit rich text fields in the grid.

Switch to Multi-Line Text Type

The recommended workaround is to configure the column as type text instead of relying on rich text editing. This treats the field as plain text and prevents HTML formatting markup from being misinterpreted on save:

columns:
  - id: description
    header: Description
    bindings: description
    type: text
    cellCss: wrapText

With type: text, the field is treated as plain text. Line breaks entered in the cell editor are preserved on save. Text wrapping is controlled via the styles section using a CSS class referenced by cellCss — not through a column-level boolean property:

styles:
  '.wrapText': '{white-space: pre-wrap !important; word-break: break-word !important;}'

Setting the column type to text and applying a cellCss style with white-space: pre-wrap is the recommended approach for description fields, notes, and any field where users need to enter paragraph-style content. This avoids the rich text stripping issue while still allowing structured multi-line input.

The following table compares the behavior of each configuration option:

Configuration	Editable	Line Breaks	HTML Formatting	Use Case
`type: text` + wrap style	Yes	Preserved	Not rendered	Multi-line descriptions, notes
`serverRender` + `readOnly: true`	No	Preserved	Rendered	Display-only formatted content
`serverRender`	No	Preserved	Full HTML control	Complex rendering, clickable links
Default (no type override)	Yes	Lost on edit	Stripped on edit	Avoid for rich text fields

Configure Read-Only Rich Text Display

If you need to display rich text content with full formatting but do not need users to edit the field inline, render the field through a server-side Velocity template and mark the column read-only. HTML rendering in cells is handled by serverRender (Velocity), not by a column-level toggle:

columns:
  - id: description
    header: Description
    bindings: description
    readOnly: true
    serverRender: "$item.fields().description().render().htmlFor().forFrame()"

The serverRender template emits the rendered HTML, preserving bold text, lists, links, and other HTML elements. Setting readOnly: true prevents users from editing the content through the grid, which protects the original formatting from being stripped.

Users who need to modify the field content can open the work item directly in the Polarion work item editor, where full rich text editing is available.

Use Server-Rendered Columns for Complex Content

For fields that require complex HTML rendering with clickable links, images, or custom formatting logic, use server-rendered columns with Velocity templates:

columns:
  - id: description
    header: Description
    bindings: description
    serverRender: "$item.fields().description().render().htmlFor().forFrame()"

For custom rich text fields, use the generic get() method with the field ID:

columns:
  - id: riskNotes
    header: Risk Notes
    bindings: riskNotes
    serverRender: "$item.fields().get('riskNotes').render().htmlFor().forFrame()"

Columns with serverRender are implicitly read-only — server-rendered content cannot be edited through the grid. This approach gives you full control over the display via Velocity templates while protecting the underlying rich text content from accidental modification.

Verify Export Behavior

When exporting to Excel or PDF, rich text fields behave differently depending on column configuration. Ensure your chosen approach produces acceptable export output:

Column Type	Excel Export Behavior	PDF Export Behavior
`type: text`	Plain text with line breaks preserved	Plain text with line breaks
`serverRender` (read-only display)	HTML stripped, plain text extracted	HTML stripped, plain text extracted
`serverRender` (complex template)	Server-rendered HTML converted to plain text; `<li>` elements become newline-separated entries	HTML content converted to plain text

There is a known issue where PDF export may truncate text in cells due to a cell height calculation regression. If you notice truncated text in PDF exports of rich text or multi-line columns, this is a known bug with a fix planned at highest priority. Multi-page risks may also exhibit unwanted text repetition in PDF output.

Decision Matrix: Choosing the Right Approach

Use this matrix to select the best configuration for your specific scenario:

Verification

After applying your chosen configuration:

Reload the Risksheet page to pick up the sheet configuration changes
If you used type: text — edit a cell, add line breaks, save, and confirm the line breaks persist after page reload
If you used a read-only serverRender column — verify the cell displays formatted content (bold, lists) and that clicking the cell does not open an editor
If you used serverRender with a complex template — verify the cell renders the Velocity output and that links are clickable

You should now see multi-line text content displayed with line breaks preserved in the Risksheet grid, with no formatting loss on save.

​Symptoms

​Understanding the Root Cause

​Decision Matrix: Choosing the Right Approach

​Verification

​See Also

Symptoms

Understanding the Root Cause

Decision Matrix: Choosing the Right Approach

Verification

See Also