QCDS Contacts: What They Store and Why They Matter

Contact mental model and reusable signer data: names, company/title, email addresses, phones, address, preferred language, notes, and how Contacts feed field assignment and participant delivery.

This guide applies to All plans; sender and follows the accepted QC Digital Signature 2.0.7 implementation. Where older walkthrough language differs from the current interface or source behavior, use the current QCDS state as the authority.

Before You Begin

  • Open QCDS from the published frontend Workspace Dashboard menu item and confirm you are signed in as the intended Joomla user.
  • Remember that Contacts and sender settings are workspace-scoped; changing one sender’s workspace should not be treated as a site-global edit.
  • For language-sensitive work, distinguish the Contact Preferred Language from the sender/workspace and administrator fallback languages.

Step-by-Step Workflow

  1. Open the relevant QCDS frontend area from the sender workspace.
  2. Review the existing saved value or Contact before editing it.
  3. Make the intended workspace-scoped change and save it.
  4. Start or open a safe test workflow that uses the updated value.
  5. Confirm the change affects future/use-time behavior without rewriting older sent Requests.

Contact mental model and reusable signer data: names, company/title, email

Participant language is resolved at use time in this order: Contact Preferred Language, sender/workspace Default frontend language, administrator Default frontend language, then English (en-GB). QCDS can translate creator-authored participant communication when needed, while protecting tokens, URLs, and HTML. If safe translation is unavailable, it falls back to the complete frozen source message rather than sending a partially translated mixture.

For QCDS Contacts: What They Store and Why They Matter, verify this behavior using the actual object involved rather than a generic assumption. A global administrator setting, a sender-workspace preference, a reusable Template, and a sent Request have different ownership and history rules. QCDS is intentionally designed so changes for future work do not silently rewrite the evidence of an already-sent transaction.

The current QCDS workflow preserves the intended result

Participant language is resolved at use time in this order: Contact Preferred Language, sender/workspace Default frontend language, administrator Default frontend language, then English (en-GB). QCDS can translate creator-authored participant communication when needed, while protecting tokens, URLs, and HTML. If safe translation is unavailable, it falls back to the complete frozen source message rather than sending a partially translated mixture.

For QCDS Contacts: What They Store and Why They Matter, verify this behavior using the actual object involved rather than a generic assumption. A global administrator setting, a sender-workspace preference, a reusable Template, and a sent Request have different ownership and history rules. QCDS is intentionally designed so changes for future work do not silently rewrite the evidence of an already-sent transaction.

To verify before relying on this behavior in production

Participant language is resolved at use time in this order: Contact Preferred Language, sender/workspace Default frontend language, administrator Default frontend language, then English (en-GB). QCDS can translate creator-authored participant communication when needed, while protecting tokens, URLs, and HTML. If safe translation is unavailable, it falls back to the complete frozen source message rather than sending a partially translated mixture.

How This Fits into the QCDS Workflow

The sender workspace is deliberately private. Contacts, Templates, Requests, Email Template overrides, and sender defaults belong to that workspace so one Joomla user does not accidentally operate another sender’s transaction history.

The workspace model also explains why one user’s Contacts or Email Template override should not be used as global data for another sender. Site-global policy belongs in Administrator settings; sender defaults belong in the sender workspace.

Verify the Result

  • A real test message leaves Joomla and arrives at the intended mailbox with the correct sender identity and format.
  • The Template validates and a new test Request renders the expected field/content behavior without changing older Requests.
  • A direct follow-up test confirms the change affects future/current workflow behavior without rewriting historical sent Request evidence.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Publishing before running Validate and resolving actual configuration problems.
  • Assuming a later Template edit will update a Request that was already sent.
  • Troubleshooting QCDS message content before confirming Joomla itself can send mail.
  • Editing the characters inside a supported token or translating the token name.

Troubleshooting

  • If the email does not arrive, test Joomla mail, check QCDS delivery history, then distinguish authentication/connection problems from a rejected recipient address.

Operational Best Practice

Test meaningful changes with controlled data before relying on them in production. Keep QCDS, Joomla mail, Scheduled Tasks, and entitlement health observable; preserve successful Requests and completed evidence; and make the smallest change that solves the actual problem. For handoff or support, record the QCDS version, relevant Request/Template reference, the exact action taken, and the visible result without including secrets.

Community Discussion

Want to compare workflows, share practical tips, or discuss how you use this QCDS feature? Visit the QC Digital Signature Community. For private support, bug reports, account-specific issues, or feature requests, use the QuantaCade support system.