Check a Merge Template for Possible Issues

Word merge templates can contain problems that are easy to miss by eye — leftover fields from editing in Word, repeating rows laid out in a way the merge engine cannot process, or field names that will never match your data. The Check feature runs a quick automated inspection of a template so you can catch these problems at upload time instead of discovering them when a workflow merge fails in production.

IMPORTANT: This is a quick pre-check only. It runs a test merge using generated sample data, so it can prove the template's structure is sound, but it cannot prove your real data will merge the way you intend. The true test is still merging the template inside a real Record and reviewing the output.

How to access it

Open the Record Type that owns the template and go to its Merge Templates section. Each template row has a binoculars icon — Check this template for possible issues. Click it and the results appear in a dialog after a few seconds.

The check currently supports Word templates (.docx, .doc, .dotx). PDF and Excel templates are not checked — test those by merging them inside a Record.

What it checks

The check runs in two layers. First it inspects the template's structure, then it performs a real test merge through the same merge engine your workflows use, feeding it sample data generated from the template's own merge fields.

Results are listed by severity:

Error — the template failed the test merge. It will fail the same way in production, so fix this before using the template.
Warning — the template merges, but something about it will likely produce a wrong or surprising result.
Info — worth knowing, but often intentional (for example, a field that comes from a workflow variable rather than the Record Type).

Specific problems it detects:

A merge field hidden inside another merge field. When a merge field is edited in place, Word can leave the old field wrapped around the new one. Only the outer (old) field merges; the one you see on screen is discarded. Fix it by deleting the field in Word and inserting a fresh one.
Repeating fields spread across more than one table row. Repeating (#|) fields must live in a single table row. If they span several rows, only the first row repeats and the others are removed during the merge.
Fragile characters in field names. Characters like /, & and quotes inside a field name can be mangled by Word's field codes and cause the field to merge blank. Stick to letters, numbers and underscores.
Malformed tokens. Unbalanced brackets or parentheses, and TABLE tokens missing their |#| row placeholder.
Fields that match nothing in the Record Type. These merge blank unless the data exists on the Record or comes from a system or workflow variable — listed as Info so you can confirm each one is intentional.

TIPS

Run the check right after uploading a new or edited template — it takes seconds and catches the most common mistakes immediately.
An Error on the "Test Merge" line is the one that matters most: that exact failure is what your users would see in production.
After a clean check, still do one real merge inside a Record with representative data. The check proves the template can merge; only real data proves it merges correctly.
If you edit a merge field's text in Word and the check starts flagging a nested field, don't try to repair it in place — delete the field and insert a new one.