How To Add a Custom Text Field in SAS Model Risk Management (Video Walkthrough)
This post walks you through the end-to-end process of adding a custom text field to the Model object in SAS MRM.
Why Add a Custom Text Field?
Out-of-the-box, SAS MRM comes with a rich set of predefined fields. But every organization has unique data capture requirements that go beyond the defaults. A custom text field lets you:
- Capture free-form context that doesn't fit a dropdown or date field
- Store internal identifiers, owner names, or justification text alongside your model records
- Surface that data in inventory views and reports
For this walkthrough, we'll use x_mrm_model_purpose — a field to store the primary purpose of each model in free-text form.
What You'll Need
- Administrator or Super user permissions (Settings → Data Load)
- Access to SAS Risk Cirrus Builder
- An Excel workbook to serve as your data loader file
Prerequisites: Loaders That Must Already Exist
The RegistrationFieldDefinitions loader references data that must already be loaded into SAS MRM before your new field can be registered successfully. If you are working in a fresh or partially configured environment, confirm that the following loaders have already been run:
SourceSystems — Defines the source system codes used to identify where configuration data originates. The registration.sourceSystemCd value in your RegistrationFieldDefinitions sheet (e.g., RCC) must exist here before it can be referenced.
Registrations — Registers the object types in SAS MRM, such as Model, Finding, or ModelReview. The registration.id value in your RegistrationFieldDefinitions sheet (e.g., Model) must correspond to an existing registration. The source system code and registration ID together must be unique.
If any of these are missing, your data load will return errors during the preview step. Resolve prerequisite loaders first before attempting to load RegistrationFieldDefinitions.
Step 1: Build the RegistrationFieldDefinitions Data Loader
The RegistrationFieldDefinitions sheet is how you formally register a new field in the SAS MRM data model. Specifically for registering a new text field, this is the only sheet you need (as long as you already have the prerequisite data loaders loaded).
Create a new Excel workbook and add a worksheet named exactly: RegistrationFieldDefinitions.
You can download the data loader template from Data Load > View Available Loaders or download the fields already in your system by using the REST API:
{HOST URL}/riskCirrusObjects/objectRegistrations/export.
Then add the following columns and their values:
| Column | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
registration.sourceSystemCd |
RCC |
References the source system for the object registration (Model) |
registration.id |
Model |
The object this field belongs to |
registrationFieldDefinitions.name |
x_mrm_model_purpose | The internal field identifier. Must start with x_. Cannot start with cirrus or use reserved field names. Max 100 characters. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.type |
string |
For a text field, use string. Other valid types include boolean, date, double, optionCd, html, jsonObject, jsonArray, and timestamp. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.maxLength |
(leave blank) | Sets the maximum character length for the field value. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.description |
Primary Model Purpose |
Optional. Not currently surfaced in the product UI, but useful for documentation purposes. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.globalSearchEnabled |
TRUE |
Optional. When TRUE, the field is included in global search. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.multiValued |
(leave blank) | Generally applies to optionCd type. |
registrationFieldDefinitions.listName |
(leave blank) | Only required for optionCd type. References the NamedLists data loader for multiple options. |
Save the workbook — for example, as mrm_primary_purpose_loader.xlsx.
Step 2: Load the Data into SAS MRM
With your workbook ready, navigate to Settings → Data Load in SAS MRM.
- Upload your Excel workbook
- Set Processing mode to Preview results
- Review the preview output and resolve any errors
- Re-select the file and rerun with Process all valid records
If the load is successful, the field is now registered in the SAS MRM data model. It exists in the system, but it isn't visible to users yet — that happens in the next step.
Step 3: Register the Field in SAS Risk Cirrus Builder
SAS Risk Cirrus Builder is where you control what appears on the Model page. You'll need to add the new field to the object and then drag it onto the page.
Add the Field to the Model Object
- Open SAS Risk Cirrus Builder from the Applications menu → Manage Risk Solutions → SAS MRM solution card
- Expand the navigation menu using the double arrows in the bottom left
- Navigate to Pages → MRM Model
- Create a copy (snapshot) of the out-of-the-box Model page and rename it — for example,
X_MRM Model - From the left navigation menu, hover over Objects → Model and click the pencil icon to open the Edit an Object window
- Under General, set the Default page to your copied page (
X_MRM Model) - Expand the Fields header
- Click + New field and fill in the following:
- Identifier:
x_mrm_model_purpose(must match theregistrationFieldDefinitions.namefrom your data loader) - Label:
Primary Model Purpose - Input type: Text
- Searchable: true
- Sortable: true
- Shown in object tables by default: true
- Identifier:
- Click OK, then OK again to close the Edit an Object window.
- Navigate to the Components panel and click the Fields tab
- In the filter, search for
Primary Model Purpose - Select the Details tab on your
X_MRM Modelpage - Drag and drop the Primary Model Purpose field onto the page in your desired location
- Resize the field as needed
- Click Save and add a commit message, such as: Registered new Primary Model Purpose text field
Step 4: Validate and Preview
- Click Manage Versions
- Under Solution releases, select the version you want to preview
- Click Preview — this opens the commit in a new window
- Navigate to the Models page and open any model record
- Under the Details tab, you should see the new Primary Model Purpose text field
Step 5: Surface the Field in Reports
Once the field is live on the Model page and populated with data, the next logical step is making it available in your SAS Visual Analytics dashboard. That process is not covered in this post.
What's important to know is that adding a field to the Model page and having it appear in a dashboard report are two separate activities. A field can exist on a Model record without being available for reporting.
To surface it in a dashboard, you'll need to update your reporting configuration so the system knows the field exists, how to extract it, and how to shape it for display.
This is covered in a follow-up post. For now, the goal is simply to confirm that your new x_mrm_model_purpose field is visible on the Model page and accepting input.
Quick Reference: RegistrationFieldDefinitions Columns for a Text Field
| Column | Required? | Value for Text Field |
|---|---|---|
registration.sourceSystemCd |
Yes | RCC |
registration.id |
Yes | Model |
registrationFieldDefinitions.name |
Yes | x_yourFieldName |
registrationFieldDefinitions.type |
Yes | string |
registrationFieldDefinitions.maxLength |
No | e.g. 200 |
registrationFieldDefinitions.description |
No | Optional documentation text |
registrationFieldDefinitions.globalSearchEnabled |
No | TRUE or FALSE |
registrationFieldDefinitions.multiValued |
No | Leave blank |
registrationFieldDefinitions.listName |
No | Leave blank |
What's Next?
Now that x_mrm_model_purpose is registered and visible on the Model page, the next step is making it useful in reporting. In a follow-up post, we'll walk through how to connect this field all the way through to a column in your SAS Visual Analytics dashboard, so the data your team is entering actually shows up where decisions get made.
