Articles in this section
Authenticate Emails with SPF, DKIM, and SenderID Auto forward your emails to Vtiger Automate Outgoing Emails in Email Settings Managing User Profiles Automation - Approvals Automation - Assignment Rules Set up Multi-path Workflows Creating a Scheduled Workflow Automation - Workflow Scheduler Workflows in Vtiger CRM Webforms in Vtiger CRM Set up a Workflow Action to Create Event Set up a Workflow Action to Create Records Set up a Workflow Action to Create Task Set up a Workflow Action to Invoke Custom Function Set up a Workflow Action to Create an SMS Task Set up a Workflow Action to Send Mails Workflow Action to Update Fields Automation - Webhook Workflow Automation - Expressions Workflow Configuration - Business Hours Configuration - Company Details Configuration - Consents Configuration - Customer Portal Maps in Vtiger CRM Configuration - Usage Details Configuring Encrypted Data Fields in Vtiger CRM Configure Picklist Dependencies Considerations for Deactivating Vtiger Users Control Fields and Record Displays using Configuration Editor Create Reminders for Records and Inbox Create a field of a Grid type Dealing with Currencies and Taxes Enable Desktop Notifications on Chrome Web Browsers Vtiger CRM Add-ons IMAP Configuration - 2-way sync between Vtiger and IMAP providers Setting up Autopay & Payment Gateways Inventory - Tax Management Inventory - Terms and Conditions Login to Vtiger on SSO SAML using ADFS Mailroom Functionality for Different Scenarios Manage Multiple Currencies Marketing and Sales - Deal to Project Mapping Marketing and Sales - Lead Conversion Data Mapping Marketing and Sales - Profile Scoring Module Management - Labels Editor Module Management - Module Numbering Configure My Preferences Feature My Preferences - Calendar Settings Tags in Vtiger My Preferences - Notification Preferences SAML Support in Vtiger CRM Vtiger Mailroom Settings - Configure Module Settings Settings - Create Dynamic Fields and Layouts Module Management - Creating a Relationship Between Modules Settings - Customize Records and Fields for your Business Settings - How to set email autoresponder to Webform submission? Settings - Left Menu Settings - Manage Global Picklists in Vtiger Settings - Set up your Support Team Settings - Start Up Page Settings - Working with Picklist Values Module Management - Module Builder Support - SLA Policies Troubleshooting Login Issues Add-Edit Unsubscribe Links in your Email Template User Management - Authentication User Management - Encrypted Field Access Logs User Management - Groups User Management - Login History User Management - Profiles User Management - Roles User Management - Settings Log User Management - Sharing Rules User Management - Users User Management - Vtiger Support Access Vtiger Buzz - Chrome Extension for Notifications Vtiger Implementation wizard Vtiger Language Support Configuring Websense Trackers Websense - Widgets Module Management - Modules Module Management - Module Layouts & Fields Generate and Manage Third-party App Passwords in Yahoo Configuring App Passwords for Gmail Outgoing Server and Yahoo Mail Configuration - Storage Guard Customizing your Self-Service Portal Theme Using CSS Styles Automation - SMS Reply Actions Adding Hidden Fields to a Webform Configuring Dependent Fields and Blocks for Modules Auto forward Emails from Microsoft Office 365 Adding Custom Module Login Page Customization Settings - Personalize Module Layouts Formula Fields Creating Custom Filters Adding a local DNS Entry

Duplicate Prevention in Modules

This article will help you prevent the creation of duplicate records.
R
Rashmi Kashyap
16 Jul, 2025 - Updated  6 hours ago
 

Feature Availability

Vtiger Editions: One Pilot | One Growth | One Professional | One Enterprise | One AI

Introduction

Maintaining clean and reliable data is essential for any CRM system. In Vtiger CRM, Duplicate Prevention helps ensure data integrity by stopping the creation of duplicate records within the same module. A duplicate record contains the same key information—such as email, phone number, or name—as another record in that module, leading to confusion and data redundancy.

This feature allows you to define up to three fields to check for duplicates when a new record is created, whether manually, through Imports, Webforms, Workflows, or external integrations. Duplicate prevention is module-specific, so the same value can exist in other modules unless configured separately. By enabling this, you can maintain accurate data, reduce clutter, and improve CRM efficiency.

Note: If you already have duplicate records in the CRM, there is a way you can find them and eliminate them. To know more about finding duplicates, click here

Sources of Duplicate Records

Duplicate records can be introduced into your CRM through various actions and features. Common sources include:

  • Creating, importing, or performing a mass edit on records
  • Adding records using the Quick Create option
  • Automated processes such as Mailroom, Webforms, Workflows, and the Chrome Plugin

By enabling duplicate prevention, the system automatically checks and blocks duplicates from being created through these processes.

Benefits of Duplicate Prevention

The following are the benefits of Duplicate Prevention in CRM:

  • Ensures Data Accuracy: Prevents inconsistent or repeated information from entering the CRM.
  • Saves Time and Effort: Reduces manual clean-up and avoids confusion caused by redundant records.
  • Improves Reporting and Analytics: Clean data leads to more accurate dashboards and insights.
  • Enhances Workflow Efficiency: Automated processes rely on unique data; duplicates can disrupt automation.

In this article, you will learn about:

  • Setting up Duplicate Prevention

Setting up Duplicate Prevention 

By setting up duplicate prevention, you can prevent users and external applications from creating duplicate records in a module. 

Note: Only Admin users can access and set up the duplicate prevention settings.

Follow these steps to set up duplicate prevention for a module:

  1. Log in to the CRM.
  2. Click the User Menu on the top-right corner of the screen.
  3. Click Settings. The Settings page opens. 
  4. Go to Module Management.
  5. Select Module Layouts & Fields. The Module Layouts & Fields page opens. 
  1. Select the module for which you want to set up duplicate prevention from the Select Module drop-down.
  2. Click the Duplicate Prevention tab.
  3. Turn on the Enable duplicate check toggle button.
  4. Select the fields (maximum three) based on which you want to run the duplicate check. 
    1. For example, in the Deals module, if you select Deal Name, users will not be able to create a new Deal with the same name as an existing Deal.
  5. Enable either of the following settings:
    1. Consider as duplicate only if all of the unique fields match - A record is considered a duplicate if all the fields defined match. 
    2. Consider as duplicate if at least one of the unique fields matches - A record is considered a duplicate if at least one of the defined fields matches.
  6. Enable Check closed records also for duplicates to run the duplicate check on closed records. Disable it to ignore closed records while checking for duplicates.
  7. Enable Ignore blank values to avoid searching for duplicates on empty field names. Disable it otherwise. 
  8. Choose an action to take if a duplicate record is found while syncing with an external application.
    1. Prefer latest record - The most recently modified record (CRM or external) will be retained.
    2. Prefer internal record - The record existing in the CRM will be retained.
    3. Prefer external record - The record in the external application will be copied and retained.
  9. Click Save.

Limitations

Below are the key limitations of Duplicate Prevention in Modules:

  • Import: The fields selected for duplicate prevention in Module Layouts & Fields are not considered during data imports. You must manually define duplicate handling fields during the import step.
  • Workflows: Actions that update fields through workflows do not perform duplicate checks, even if those fields are enabled for duplicate prevention.
  • Schedulers: Records created or modified through scheduler-based automation are not validated against duplicate prevention rules.
  • Other Features (e.g., Recurring Invoices, Subscriptions, MailScanner): These features can prevent duplicate records from being created, but they do not notify the user when a duplicate is skipped.

References 

Finding Duplicate Record
Importing Data
Module Layouts and Fields 

Related articles
Module Management - Labels Editor Module Management - Module Numbering
Home Privacy Policy Terms of Service Security Center Policy & Legal Center Contact Us
© Copyright 2025 Vtiger. All rights reserved.
Powered by Vtiger
Facebook Twitter Linkedin Youtube