Schema: partner_firstname

Technical Truth - Models, API endpoints, and data structures

Module Overview

Attribute	Value
Technical Name	`partner_firstname`
Version	18.0.1.0.1
Total Models	3 (all inherit existing models)
Total Controllers	0
API Endpoints	0

Models

res.partner (Inherited)

Purpose: Adds firstname/lastname fields and makes name computed

Field	Type	Required	Description
`firstname`	Char	No*	First name, indexed
`lastname`	Char	No*	Last name, indexed
`name`	Char	No	Computed from firstname + lastname

*At least one of firstname or lastname required for contacts (not addresses)

Key Methods:

Method	Purpose	Returns
`_compute_name()`	Computes `name` from firstname/lastname	None
`_inverse_name_after_cleaning_whitespace()`	Splits name back to parts	None
`_get_inverse_name(name, is_company)`	Parses full name into parts	dict {lastname, firstname}
`_get_computed_name(lastname, firstname)`	Joins parts into full name	string
`_get_names_order()`	Gets configured name order	string
`_install_partner_firstname()`	Migrates existing names on install	None

Name Order Options:

Order	Code	Example
First Last	`first_last`	"John Smith"
Last First	`last_first`	"Smith John"
Last, First	`last_first_comma`	"Smith, John"

Constraints:
- Contact-type partners must have at least firstname OR lastname
- Company names go to lastname only (firstname stays empty)

res.users (Inherited)

Purpose: Extends user with firstname/lastname support

Inherits the same firstname/lastname fields from res.partner.

res.config.settings (Inherited)

Purpose: Adds name order configuration to Settings

Field	Type	Required	Description
`partner_names_order`	Selection	Yes	Order for composing full name
`partner_names_order_changed`	Boolean	No	Flag when order changed

Selection Options:
- last_first - "Lastname Firstname"
- last_first_comma - "Lastname, Firstname"
- first_last - "Firstname Lastname"

Key Methods:

Method	Purpose	Returns
`action_recalculate_partners_name()`	Recalculates all partner names with new order	True

Configuration Parameters

Stored in ir.config_parameter:

Key	Default	Purpose
`partner_names_order`	`first_last`	How to compose full name
`partner_names_order_changed`	(empty)	Flag for UI indication

Name Parsing Logic

When creating partner with full name:

# Input: name = "John Smith"
# Order: first_last
# Result: firstname = "John", lastname = "Smith"

# Input: name = "Smith, John"
# Order: last_first_comma
# Result: firstname = "John", lastname = "Smith"

When computing name from parts:

# firstname = "John", lastname = "Smith"
# Order: first_last → "John Smith"
# Order: last_first → "Smith John"
# Order: last_first_comma → "Smith, John"

For companies:
- Full name goes to lastname
- firstname stays empty

Hooks

post_init_hook

File: hooks.py

Called after module installation to split existing partner names into firstname/lastname.

def post_init_hook(cr, registry):
    env = api.Environment(cr, SUPERUSER_ID, {})
    env["res.partner"]._install_partner_firstname()

Exceptions

File: exceptions.py

Exception	When Raised
`EmptyNamesError`	Contact has neither firstname nor lastname

View Modifications

res.partner Form

Adds firstname/lastname fields in header
Makes name field readonly for persons
Shows firstname/lastname in edit mode

res.users Form

Same modifications as partner form

res.config.settings Form

Adds "Partner names order" selection
Adds "Recalculate Names" button

Data Flow Diagram

┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│     User Input / Import         │
│  "John Smith" OR               │
│  firstname="John"              │
│  lastname="Smith"              │
└──────────────┬──────────────────┘
               │
               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│       res.partner.create()      │
│                                 │
│  If name provided without       │
│  firstname/lastname:            │
│    → _get_inverse_name()        │
│    → Split into parts           │
└──────────────┬──────────────────┘
               │
               ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│       res.partner               │
│                                 │
│  firstname = "John"             │
│  lastname = "Smith"             │
│  name = computed ───────────────┼──► "John Smith" (or other order)
└─────────────────────────────────┘
               ▲
               │
┌──────────────┴──────────────────┐
│     ir.config_parameter         │
│                                 │
│  partner_names_order = "first_last"
└─────────────────────────────────┘

Security Rules

No custom security rules. Uses inherited res.partner permissions.

Database Tables

Table Name	Model	Purpose
`res_partner`	`res.partner`	Extended with firstname, lastname columns
`res_users`	`res.users`	Extended with firstname, lastname columns

Indexes:
- firstname - indexed for search performance
- lastname - indexed for search performance

Tests

Comprehensive test suite in tests/:
- test_config_settings.py - Settings behavior
- test_copy.py - Partner copying
- test_create.py - Partner creation
- test_defaults.py - Default values
- test_delete.py - Deletion behavior
- test_empty.py - Empty name handling
- test_name.py - Name computation
- test_order.py - Name ordering
- test_partner_form.py - Form behavior
- test_user_form.py - User form behavior

Change History

Date	Change	By
2025-01-26	Initial schema documentation	CTO Module Docs Agent