An answer code the field does not offer
Find a branch waiting for a code absent from the supplied choice list. Project history is still needed to explain how the mismatch arose.
REDCap branching preflight
Check REDCap branching logic before it hides important fields.
Give FormPath a REDCap Data Dictionary CSV. It checks whether supported branching rules can work with the field names and answer codes in that dictionary—and shows the conflict when they cannot.
FormPath does not run inside REDCap and is not a general REDCap validator. Conclusions are proved on a regression-tested translation of supported dictionary logic. Detected unsupported expressions and dependencies are listed; everything outside the stated dictionary scope still needs native confirmation.
The dictionary stays in this browser. No project credentials, records, or participant data are needed.
What it can catch
Ask whether a supported branch has any way to become true.
FormPath works from stored field names and values—not the labels a reviewer happens to see on screen.
Translated-model proof
A missing or renamed field reference
Surface supported rules that point to a field name absent from the supplied dictionary.
Conditions that cannot all be satisfied
Prove when the known finite values cannot satisfy a supported combination of comparisons.
A working answer example
When the translated rule is reachable, see one concrete answer state that makes it true.
Dictionary workflow
A local preflight before native REDCap testing.
- 1
Export the dictionary
Use the REDCap Data Dictionary CSV—not a participant data export. Remove records, credentials, API tokens, and secrets.
- 2
Inspect the evidence
Review the controlling rule, listed answer values, working state or contradiction, and every detected unsupported dependency.
- 3
Confirm in REDCap
Reproduce consequential findings in the actual project and keep testing events, instruments, records, and workflow behavior that a dictionary alone cannot represent.
Evidence from a public definition
Four site copies waited for an answer code none of them offered
All four branching rules wait for code 17, but none of the four answer lists includes it.
FP–REDCAP–001Four RADAR-CNS study dictionaries
Translated-model proofJuly 2026 REDCap wild review
Four branches expected code 17. None of the supplied fields offered it.
The “describe other ethnicity” question never appears. In the two copies with codes 0–6, that hidden field is also marked required.
Read the complete caseControlling rule
[ethnicity_1] = '17'Available answer codes
Two copies offer '0'–'6' (“Other” = '6'); two offer '18'–'22' (“Other” = '22')TRANSLATED-MODEL PROOF
Scope
What the dictionary can establish—and what it cannot.
A clean translated result means no defect was proved within the completed supported scope. It does not verify the whole REDCap project.
| Dictionary check | FormPath can inspect | Confirm in native REDCap |
|---|---|---|
| Branch references | Supported field references and missing field names | Cross-event references and repeating-instance behavior |
| Stored values | Inline choice codes and supported checkbox references | Values supplied at runtime or outside the dictionary |
| Expressions | Supported comparisons, parentheses, and AND/OR combinations | Smart variables, date functions, server-dependent calculations, and unsupported syntax |
| Project behavior | The translated definition-level rule | Events, instruments, action tags, survey queues, alerts, permissions, records, and display behavior |
Evidence boundary
Translated evidence is useful precisely because it is labeled.
- A proof establishes that no listed dictionary value satisfies the recorded supported translation.
- Unsupported or externally controlled behavior stays visible in the report instead of being counted as a pass.
- FormPath does not certify a REDCap project or replace native testing, governance, or data-quality review.
- FormPath does not audit every required-field behavior across records, instruments, and project settings.
- The CSV is processed locally. FormPath does not connect to the project or upload its definition.
- FormPath is an independent tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by REDCap.
REDCap troubleshooting
Continue with the failure you have.
Start with a branch that does not appear, an unavailable choice code, or a pre-launch dictionary review.
REDCap branching logic not working
Trace a REDCap branch that never appears by checking field names, stored choice codes, checkbox syntax, and logic that depends on the running project.
Read the guideREDCap choice code changed
Find branching rules left behind after a REDCap answer code changes, then distinguish a translated regression from work that still needs native testing.
Read the guideCheck a REDCap dictionary before launch
Add a local definition-level check to REDCap pre-launch testing without confusing translated logic evidence with validation of the live project.
Read the guideDefinition only · no signup
Try an unavailable REDCap choice code safely.
The built-in CSV is fictional and contains no study records. It reproduces the defect shape, not a public source dictionary.
Open the REDCap sample