User profiles have a Display Name field that is often useful to allow users to specify a name other than their username to be used when they are identified in the site as a content contributor of some kind. This is often filled out by entering the person's full name again or their username. However, many site visitors don't want their username to be displayed nor do they want their actual name to be displayed. This is where the Display Name field becomes useful. A user can specify another alias of some kind to be known as on the website.
There are many reasons that you might want to edit the Display Name field to either remove it or auto-fill it. The great thing is that this is possible. When you are logged in as an Administrator, you can modify how this setting works in Admin > Site Settings.
- Go to the User Account Tab (DNN v6.x and newer)
- Maximize the Registration Settings section if necessary (DNN v6.x and newer)
- Find the Display Name Format field
Tokens
In the Display Name Format field, you can alter the way this profile property is filled out on behalf of the user. If you enter any value into this setting and save it, the Display Name will no longer be a property that can be edited by the user. The format field accepts the following tokens and replaces them with the appropriate information as shown below.
Token |
Description |
[FIRSTNAME] |
Replaced with the value entered into the First Name field from the respective user profile |
[LASTNAME] |
Replaced with the value entered into the Last Name field from the respective user profile |
[USERNAME] |
Replaced with the username of the respective user profile |
[USERID] |
Replaced with the UserId of the respective user profile |
No other tokens are supported at this time and any other value entered is ignored, but still has the effect of disabling the Display Name feature.
Social Sites
It is highly recommended that you do not use the tokens for the Display Name for your site if you are using any social features. Instead, you should allow this field to be modified as desired by the end-user. However, to avoid confusion, you should also check the checkbox for the companion setting labeled
Require Unique Display Name. This will ensure that the name that is associated with user contributed content is unique to that user account.
Additional Resources