# Column Menus
The column menus allow you to take actions which will affect a single column within a tracker.
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With the exception of the **Hide Column** option, all column actions **must** be made from the Primary Table view.
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## **Column Dropdown Menu**
**Hide Column**
Click this option to hide a column in a table. Only admins or the table owner can hide and unhide columns.
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To unhide a column, click the **Edit, Reorder, Filter & Group Table** menu option from within the Tools dropdown for tables. This option will bring up the Edit Table pop-up menu. Proceed to Step 2: Setup Columns and toggle the hidden column back on.
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***
**Edit Column Properties**
Selecting **Edit Column Properties**, will bring up the Edit Column Properties dialog box. Changes made to column properties on save will be applied to all the tables & forms in the tracker.
From here, you can edit all fields in a column. If you have created a form with this tracker, changes you make here will also be applied to the form.
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Information **may be lost** from entries if the entered data type no longer matches the column settings.
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The following system generated columns **cannot** be edited or changed:
* Submitted By
* Submitted Date
* Last Modified By
* Last Modified Date
* Submitted By ID
Though these columns cannot be changed or removed, they **can** be hidden using the **Hide Column** option.
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***
**Change Column Type**
Selecting **Change Column Type** will allow you to quickly change the type of field the column is.
The dialog box will show the current column type and allow you to select the new desired column type. Select the desired column type from the dropdown and click on **Convert**.
{% hint style="danger" %}
If the data type of a column is changed, **all the data in the cells will be wiped**. If you have set a default value, all previous data will be replaced with the set default value.
There are some exceptions to the data loss that may occur. The MangoApps algorithm will do its best to convert those existing values into the new data type.
For example, if a text column cell value has a valid date format, data will not be lost when the text column converts to a date column. Howevet, some conversions are not possible. For example, the conversion of a text column to an attachment column will lose all data.
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***
**Insert Column Type Left/Right**
Click this option to add a new column to the left or right of the currently selected column.
***
**Duplicate Column**
To save time when building or modifying tables, you can **duplicate existing columns** in the primary table. This option is available to users who have permission to add new columns.
When selected, the system creates a new column at the **end of the table**, copying all the properties of the original column. You can also choose to copy the existing cell data. Duplicated columns are automatically named using a simple pattern (e.g., "Used Quantity Copy").
**Limitations:**
* System-generated columns (e.g., Submitted Date, Submitted By), tracker lookups, attachments, signatures, auto-number fields, and extra profile fields in User Look-Ahead columns **cannot** be duplicated.
* Workflows linked to the original column are **not** copied. Duplicating a column also does not trigger workflows for existing rows.
Every duplication is recorded in the tracker activity log for auditing purposes.
***
**Delete Column**
Choose this option to permanently remove a column along with all its contents. Deleting the column results in the irreversible loss of data. If you wish to preserve the data, consider hiding the column from the view. Alternatively, you can create a table view without including the column.
***
**Alignment**
Choose the text alignment for cells within the column.
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Separate from the Alignment tool, you can also click and drag the edge of each column to manually resize the column to allow for more room. Once you have adjusted the width of your column, click the new option: **Save Height and Width Changes**.
The max width for a tracker column is 250.
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***
#### Filter a Column
As a tracker is populated with information, it can be helpful to filter the data present within a column.
Click on the filter icon in the column you want to filter. Multiple column filters can be active at a time in one tracker.
Next, select your filter conditions. If desired select **And** or **Or** to further filter the data.
You can also filter by a specific value or values from the column.
Filtered entries are hidden from the user until the user either clears the column filter or refreshes the table. You can clear the filter at anytime by clicking **Clear Column Filters** at the top of the menu.
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The set filter will only appear to the current user. It will not impact other users.
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