Why this module?

Odoo's native char field accepts free text. This widget turns it into a structured multi-select control. Selected values are stored as a single separator-separated string, making it fully compatible with any existing Char field without migrations.

Designs

checkbox (default)

• Edit mode: responsive multi-column grid of checkboxes.
• Readonly mode: the same grid with all checkboxes disabled — users can always see all available options and which are selected.

badge

• Edit mode: selected values appear as colored badge tokens, each with a × button to deselect. A search input filters the unselected options shown below. If allow_new is True, the search input doubles as an add-new field — press Enter or click + to add a custom value.
• Readonly mode: only the selected badges are shown, no controls.

Options

• values — Predefined list of options.
  Example: ['Engine', 'Rims', 'Spoilers', 'Flaps']
• separator — Character used to join/split stored values. Default: ','.
• columns — Number of columns in the checkbox grid. Default: 2.
• design — 'checkbox' (default) or 'badge'.
• allow_new — True / False. When True, the user can type and save custom values not in the predefined list. Default: False.

Screenshots

XML usage

<!-- Checkbox design (default) -->
<field name="parts"
       widget="multi_selection_char"
       options="{
           'values': ['Engine', 'Rims', 'Spoilers', 'Flaps'],
           'columns': 2
       }"/>

<!-- Badge design with allow_new -->
<field name="tags"
       widget="multi_selection_char"
       options="{
           'values': ['Urgent', 'Review', 'Approved'],
           'design': 'badge',
           'allow_new': True
       }"/>
    

Unknown value handling

If the database contains values not present in the configured values list (e.g. from a migration or manual edit), they surface automatically at the bottom of the list in warning color and are pre-selected. This prevents silent data loss when the predefined list changes.