Testing a form safely | Doghouse SaaS Knowledge Base [Skip to content](#main) [ ![Doghouse SaaS Knowledge Base](/storage/branding/01M3N8PQ7PSDNQBBKKJM6XGW03.svg) ](https://nginx.deploy-lagoon-production.districtcms-docs.dh1.amazee.io) [Product documentation](/articles) [Roadmap](/roadmap) Toggle navigation [Product documentation](/articles) [Roadmap](/roadmap) 1. [Home](/) › 2. [Product documentation](/articles) › 3. [Forms](/articles?category=8) › 4. Testing a form safely Testing a form safely ===================== Updated 5 days ago · 3 min read Search Search Overview -------- The **Test** tab looks like a safe preview: it opens the real form pre-filled with sample answers, so you can reach the confirmation without typing anything. It is not a preview. Pressing **Submit** on the Test screen runs the exact same process as a genuine submission, with the exact same consequences. The form itself says so, in a line easy to skim past: > *The below webform has been prepopulated with custom/random test data. When submitted, this information will still be saved and/or sent to designated recipients.* > **⚠️ Important:** This is an administrator's job. Content editors have no form permissions, so they cannot reach these screens. --- What pressing Submit actually does ---------------------------------- It might look like What actually happens A preview, with nothing kept afterwards A real, permanent submission, saved exactly like one from a visitor. It appears in **Results** alongside genuine submissions. A quiet check that nobody else sees Every active email and handler fires for real, including sending real notification emails to whoever the form is configured to notify. Sample data that is clearly marked as a test Nothing in **Results** marks a test submission as a test. Once saved, it is indistinguishable from a real one. > **⚠️ Important:** If a form emails a real inbox, such as a team mailbox, testing it on **Test** sends that inbox a real message built from sample data. Use the steps below first, on any form with an email or handler you do not want to trigger. --- Testing without a real email ---------------------------- The reliable way to try a form is to switch off what you do not want to fire, test, then switch it back on. 1. On the form, go to **Settings**, then **Emails / Handlers**. 2. Beside the email or handler you want to silence, press **List additional actions**. 3. Press **Disable**. Its status changes from **Enabled** to **Disabled** immediately, with no confirmation screen. 4. Go to **Test** and submit as normal. The disabled email or handler is skipped, along with anything it would have sent. 5. Return to **Emails / Handlers**, open **List additional actions** again, and press **Enable** to restore it. ![The Emails / Handlers list of the Contact form with the menu beside Edit open and outlined in red, showing Duplicate, Test, Disable and Delete.](/storage/OAIqNDwGUx7zedQOb6zCL9DUolD5aiybRDUj6rH3.png) > **💡 Tip:** Repeat this for every email and handler you do not want to trigger. Disabling one leaves the others live. > **⚠️ Important:** Disabling an email or handler here changes the live form until you re-enable it. A visitor submitting the real form while it is disabled will not trigger it either. --- Testing a single handler ------------------------ The same menu also has its own **Test** link, separate from the form's main **Test** tab. It opens the Test screen with only that one email or handler switched on and everything else on the form switched off for that visit, so you can confirm one handler works without the others also firing. > **ℹ️ Info:** This still sends that one email or handler for real. It narrows what fires, it does not remove the side effect. Use it to check a single handler's wording or settings once you already know you want it to fire. --- Cleaning up afterward --------------------- A test submission sits in **Results** like any other, so remove it the same way once you are done: open the form's **Results** tab, find the row with your sample data, and delete it, or use **Clear** to remove several at once. See [**Reading and exporting form submissions**](/articles/reading-and-exporting-form-submissions). Related articles ------------------ - [ Forms on your site → ](/articles/forms-on-your-site) - [ Confirmations, notifications and spam → ](/articles/confirmations-notifications-and-spam) - [ Reading and exporting form submissions → ](/articles/reading-and-exporting-form-submissions) Was this article helpful? ------------------------- Your feedback helps us prioritise what to rewrite. Yes No [ Back to Forms ](/articles?category=8) On this page **Need additional help?** Submit a support request through the [**support portal** ](https://doghouse.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portals)or email © 2026 [Doghouse SaaS](https://doghouse.agency) [Glossary](/articles/glossary)