# How to Configure References in GudHub CRM: Guide Series

GudHub provides three **References** elements for working with relationships between records and fields.

**Item Reference** stores a link to a record, **Data Reference** retrieves data from it, and Element Reference lets you reuse field settings.

In this series, we'll walk through how to configure each element with practical examples.

1. [How to Configure Item Reference](https://gudhub.com/tutorials/getting-started/configuring-references/configuring-item-references/) – Creating Links to Records
2. [How to Configure Data Reference](https://gudhub.com/tutorials/getting-started/configuring-references/configuring-data-reference/) – Retrieving Data from Related Records
3. **How to Configure Element Reference – Reusing Shared Field Settings**

**Element Reference** lets you reuse the settings of another element. For example, if an **Options** field already contains a list of statuses, you can use the same list elsewhere.

This is especially useful for **Options**, **Radio Button**, and **Radio Icon**, particularly when there are many options. Instead of configuring each field separately, you can specify a shared source.

***This is the third and final part of the series on configuring References in GudHub.***

***You can find all the guides in the series [here](https://gudhub.com/tutorials/getting-started/configuring-references/).***

## Step-by-Step Guide to Configuring Element Reference

For this example, we'll use a list of statuses from an **Options** field. Prepare a source field with the required options so that you can connect it to **Element Reference**.

### Step 1. Select the Source Field

Open the **Element Reference** settings. Under **“Field Settings”**, select an application in the **“Application”** field, then select the required element in the “Field” field.

In the video, the source is the **“Options”** field from the **“References”** application.
![scr8](https://app.gudhub.com:443/userdata/41557/1225546.png)
Apply the changes and return to the form. **Element Reference** will now use the settings of the selected source field.

### Step 2. Check the Shared Settings and Independent Selection

Open the list of options in **Element Reference**. It will contain the options from the source field. If you change the options in the source field's settings, those changes will also appear in the linked element.
![scr9](https://app.gudhub.com:443/userdata/41557/1225547.png)
At the same time, the selected value remains independent for each field. For example, selecting **“In Stock”** in the source **"Options"** field does not automatically select the same status in **Element Reference**. The fields share the list settings, not the user's selection.

**Element Reference** is useful when the same set of options is needed in multiple fields. You maintain the list in one source, while users can select values independently in each field.

**Previous part of the series** – [configuring Data Reference](https://gudhub.com/tutorials/getting-started/configuring-references/configuring-data-reference/).

This is the final guide in the series. You can now create links to records, retrieve their data, and reuse field settings.

**View [all the guides](https://gudhub.com/tutorials/getting-started/configuring-references/) in the series.**