Help text for hidden fields is visible in admin fieldsets

[Richard Laager]

This is present in 4.2 through git main.

If a field is hidden, its help_text shows.

This regressed in commit 96a598356a9ea8c2c05b22cadc12e256a3b295fd:
​https://github.com/django/django/commit/96a598356a9ea8c2c05b22cadc12e256a3b295fd

from PR 16161:
​https://github.com/django/django/pull/16161

This happened because the <div class="help"> is now after, as opposed to inside, the <div> that gets class "hidden".

There are two possible fixes:

A) Do not output the help div at all:

--- a/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/includes/fieldset.html
+++ b/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/includes/fieldset.html
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@
                                 {% endif %}
                             {% endif %}
                         </div>
-                    {% if field.field.help_text %}
+                    {% if field.field.help_text and not field.field.is_hidden %}
                         <div class="help"{% if field.field.id_for_label %} id="{{ field.field.id_for_label }}_helptext"{% endif %}>
                             <div>{{ field.field.help_text|safe }}</div>
                         </div>

B) Set "hidden" on the help div:

--- a/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/includes/fieldset.html
+++ b/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/includes/fieldset.html
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@
                             {% endif %}
                         </div>
                     {% if field.field.help_text %}
-                        <div class="help"{% if field.field.id_for_label %} id="{{ field.field.id_for_label }}_helptext"{% endif %}>
+                        <div class="help{% if field.field.is_hidden %} hidden{% endif %}"{% if field.field.id_for_label %} id="{{ field.field.id_for_label }}_helptext"{% endif %}>
                             <div>{{ field.field.help_text|safe }}</div>
                         </div>
                     {% endif %}

Either fix works. I'm just not sure stylistically which one you want.

[Sarah Boyce]

Thank you Richard! Would you like to prepare a PR?

On what is the "right" way to fix it, I think either approach works, I would perhaps add the "hidden" class.

As a rough idea of a regression test, something like this might work (depending on the approach):

tests/admin_inlines/models.py

@@ -332 +332 @@
 
 class SomeChildModel(models.Model):
     name = models.CharField(max_length=1)
-    position = models.PositiveIntegerField()
+    position = models.PositiveIntegerField(help_text="Position help_text.")
     parent = models.ForeignKey(SomeParentModel, models.CASCADE)
     readonly_field = models.CharField(max_length=1)
 

tests/admin_inlines/tests.py

@@ -383 +383 @@
             response.rendered_content,
         )
         self.assertInHTML(
-            '<div class="flex-container fieldBox field-position hidden">'
-            '<label class="inline">Position:</label>'
-            '<div class="readonly">1</div></div>',
+            '<div class="help hidden"><div>Position help_text.</div></div>',
             response.rendered_content,
         )

[Richard Laager]

​https://github.com/django/django/pull/18573/

[Sarah Boyce <42296566+sarahboyce@…>]

In 16af0c60:

Fixed #35755 -- Hid help text of hidden fields in admin fieldsets.

Regression in 96a598356a9ea8c2c05b22cadc12e256a3b295fd.