Overview
When you create an email signature template in ExSign, you may include placeholders that are filled dynamically with attribute values from Active Directory (AD) or Entra ID. If any of these attributes are missing for a user, it can result in empty spaces in the final signature.
To prevent this and keep your signature clean and professional, ExSign offers a built-in feature called Remove Text (RT). This article explains how to use RT tags to automatically remove placeholders and the surrounding text or structure when data is not available.
Why This Happens
Signature templates often include placeholders like {phone}, {title}, or {department}. These are automatically filled when an email is sent, pulling values from AD or Entra ID. However, if a user doesn't have data in a specific attribute, the placeholder is left blank — which results in unnecessary white space or incomplete sections in the signature.
Solution: Use RT Tags to Clean Signatures Automatically
ExSign allows you to wrap such placeholders in RT tags, which means:
- If the attribute value is missing, ExSign automatically removes the placeholder.
- You can also include surrounding text (like labels or HTML elements), which will also be removed if the data is not present.
This ensures the signature remains visually consistent for every user, even when some information is missing in AD.
Steps to Use RT Tags in ExSign
- Login to ExSign Portal
- Go to Rules → Manage Rules.
- Click Edit next to the rule you want to modify.
- In the editor, go to the Source Code tab to view the HTML.
- Locate the placeholder you want to manage (e.g., {phone}, {title}, etc.).
- Highlight the attribute or any surrounding content (like labels or table rows).
- Click on the RT button located in the top-left of the editor.
- The selected portion will now be wrapped in <rt>...</rt>, enabling ExSign to automatically remove that block when no data is found for that attribute.
- Save the rule.
Example
Before using RT:
<tr><td>Phone: {phone}</td></tr>
If {phone} is empty, this will leave a blank line in the email signature.
After using RT:
<rt><tr><td>Phone: {phone}</td></tr></rt>
Now, if {phone} has no value in AD, the entire row is removed from the signature.
Important Note
⚠️ Do not remove or modify the email attribute in Active Directory or Entra ID.
ExSign depends on this attribute to apply the signature. If the email field is missing or altered, the signature will not be assigned to that user.
Summary
Using the RT tag feature in ExSign helps maintain clean and properly formatted email signatures by removing any fields or structure that depend on missing AD or Entra ID data. This feature is especially useful when dealing with optional fields like phone number, job title, or department.