If a CodingField or ExtraDataField has been used but is no longer needed, clearing the field name will deactivate the field.
Example
While this example is specific to the Complaint Handling module, similar steps can be applied to configurable fields in any module.
A CodingField and an ExtraDataField have been added to Complaints. The fields are no longer used, so they need to be removed.
Click Configure Complaint
Click Configure Complaint Fields
Click “Edit” on the CodingField or ExtraDataField
4. Clear the Name field. For CodingFields, the list of valid values may be cleared, but it is not required.
Blanking out the field name does not remove the field's existing values for each item (e.g. Complaint) in the database. If a previously used configurable field is disabled and then re-enabled for another purpose, the previous values will be shown in the new field. Use the Administrative Update for Field Values function to initialize the values for the new field.