Working Offline & Syncing

Keep working without a signal — the app saves everything on your phone and sends it up when you're back online.

Field Pro is built for the field, where the signal comes and goes. You capture your work as you go, and the app syncs it (sends it to the server and pulls down any updates) whenever there's a connection.

What works offline

Almost everything you do day to day works with no signal at all:

Visits — check in, add notes and photos, mark complete
Orders and payments
Leads and new outlets
Forms
Attendance — clock in and out
Shelf audits and stock counts
Saved locations
Audits and share summaries

Your work is saved on the phone the moment you capture it. It doesn't matter if you're online or off.

What needs a connection

A few things talk to the server live, so they only work when you're online:

Requesting leave and filing expenses
The Team screen (for managers)
Stats and the leaderboard
Editing a confirmed order (one that's already been placed)
Converting a lead into a customer

Note: If you try one of these offline, the app tells you to get online first. Everything else keeps working as normal.

The sync strip

On the Today screen there's a small strip that shows whether you're Online or Offline, the time of your last sync, and a Sync button. Tap Sync any time to send your work up and pull down the latest. The app also syncs on its own when it can.

📷 [SHOT: offline-sync-1] — mobile — Today screen sync strip showing Online status, last sync time, and the Sync button — caption: "The sync strip: your connection, your last sync, and a button to sync now."

When sync has trouble

Sometimes a sync can't finish — maybe the signal dropped halfway. You'll see an amber banner that says there was a sync error — tap to retry. Tap it to try again when you have a signal. Your work is safe on the phone in the meantime.

📷 [SHOT: offline-sync-2] — mobile — Amber "sync error — tap to retry" banner on the Today screen — caption: "An amber banner means a sync didn't finish — tap to retry."

The "Needs attention" list

Once in a while the server refuses a record — for example, something about it isn't valid. Instead of blocking everything else, the app sets that one record aside so the rest of your work can still sync. You'll see a red "Needs attention" banner listing those records, each with a plain-language reason.

For each set-aside record you can:

Read the reason to understand what went wrong.
Retry it — useful once the cause is fixed.
Stop trying — put it aside for good.

Note: Even when a record is set aside, your data stays on the phone. Nothing is deleted — it's just held back so it can't hold up everything else.

📷 [SHOT: offline-sync-3] — mobile — Red "Needs attention" list showing set-aside records with reasons, Retry and Stop trying — caption: "Records the server refused are set aside with a reason — read it, Retry, or Stop trying."

How capture, sync, and "Needs attention" fit together

flowchart TD
  A[You capture work] --> B[Saved on your phone]
  B --> C{Online?}
  C -->|No| B
  C -->|Yes| D[Sync sends it up]
  D --> E{Server accepts it?}
  E -->|Yes| F[Synced — done]
  E -->|No| G[Set aside in Needs attention]
  G --> H{Read the reason}
  H -->|Fixed, try again| D
  H -->|Stop trying| I[Held on your phone]

You capture work — a visit, order, payment, and so on. It's saved on your phone right away.
If you're offline, it waits safely on the phone.
When you're online, sync sends it up.
The server accepts most records — those are now synced and done.
If the server refuses a record, it's set aside in the Needs attention list with a reason.
Read the reason. Once the cause is sorted, Retry. Or Stop trying to hold it on the phone.

Photos — proof of payment, outlet shots, receipts — upload after a sync, not the moment you take them. So a picture you snap offline goes up once you're back online and synced.

Note: Some records — customers, leads, orders, and form responses — have a Share action that sends a plain-text summary (and a maps link) you can pass on by message. It uses your photo and details from the record.

Best practice: Sync whenever you get a signal — start of day, after a few stops, end of day. Frequent syncing keeps your work backed up and your photos uploaded.