Multiple timestamps per record

[JayRussell]

Hi all.

My fire register / In-Out tracker is coming along nicely.  The next goal is to be able to track time in and out.

I can patch a time stamp to a record but what I'd like id to is every time the person scans a new timestamp is recorded -not overwriting the existing data.

Scancount	Status	Timestamp
1	in	TS1
2	out	TS2
3	in	TS3
4	out	TS4

So, in terms of logic, I want:

If TS1=blank Update TS1, If TS1<>Blank, Update TS2 (unless TS2 is not blank)

OR

(There is a counter field, which tracks the number of scans)

If scancounter=0 then update TS1, if counter=1 update TS2 (etc)

Is this do-able via a patch command?

(I've had some excellent help from this forum so far, when i've finished I'll share the app. A week ago I knew nothing about PowerApps!)

Jay

[jlindstrom]

I would put the scans in a separate entity/list. relate it to the parent record with a lookup field.

So every time someone scans, patch a timestamp record.

This will give you a nice 1:N timestamp history, and you can easily do a count of the timestamp records related to the parent record and can see number of scans in a date range, etc.

This also gives you the option to archive scan records, and see who is doing what scans. A lot more detail than what you can get with just a counter field on the main record.

[JayRussell]

Thanks, @jlindstrom 

If I understand correctly, I'd have a second sharepoint list which just recorded Name (thats the scanned data) and the time of the record. So an individual would create multiple entries:

Name	Timestamp	(Meaning)
Fred	9am	Entry 1
Bob	9.05am	Entry 1
Fred	12pm	Exit 1 (lunch)
Fred	12.30pm	Entry 2 (lunch return)

I could pull from this a count -which would determine in/out status. And using max/min type calculations determine Time in and out (start/end of day etc)

[jlindstrom · Accepted solution]

that's it @JayRussell 

This design is much more scalable, and also designs it in a way that could be moved to a relational database later if it grows beyond the capabilities of SharePoint lists.