A work order brings together tasks that belong to the same body of work. You can use it, for example, to group work for a customer. Attaching tasks does not copy them: the Spot, due date, responsibilities and completion are still managed in each task's own details.

Before you start

Work order basic information is created and maintained in the browser. Creating, editing and deleting require separate permissions. Viewing permission alone does not allow you to change information. When adding tasks to an existing work order, you also need permission to edit the tasks you are attaching.

Create a work order

  1. In the browser menu, open Manage tasks → Work orders. Select Create new work order at the top of the page.
  2. On the form's Basic info tab, enter a Name and Work order number. Both are required. The number must be unique; the name can be the same as another work order's name.
  3. If needed, enter a Description, up to 2048 characters long. Select a Customer if the work belongs to a customer. You can also leave the customer blank.
  4. If needed, enter a Begin date and End date. For each, select a time as well as a date. You can leave these blank.
  5. Add any attachments in the Attachments section on the same tab using the Add files button. You can select PDF files, images and Office documents, for example.
  6. If you want to attach tasks straight away, open the form's Tasks tab and select Attach task to. Select the tasks and press the Save button in the task selection window. This brings your selections into the work order form; it does not save the work order yet.
  7. Finally, press the Save button at the bottom of the work order form. You can also create a work order without tasks and attach them later.

A new work order is Open. If saving reports that the number is already in use, check the existing work order before entering a new number. The work may already have been set up.

Attachments for a new work order start uploading after the work order is saved. Wait for the upload to finish and check the attachments by reopening the work order. For more detailed task selection instructions, see How do I attach tasks to a work order?

What the dates mean

The begin and end times describe the work order's time period. They do not, by themselves, close the work order, mark tasks as completed or change the tasks' own due dates. Visibility in the mobile work order list depends on the open status and viewing permissions, rather than these dates.

When adding tasks to an existing work order, its saved end time must be in the future or blank. If the end time has already been reached, correct or clear it, save the work order and reopen the form before adding tasks. Changing the end time and adding tasks in the same save is not enough, because the addition is checked against the previously saved time.

Edit information and attachments

Open the Work order list tab and click the work order's name or the pencil icon on the same row. Edit the information on the Basic info tab and save using the Save button at the bottom of the form. Saving the form requires the work order to be open: first reopen a closed work order using the status switch described below.

You can also edit the list's Name, Description and Work order number cells directly by double-clicking them. The cell change is submitted for saving when you finish editing the cell; there is no separate Save button for it.

In the Attachments section of an existing work order, a new file starts uploading immediately after you select it. Cancel therefore does not undo an addition that has already finished. You can open an attachment from its preview or file icon. To delete an attachment, click its trash icon and save the work order form. Before saving, you can undo the deletion mark by clicking the same icon again.

You can add tasks on the Tasks tab. Saving the form preserves existing task links; it does not replace the entire task list with the new selections.

Close or reopen a work order

At the bottom of the edit form is a work order status switch showing Open or Closed. Toggle the switch and accept the confirmation to open or close the work order. The status change is saved immediately and separately; it does not wait for the form's Save button.

Save your other changes before closing the work order. Closing also closes the edit form, and confirming the status does not save any other unfinished changes in the form.

Closing preserves the work order, its tasks and their links. It does not mark tasks as completed. A closed work order remains in the browser list, but is no longer returned in the Android or iOS work order list or when retrieving work order details on mobile. Refresh the mobile list before checking visibility. The tasks' own statuses must be checked separately.

You can reopen a closed work order in the browser using the same status switch and confirming the reopening. You can then save basic information and add tasks if the end time and your permissions allow it. For mobile viewing instructions, see How do I view a work order's tasks in the mobile app?

Deletion and its effects

Use closing to finish a normal body of work. Deletion changes links and may prevent later use of the work order.

Start deletion from the row's trash icon on the Work order list tab. First accept the deletion confirmation. A selection window then opens, where you can also stop the operation using Cancel.

The Remove linking only from non-completed tasks option marks a work order containing tasks as deleted. It detaches the work order from all non-completed tasks, as well as from task templates and contract task settings. Tasks are not deleted and their statuses are not changed. Completed tasks remain linked to the work order.

A deleted work order disappears from the normal browser list and the mobile list. It can no longer be edited, reopened or deleted again. Detached tasks no longer belong to it; their grouping by work order and filtering in reports also change.

A contract link may prevent deletion. This restriction applies to active contracts, contracts awaiting activation or termination, and ended contracts. A restriction on changing the link of a task based on a contract may also prevent deletion that preserves completed task links. If this deletion fails, its status change and the removal of links are rolled back together.

If the work order has no tasks at all, deletion removes the work order itself entirely, even when you select the option that preserves completed task links. A contract link may still prevent deletion.

The other option is Remove linking from all tasks. There is a discrepancy in its behavior: the option's name promises to remove all task links, but this effect cannot be confirmed. Do not rely on it as a way to detach all tasks; clarify its effect with Spotilla support before using it.

Check the result

Reopen the saved work order. Check the name, number, customer, dates and status, and make sure the attachments open. On the Tasks tab, check that the intended tasks were actually attached to the work order. Successfully saving the basic information alone does not confirm that the tasks were added.

After closing, check for the Closed status in the browser list and confirm that the work order no longer appears in the refreshed mobile list. After deletion that preserves completed task links, check the tasks' own details to confirm that non-completed tasks were detached and completed tasks remained linked.