Time tracker

Time tracking helps you keep an eye on how you spend your time and can be an eye-opener about where it actually goes. While you can always log time manually by adding a time entry, using Scoro’s time tracker is a convenient way to log time automatically while you’re working on an assignment.

Whichever way you and your team track work time, it is essential to ensure accurate, detailed reporting on all activities.

This article will walk you through everything you need to know about using Scoro's time tracker.

1. Starting the time tracker

You can start tracking your time from multiple places in Scoro, depending on where you are currently working:

• From the site menu
• From the task list
• From the task detailed view
• From the project task list

1.1. From the site menu

The easiest way to access and start the time tracker from any view in Scoro is from your site’s menu:

1. Click the tracker icon on your site’s menu.
2. Locate your scheduled task or time entry in the list.
3. Click the Start button (play icon) next to the task or time entry. The time tracking may work a bit differently depending on where you started the tracking from:
   • For a task, the tracker will automatically create a new time entry and start logging time at 0.
   • For a manually created time entry, the tracker will start tracking time at 0, eliminating the manually added time. Pausing and resuming the tracker will resume from the last-recorded tracker value.
   • For a time tracker entry, the tracker will continue tracking time from the last recorded value.

If a time tracker is already active, the active timer indicator will be displayed in the site menu. Click on it to open the time tracker menu.

1.2. From the task list

You can also start tracking time directly from the task list:

1. In the task list, locate the task or the scheduled time entry you want to start the tracker for. If you don’t see the time entries on your task list, click View > View options, enable the Show time entries, and click Display.
2. Click the timer icon on the task row or the time entry row and choose Start time tracker. If you start the time tracker at the task level, Scoro automatically creates a new time entry under that task and logs time under it.

1.3. From the task detailed view

The time tracker can be started from the task detailed view as well, and there are multiple ways to do it:

• From the task header: Click the Start time tracker button in the task header to automatically create and start a new time tracker entry.
  
• In the Subtasks section: If your site uses subtasks, hover over the subtask row and click the Start time tracker button (play icon). Click the tracker indicator to stop the timer.
  
• In the Time entries section: Scroll down to the Time entries section and do either of the following:
  • To start a new time tracker entry, click the Add button, then choose Start time tracker.
    
  • To resume or start time tracking on an existing time entry, hover over that entry and click the Start time tracker button (play icon).
    

1.4. From the project task list

The time tracker can also be started from the project task list:

1. Hover over the task for which you want to start the time tracker.
2. Click the Start time tracker button (play icon). Click it again to stop the timer and save the time entry.

2. Managing time tracker entries from the site menu

Once open, the time tracker section on your site’s menu acts as your central time tracker command center, allowing you to organize your day and manage your logged entries. It displays all your scheduled tasks and time entries, including:

• tasks with active time entry logging
• tasks with a deadline set for today
• tasks that have a time entry scheduled for today
• other tasks from your task list, arranged by their deadlines
• shared tasks – tasks assigned to other users if there is a time entry scheduled for you under it (these tasks are displayed in a lighter grey text color)

To open the task detailed view, click on the task’s title.

To preview the task details from the time tracker menu, hover over the task’s priority icon (which turns into a pencil icon on hover). Click on that pencil icon to modify the task.

You can also perform the following quick actions directly from the time tracker section on your site’s menu:

• Pause the timer: When a timer is running, the Start button turns into a Pause button. Clicking it stops the timer, but the entry remains in your list.
• Complete an entry: Click the Mark as done button (checkmark icon) to mark the time entry as done directly from the tracker.
• Modify or delete a time entry: Click the three dots (...) at the end of any entry row and select Modify or Delete.
• Search for tasks: To find a specific task, type the task name or time entry description into the search box.
• Log an ad-hoc activity without a task: If you are working on an unscheduled or spontaneous assignment, click the large blue Start button at the top-right corner of the time tracker menu section. A new time tracker will start running immediately.  
  • You can fill out the task details – task title, activity type, contact name, project name – at any point during the time tracking or shortly before you’re done with that task. The task title is mandatory to save the new task and time tracker entry; the rest of the details can be filled out afterward.
  • Click Save to save the new task and time entry right away, or click the Open task modify view button (expanding arrows icon) to fill out the full task details (which will keep the time tracker running until you stop it).
    

3. Key things to remember about the time tracker

Here are a few things to know about using Scoro’s time tracker:

• One active tracker only: You can have only one active time tracker running at a time. No multitasking! 
• Pausing the tracker: You can pause the active time tracker in any view in Scoro to start another one.
• Tracking billable time: The time tracker respects your site’s billable time settings.