Submitting & Approving
The daily log review workflow — submitting, the approval queue, returning with a note, and who is allowed to do each.
- Open a draft and press Submit — at least one substantive section must be filled in
- The log locks. It can no longer be edited or deleted
- Approvers see it on the Daily Reports tab, which counts what is waiting
- Open it from that tab to get the Approve and Return buttons
- Return needs a note; the log goes back to draft with a Returned for edits banner
- Approve is final — approved logs are permanent and cannot be reopened
Submitting
Submit appears on the bottom bar of a draft log's detail page, next to Save Draft.
Before the log will go, at least one of these must be filled in:
- Manpower — a row with both a company and a headcount above zero
- Work Performed — a row with both an area and a description
- Delays — a row with both a description and a duration above zero
- Notes — any text
If none of them is, a message asks you to fill in at least one before submitting. Weather, equipment, visitors, safety and photos on their own are not enough — the log has to say something about the work.
Confirm in the Submit Daily Log dialog. Once submitted, the log is read-only: "This log is pending review and cannot be edited."
On a project that does not require approval (see The Approval Setting below), the dialog says so, and the log is final the moment it goes in: "This log has no approval step, so it is final and read-only."
The Approval Queue
Submitted logs land on the Daily Reports tab of the register, which carries a badge with the count waiting. Each row there shows when the log was submitted.
Open the log from the queue
Approve and Return only appear when you open a log from the Daily Reports tab. Reaching the same log from the My Logs list opens it in plain read-only view, without the reviewer's controls.
Approving
Approve on the bottom bar asks you to confirm, then signs the log off. The banner changes to "This log has been approved and is read-only." Approval is the end of the line — there is no un-approve and no route back to draft.
Approved logs are the ones that feed a client report — plus, on a project that does not require approval, submitted logs. A log left in draft or still waiting in the queue contributes nothing to a compiled report.
Returning for Changes
Return sends the log back to its author as a draft.
Press Return
The Return Daily Log dialog opens with one field, Note for the author.
Explain what needs correcting
The note is required — Return Log stays disabled until you have written something. Be specific: the author sees exactly this text.
The author picks it up
The log reappears as a draft carrying a Returned for edits banner with your note and the date it was returned. They correct it and submit again, which clears the note.
Who Can Do What
Daily logs use their own permission set, so this does not follow whatever a role can do elsewhere.
| Role | Create | Read | Edit | Delete | Approve |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Project manager | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Superintendent | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | Yes |
| Foreman | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | — |
| Everyone else | — | Yes | — | — | — |
Two rules sit on top of that table:
- You cannot approve a log you submitted yourself. This is enforced on the server, not just hidden in the interface — approval always needs a second person.
- Only drafts can be edited or deleted. Once a log is submitted, both are closed off, whatever your role.
Deleting is permanent
Deleting a draft removes it outright — "This action cannot be undone." Only owners and project managers can delete, and only while the log is still a draft.
The Approval Setting
Whether review is required at all is a project setting: Daily Log Approval Required, under the project's settings, on by default.
When it is off there is no approval step. A submitted log is final: it stays Submitted, never enters the queue, cannot be approved or returned, and feeds client reports as it is. The Daily Reports tab is hidden.
Each log usually keeps the setting it was submitted under, and its page says which applies. Logs submitted while it was off stay final if you turn it back on. Logs submitted while it was on still wait for an approver if you turn it off — the Daily Reports tab stays visible to approvers until those are dealt with.
Notifications
Each transition raises an in-app notification. Daily log submitted goes to everyone whose role can approve daily logs on the project, and to the project owner, but not to the person who submitted it. Daily log returned and Daily log approved go to the person who submitted the log. On a project that does not require approval, submitting raises none, since there is nothing to review.
Related
- Filing a Daily Log
- Compiling a Report — where approved logs are used
Questions
Does my approver get told when I submit?
No. The Daily log submitted notice goes to you, the person who submitted it, so tell your approver. They can also see the count on the Daily Reports tab. When a log is returned or approved, its author gets a notice.
I can approve logs. Why is there no Approve button?
Open the log from the Daily Reports tab, not from My Logs. It won't appear on a log you submitted yourself, or on a log submitted while the project didn't need approval. Those are already final.
I pressed Approve by mistake. Can I undo it?
No. Approve asks you to confirm first, and an approved log can't be reopened or returned. Check the log before you confirm.
Does returning a log wipe what was written?
No. It goes back to draft with everything still in it, plus your note. When the author submits it again, the note is cleared.