Outgoing Links Not Working

Jim Hook

After the recent update I started having problems with one or two links here and there not properly updating. Double clicking on the receiving cell would point to the right cell in the source sheet but the value was wrong. I could repair the link by deleting it on the destination cell, saving the sheet and then relinking. Just awhile ago it started happening on hundreds of links at a time so I called support and they verified there is an outgoing link problem that development is working on. Hopefully when they find and fix the problem the links will be intact. Nothing to do but wait for now.

This should be reflected in the system status since most of my Smartsheets won't work if the links aren't working.

simon_z

Hi I have the same issues.  I use cell link on a multiple of sheets, hundread of them. This is a major issues as nothing gets updated anymore. Do we know when this will be fix?

Jim Hook

So far Smartsheet seems to be treating this as a problem not affecting many users since it doesn't show up on the system status as a problem. I found two sheets this morning with 700 links between them that I had restored the missing links on yesterday. Today they were gone again although the destination sheet thought they were still in place. I've offered to share the sheets with the support people but so far haven't heard back. As I look around my various Smartsheets I keep finding broken links here and there. It will be a major problem for me if they can't get them to start working again.

I have found one way to get links to work again from the destination Smartsheet. First you remove the link then you save the sheet then re-establish the link. That worked for me for one day but today they are gone again...

Jeff Tolbert

Hi Jim,

Our Development team is aware of this bug and is working on a fix. I don't have an ETA, but we understand that this has widespread impact on certain customers and are prioritizing accordingly.

In the meantime, there are a few workarounds users can try in order to resolve the issue. Note that the first two are manual and may not work in cases where you have a large number of links on a sheet:

1. Change the value in the outbound linked cell.

2. Delete the cell link and recreate it.

3. Create a copy of the sheet with inbound links. Make sure that "Cell links and cross-sheet references" is checked under Data & Formatting in the Save As New dialog box.

If none of the above are workable solutions, please contact Support at http://www.smartsheet.com/GetHelp. We have something else we can try on the back end that may resolve the issue.

Jim Hook

Jeff, thanks for the update. I restored many links yesterday to get me through my Monday processing but many, maybe all, were gone again this morning. It's mainly impacting links coming out of two Smartsheets and I've surveyed many of my sheets to identify what needs to get fixed when the problem is resolved.

If memory serves me right, deleting the link and recreating it without saving the sheet after the link deletion didn't work. I had to delete the link(s), save the sheet then recreate the link. Your suggestion about copying a sheet while preserving the incoming links might restore them but I would lose all the outgoing links on the copied sheet. I'll check out the GetHelp link.

PGreene

Unfortunately the workarounds don't work [for me]. I had a call from a SS Team Lead this morning who tried to run a couple of background processes, but that didn't work either.

I've tested recreating the links, the data will update once, but then when I save the outbound link is still missing (no arrow), yet the inbound link points to the correct outbound cell. 

PGreene

Looks like the links were restored! Great news. I'm cautiously optimistic until I comb through all my sheets, but at first glance links seem to be restored.

THANKS!

Jim Hook

Just checked and it looks like my links are back too. I'll check in more detail tomorrow.

Whew!

 

Jeff Tolbert

Great to hear! We made a change on the back end that we believe should solve this issue for many users. If anyone is still experiencing an issue with cell links on any of your sheets, please file a support case using our Get Help form: http://www.smartsheet.com/GetHelp.