Record a Date when a Text/Number field changes to Any Value

Emilio Wright

We have a Control Center solution that includes Cell-Links and Cross-Sheet reference columns/cells. We are trying to keep track of the Last Update date for a particular cell.

Last Update is a Date column. Days Since Last Update will be a calculation Today() - Last Update. Current Status is the Text/Number field that comes from the individual provisioned sheets from Control Center. As you can see it is a Cell-Link.

The automation I have created to Record a Date does not trigger. I believe it is because the Cell-Link, as I read about this on a Help Topic page.

I know that there was a workaround posted before about the Copy-row feature to capture a date. However, the Copy-row won't work either because of the Cell-Link.

What other options do I have? I even tried creating a helper column that is not Cell-Link, but still did not work as I think Smartsheet knows that I am referencing the Cell-Link cell.

As I was writing this out I think that another reason why my workflow is not triggering for the (not cell-link) cell is because I have a formula on that cell, regardless of cell-link or not. The workflow is looking for any change, but there is no change, the formula is still the same. The cell itself is displaying a value based on the formula, but the actual text formula I have entered is not changing.

Toufong Vang

If Current Status can change at any point throughout the day, then one approach is to record that change-date on the source sheet and link to it.

If your business process will accommodate it, then you can set the workflow automation to trigger at specific times throughout the day.

Toufong Vang

If Current Status can change at any point throughout the day, then one approach is to record that change-date on the source sheet and link to it.

If your business process will accommodate it, then you can set the workflow automation to trigger at specific times throughout the day.

Emilio Wright

@Toufong Vang Thank you for your comment. This is one solution that I had thought of to avoid having to make the calculation on the Summary Sheet. I think I'm going to have to double down and make the changes in all of my provision sheets. I just don't enjoy having to access all of the sheets to create an automation since Control Center can't update automations yet.