How Real-time Updates Work
See changes the moment they happen, no refresh needed.
Person Trail uses live WebSocket connections to push updates to your browser instantly. When a crew member clocks in, posts an update, or completes a job, you'll see it immediately on your dashboard without refreshing.
Where Real-time Updates Appear
Real-time updates work across multiple pages in the application.
Dashboard
Job counts and status indicators update live as crew members make changes in the field.
Jobs List and Detail Pages
When a crew member clocks in, posts a progress update, or completes a job, the relevant page refreshes automatically with the latest data.
Toast Notifications
On Starter and Pro plans, real-time events also trigger toast notifications -- small popup messages that appear in the top-right corner of the screen. Each event type shows a contextual message:
- Success toasts (green): job started, job completed, assignment accepted
- Warning toasts (orange): job delayed, assignment declined
- Info toasts (blue): job updated, progress update, on-site status change, new suggestion, contractor rated
Toasts appear briefly and dismiss automatically. You can also click the close button to dismiss them immediately.
Toast notifications also appear in the Crew Portal, filtered to only show events for your assigned jobs.
Toast Preferences
Every user can customize which toast notifications they see. Go to Settings (dashboard) or Account & Security (portal) and look for the Toast Notifications card.
- Master toggle: Turn off all pop-up notifications at once.
- Per-event toggles: Disable specific event types (e.g., turn off "job updated" but keep "job delayed").
Your data will always refresh in the background regardless of toast settings. Preferences only control whether the visual pop-up appears.
On the dashboard, toast preferences are available on Starter and Pro plans. Crew members can manage their toast preferences in the portal on any plan.
Availability
Real-time updates are available on Starter and Pro plans. Free plan users see data on page load only.
Connection Handling
Reconnection
If your connection drops, the page will fall back to the latest data on next load. No manual intervention is needed. When connectivity is restored, live updates resume automatically.
Offline Behavior
If you're fully offline, the app still works with the data from your last load. Updates made while offline will appear once you reconnect.