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Time Recording: Automatic breaks
These rules apply for the 'Automatic breaks' to kick in
• Only active after first check-in per day. Will be applied on first check-out.
• Logic: if daily total greater or equals than [Total], then add break with duration [Break] starting at [When].
• With 'Active, single break' only the first matching rule will be applied. With 'Active, multiple breaks' all matching rules will be applied.
• Note that with rotating shifts, only 'Active, single break' works properly.
What is "Incremental"
Setting an auto break configuration entry to "Incremental" will make a break as long as the time passed since [When] was reached if you check out within that break phase.
Sample: if your configuration is "Total=05:00, When=14:00, Break=00:30", and you check out after 05:17 work time, break duration will be set as 17 minutes (i.e. the app will add a break from 14:00 to 14:17).
See Example 3 further below.
Dynamic break start time
You can make auto breaks start X hours and minutes after initial check-in, instead of static break start time.
Note this can be combined with the "Incremental" option.
See Example 4 further below.
What is "Rule evaluation | Ascending, descending"
• Available since app version 7.43, only relevant in case of "Active, multiple breaks"
• "Ascending, descending" refers to field "Total >=" (which is worktime total)
• Descending: Before version 7.43, auto breaks have been calculated using "descending sort order on Total >=", using this logic:
a. When punching out, calculate worktime total
b. find all rules matching "Total >=", and apply these.
Note this potentially leads to breaks being applied which wouldn't qualify after application of earlier breaks.
• Ascending: "Ascending" applies rules using "ascending sort order on Total >=", and skips those rules falling below threshold due to application of earlier rules.
Evaluation logic
a. When punching out, calculate worktime total
b. find next pending rule with lowest matching 'Total >=", and apply this
c. recalculate worktime total
d. repeat b and c with new worktime total, as long as we have more matching rules
• Note on Incremental: in case of "Incremental", rules are always evaluated "descending" (this has already been in place before version 7.43)
• Recommendation:
- New users should set "Ascending".
- Users who've had auto breaks active before version 7.43 don't need to change anything.
However, if you manually switch that setting to "ascending" now, you'll need to check and potentially change the rules' threshold values.
Examples
→ Note the "Play" button in the window title, this lets you test your configuration.
Example 1
• Break 1 is added at 10:00 if worktime total on check-out is 5:00 or more. Its duration is 15 minutes
• In addition, break 2 is added at 12:00 if worktime total is 8:00 or more, duration 30 minutes
• In addition, break 3 is added at 15:00 if worktime total is 9:30 or more, duration 15 minutes
Example 2
One break is added at 12:00. Its duration depends on worktime total:
if 10 hours or more then 45 minutes, if 8 hours or more then 30 minutes, if 5 hours or more then 15 minutes
(i.e. first match wins).
Example 3
Incremental break: If total worktime exceeds 6 hours 30 minutes, then a break is added at 12:00.
Break duration depends on total worktime exceeding 06:30; for each minute above, break duration increases by one minute, up to a maximum of 45 minutes.
Example 4
Dynamic break start time
• First break starts 5 hours and 45 minutes after initial check-in.
• Second break starts 8 hours and 15 minutes after initial check-in.
• Caution: make sure that ‘end of break’ does not overlap ‘end of work’.
If this rule would be set to "T+06:00" instead of "T+05:45", then checking out shortly after 6 hours would run into overlap
(misconfiguration example: actual work from 10:00 to 16:10, calculated break from 16:00 to 16:15 overlaps end of work).
→ Rule of thumb: dynamic break start time should be "Total minus break duration" or less (here: 06:00 minus 00:15 equals 05:45)
