How to Track When Records Are Created & Updated

Hey, everyone! Danielle from Knack here. Today, I want to show you how to track when records are created and updated in your app.

We’re looking at a custom CRM portal where sales reps can manage their contacts, add notes, and handle orders. But for today’s demo, we’ll focus on tracking when new notes are created and when contacts are updated.

Part 1: Tracking When a Note Is Created

Let’s start with tracking when a new note is created.

When a sales rep adds a new note to a contact, we want to automatically track the date and time it was created.

Step 1: Add a Date/Time Field

• Head over to the Schema section
• Select the Notes object and click Add Field
• Choose Date/Time
• Name the field: Created At

Step 2: Configure Field Settings

• Set your preferred date and time format
• Set Default Date to Current Date
• Set Default Time to Current Time
• Make sure this field is not included in any form, so users can’t manually change it

This configuration ensures that when a note is created, and no value is entered into that field, Knack will automatically populate it with the current date and time.

Step 3: Test It in the Live App

• Go to your live app as a sales rep
• Add a new note (e.g., “This is a new note”)
• Submit the form

Go back to the Builder and refresh your records. You’ll now see that the Created At field is automatically filled with the current date and timestamp.

Part 2: Tracking When a Contact Is Updated

Now let’s move on to tracking updates. Unlike notes, where we only log creation time, we want the Contacts object to reflect the last time a record was updated.

Step 1: Add a Date/Time Field

• Go to the Schema
• Select the Contacts object
• Add a new Date/Time field called: Last Updated At
• Keep the time format enabled

Step 2: Add a Record Rule

• Navigate to the Pages section
• Find any edit contact form
• Edit the form and remove the Last Updated At field from user input
• Click Rules > Add a New Rule
  • Action: Update This Record
  • Trigger: Every Time the Form Is Submitted
  • Field to update: Last Updated At
  • Value: Current Date

This ensures the field updates automatically each time a user edits a contact, without allowing manual changes.

Part 3: Testing Contact Updates

Let’s test it in the live app:

• Open a contact record
• Make a small change (e.g., add an exclamation mark)
• Submit the update

Back in the Builder, go to the Contacts object and refresh the records. You’ll now see the Last Updated At field reflecting the current timestamp.

Make another update (e.g., add more exclamations), submit again, and refresh. The timestamp will update to show the most recent change.

Recap and Final Tips

And that’s it! Now you know how to:

✅ Track when a record is created
✅ Track when a record is updated
✅ Configure fields and form rules to automate this process

I’ll link the accompanying Knowledge Base article in the notes for this video.

Hope you found this helpful—and until next time, happy building