With Project time with automatic working time, users record their time on projects and tasks while timeghost automatically creates the corresponding working time.
This setup combines project-based time tracking with separate working time records without requiring users to record the same working periods twice. Project time and working time remain separate types of data and can be used for their respective purposes.
In short Users record project time, and timeghost automatically creates the corresponding working time. Gaps between project times can become breaks, while overlapping project times count only once as working time.
How automatic working time works
In this setup, project time is the basis for working time creation.
Users record their activities as project time, for example by assigning an entry to a project and task. Based on these entries, timeghost automatically creates separate working time entries.
This means the two types of time serve different purposes:
Project time shows what a user worked on and can be used for projects, tasks, budgets, billing, and profitability.
Working time shows when a user worked and can be used for working schedules, target hours, working time rules, absences, and time accounts.
Users therefore do not have to maintain the same working period separately in both areas.
Gaps between project times become breaks
If there is a gap between project time entries, timeghost can treat this period as a break in the resulting working time.
For example, if project time is recorded from 08:00 to 12:00 and again from 13:00 to 17:00, the period between 12:00 and 13:00 is not counted as working time and is represented as a break.
This allows users to structure their day through project time while timeghost derives the corresponding working periods and breaks.
Overlapping project times count only once as working time
Project time entries can overlap, for example when activities are recorded in parallel or entries overlap accidentally.
When working time is created, an overlapping period is counted only once.
For example, if one project time runs from 09:00 to 11:00 and another from 10:00 to 12:00, the resulting working period covers 09:00 to 12:00 rather than four hours of working time.
Working time entries themselves cannot overlap.
Changes to project time also affect working time
Because the automatically created working time is based on project time, changes to the relevant project time are also reflected in the associated working time.
This keeps the two areas synchronized without requiring users to correct the same period separately as project time and working time.
Project time and working time nevertheless remain separate entries so that they can be evaluated independently.
Absences remain separate
Absences are not created from project time and remain separate from automatically generated working time.
Depending on their configuration, absences such as vacation or sickness can compensate for the corresponding target hours. They are therefore taken into account when evaluating a user’s time without having to create project time or artificial working time for the absence.
Working time rules apply to the resulting working time
Because this setup creates separate working time records, working time rules can be applied to them.
These rules can check requirements such as breaks, maximum daily working time, or minimum rest periods.
Depending on the workspace configuration, rules can either:
warn users about a violation while still allowing the entry, or
enforce compliance, in which case an entry that violates the configured rules cannot be saved until it has been corrected.
Project time therefore provides the basis for the working periods, while working-time-specific requirements are evaluated against the resulting working time.
Working schedules, target hours, and time accounts
The automatically created working time can be compared with the user’s working schedule and target hours.
Together with relevant absences, these values can also be reflected in the user’s time account.
At the same time, the original project time remains available for project-related reporting, billing, budgets, and profitability analysis.
This allows the same time recording workflow to support both project controlling and working time evaluation.
When is this setup a good fit?
Project time with automatic working time is particularly suitable if your organization needs both:
information about what employees spend their time on, and
separate records of when employees work.
It avoids requiring users to record the same periods independently as project time and working time.
If you only need working time records, Working time only may be more suitable. If you only need project-based time tracking and do not require separate working time, consider Project time only.
Switching an existing workspace to automatic working time
If an existing workspace currently uses Project time only, the transition to automatic working time is handled using a cutoff date.
The cutoff determines from which date newly recorded project time creates separate working time. Existing historical project time is not converted retroactively.
For details about this transition and how historical data is handled, see Switching to automatic working time.
What’s next?
→ Choose the right time tracking setup
Compare all three time tracking setups and their intended use.
→ Project time only – what you need to know
Learn how project time tracking works without separate working time.
→ Working time only – what you need to know
Learn how timeghost works when working time is recorded directly.
→ Switching to automatic working time
Learn how an existing project-time workspace can transition to automatic working time.