Patrol mode and GPS tracking

Patrol mode records your GPS route while you walk your rounds, building a timestamped track that feeds directly into your patrol report and provides an auditable record that the patrol happened.

Before you start

• You must be clocked in before starting a patrol. If Start Patrol is greyed out, check your clock-in status on the Dashboard tab.
• Set the TacDesk app's location permission to Always Allow so tracking continues when your screen is off. On iPhone: Settings → TacDesk → Location → Always. On Android: Settings → Apps → TacDesk → Permissions → Location → Allow all the time.

Starting a patrol

1. Open the Dashboard tab and tap Start Patrol in the Patrol Controls widget.
2. A running timer appears confirming patrol mode is active.
3. Put your phone away and walk your route as normal. TacDesk records your GPS position roughly every minute in the background — do not force-close the app.

NFC checkpoints

If your site uses NFC checkpoint tags: hold your phone close to each tag as you pass it. The scan is logged automatically and will appear on your patrol report. You do not need to open the app to scan — just bring the phone near the tag.

Ending a patrol

1. Return to the Dashboard and tap Stop Patrol.
2. The patrol report form opens, pre-filled with your route, duration, and any checkpoint scans.
3. Add your observations and tap Submit. The patrol is not saved until the report is submitted.

Battery and GPS notes

• Battery use: expect roughly 10–15 per cent per hour with GPS active. Charge your phone before long shifts.
• Indoor GPS: in basements, underground car parks, or large buildings, GPS can be inaccurate or produce gaps in the track. Checkpoint scans still record correctly. Note any GPS-poor areas in your report.
• Signal drops: if you lose mobile signal mid-patrol, GPS pings buffer locally and upload when connectivity returns.

Working offline

Patrols work without a signal. If you have no connection (or it drops mid-action):

• Starting a patrol — tap Start Patrol as normal. It is saved on your device and the button shows Patrol Pending Sync with a "Patrol started offline - will sync when online" notice. It uploads automatically the moment you are back online.
• Ending a patrol — tap Stop Patrol as normal. The patrol end is saved on your device and you are taken straight to the patrol report form.
• The patrol report — fill it in and submit as usual. With no signal it is added to the offline sync queue ("you are offline - this report has been added to the sync queue and will send automatically when you are next online") rather than lost.

You do not need to do anything special — keep working as normal. Everything queued on your device syncs by itself when the connection returns; you can confirm by watching the sync indicator clear.

If something goes wrong

If the app closes unexpectedly mid-patrol, reopen it — the route recorded up to that point is usually preserved. If the patrol cannot be recovered, tell your manager so they can note the issue against the shift record.

Common questions

Can I do two patrols in one shift? Yes. Once you submit the first patrol report, tap Start Patrol again.

What if I forget to stop the patrol? Contact your manager — they can close an open patrol from the management side. An unterminated patrol will not generate a report automatically.