The workflow board is a kanban-style view that shows every jobcard in your garage, arranged into columns by status. It's the screen most teams keep open all day — one look tells you what's booked in, what's in progress, and what's waiting on parts.
You'll find it at Workflow in the sidebar.
Understanding the Columns
Each column is a status you've configured for your garage. If you have five statuses, you'll see five columns — in the same left-to-right order they appear on your Settings > Statuses page.
Each column header shows:
- A coloured shape icon matching the status colour and shape you chose in settings
- The status name (e.g. "Booked In", "In Progress")
- A count badge showing how many jobcards are in that column
Columns scroll independently, so you can browse a busy column without losing sight of the others. The board itself scrolls horizontally if you have many statuses.
Customise your columns
If your columns don't match your workshop process, head to Settings > Statuses to add, rename, reorder, or remove statuses. Changes show up on the board immediately. See the Workflow Statuses guide for more.
What Each Card Shows
Every jobcard appears as a card in its current status column. At a glance you can see:
- Job reference — the
#reference number in a blue badge (e.g. #42) - Title — the jobcard title, clickable to open the full jobcard
- Customer — name with a person icon, clickable to open the customer record
- Vehicle — registration, make, and model (e.g. "AB12 CDE (Ford Focus)"), clickable to open the vehicle record
- Assigned technician — avatar and name shown at the bottom-left if someone is assigned
- Job type badges — small icons at the bottom-right indicating if the jobcard includes MOT, Service, or Timing Belt work
Quick navigation
Clicking the customer name takes you to their customer record. Clicking the vehicle details takes you to the vehicle record. Clicking anywhere else on the card opens the full jobcard.
Moving Jobcards Between Columns
Drag a card from one column and drop it into another to change its status. This is the primary way to progress work through your pipeline.
Pick up the card
Click and hold any card. The cursor changes to a move icon.
Drag to the target column
As you drag, a blue indicator line appears showing exactly where the card will land in the target column. If the column is empty, a dashed "Drop here" zone appears.
Drop to confirm
Release the card. It moves immediately and a confirmation toast appears: "Status updated — Jobcard moved to [column name]".
The status change is saved to the server automatically. If something goes wrong, the card snaps back to its original column.
The Completion Modal
When you drag a jobcard into a completion column (any status named Complete, Completed, Done, or Finished), Pistonlog pauses the move and opens a confirmation modal. This gives you a chance to record important details before closing the job.
The modal shows different fields depending on the work done:
| Field | When it appears |
|---|---|
| MOT Due Date | The jobcard includes an MOT job |
| Service Due Date | The jobcard includes a Service job |
| Timing Belt Due Date | The jobcard includes a Timing Belt job |
| Mileage | The vehicle doesn't have a mileage recorded for this visit |
DVLA auto-fill
When the modal opens, Pistonlog automatically looks up the vehicle's latest MOT data from the DVLA. If an MOT expiry date is found, it's filled in for you. If the vehicle had a recent MOT test, the mileage from that test is also pre-filled. You can override either value before saving.
All fields are optional. Click Save to record the details and complete the move, or Cancel to leave the jobcard where it was.
The dates you enter here are saved directly to the vehicle record — they power your automated MOT and service reminders going forward.
Searching the Board
A search bar sits at the top of the board. Type to filter cards across all columns at once. The search matches against:
- Jobcard title
- Job reference number
- Customer first and last name
- Vehicle make, model, and registration
Results update as you type. Columns stay visible even when they have no matching cards, so you keep your bearings on the board layout.
Creating a Jobcard from the Board
Click the New Jobcard button next to the search bar to open the jobcard creation dialog without leaving the board. Fill in the title, customer, vehicle, and optionally set a status and appointment date.
The new jobcard appears on the board as soon as you save it.
Default status
New jobcards default to the first status in your list — typically "Booked In" or whatever column sits furthest left on your board.
Tips for Getting the Most Out of the Board
- Arrange statuses left to right to match your real workflow. Most workshops go from intake on the left to collection on the right. This makes dragging feel natural.
- Use the completion modal to keep vehicle records up to date. The MOT and service dates you enter here feed into automated reminders — saving you from chasing that data later.
- Search by registration when a customer calls asking about their car. It's the fastest way to find the right jobcard.
- Keep the board open as your team's default screen. It gives everyone a shared picture of where work stands without needing to ask.