User Record - Modification History

The Modification History page displays each time the User Record page is edited for a user. The Modification History section is only displayed if the administrator has permission to view modification details for a user.

When User Record Auditing is not enabled, the Modification History page includes the name and username of the user who modified the page and the date and time at which it was edited. However, the Modification History section does not display details for each field that was modified.

When User Record Auditing is enabled, the Modification History section displays a detailed record of each successfully completed and scheduled modification to the User Record page for a user. User Record Auditing is only available to organizations that are using Cornerstone HR. Important: User Record Auditing should only be enabled by submitting a case to Global Customer Support.

A user's record can be viewed in the following manners:

  • Go to Admin > Tools > Core Functions > Users. Then, select the name of the user in the search results.
  • Select the user's photograph from any page within Universal Profile or from Global Search. Then, select the User Record tab.

To view the Modification History page, select the Modification History option from the Options drop-down menu.

PERMISSION NAME PERMISSION DESCRIPTION CATEGORY
Universal Profile - User Record - Create Users Grants ability to access the User Record Administration page and to create new users in the system. When creating a new user, this permission grants the ability to add general information, which includes first name, last name, username, assigned OUs, and custom relationships. The administrator must have additional permissions to add any additional fields. This permission can be constrained by OU, User's OU, User's Self, User Self and Subordinates, and User. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration
Universal Profile - User Record - Edit Users Grants ability to edit user records in the system. The administrator must have additional permissions to edit specific fields on the user record. This permission can be constrained by OU, User's OU, User's Self, User Self and Subordinates, and User. This is an administrator permission. Note: This permission DOES NOT grant the ability to view user records in the system. Administrators must have the Universal Profile - User Record - View Users permission in order to view user records. Core Administration
Users – Edit Custom Field Information Grants ability to view and edit the custom fields on a user record. Administrators are only able to edit a custom field on a user's user record if the user is within their permission constraints and the administrator is within the availability of the custom field. This permission works in conjunction with the Users - View permission. This permission can be constrained by OU, User's OU, User's Self, User Self and Subordinates, and User. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration
Users – Effective Dating: Manage Enables administrator to make effective dated changes to the user record. This permission only works when used in conjunction with the Users - Edit General Information permission. This permission cannot be constrained. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration
Users - View Grants the ability to search for and view summary information about users in the portal via the Admin/Users screen. This permission can be constrained by OU, User's OU, User Self and Subordinates, and Users. If multiple constraints are added, these constraints are considered OR statements. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration
Users – View Custom Field Information Grants ability to view the custom fields on a user record. Administrators are only able to view a custom field on a user's user record if the user is within their permission constraints and the administrator is within the availability of the custom field. This permission works in conjunction with the Users - View permission. This permission can be constrained by OU, User's OU, User's Self, User Self and Subordinates, and User. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration
Users - View Modification Details Grants ability to view the Modification Details on the User Record and view User Audits fields when creating a Reporting 2.0 report. This permission only works when used in conjunction with the Users - View permission. This is an administrator permission. Core Administration

Additional permissions are required to view and edit the various fields on the user record. See User Record Permissions.

Permissions

Administrators must have the appropriate permissions to view the modification history for a field. For example, administrators must have either the Users - View General Information or Users - Edit General Information permission to view the modification history for the First Name, Last Name, Username, Standard OU, Custom OU, and Custom Relationship fields. Administrators can only view the modification history of user custom fields that are available to them.

Modification History - User Record Auditing

When User Record Auditing is enabled, the system enables administrators to audit all modifications to employee data via the Modification History page. User Record Auditing is only available to organizations that are using Cornerstone HR. Important: User Record Auditing should only be enabled by submitting a case to Global Customer Support.

Not all fields on the User Record are audited. See User Record - Audited Fields.

Generate Audit PDF

The Generate Audit PDF link lets you export data from the Modification History into .pdf format. This link is only visible under the following conditions:

  • User Record Audit Feature is enabled
  • User has the appropriate permissions (Users - View Modification Details)
  • User is not the user who's User Record is being viewed

The .pdf displays the results of the search the user has set. It also takes into account all Search, Filter and Sort modifications which are done in the Modification History table.

The .pdf has the following columns:

  • Change Date
  • Field Changed
  • Field Type
  • Changed From
  • Changed To
  • Changed By

Search Modifications

To search for modifications to a specific field, enter the field name in the Search by field changed field, and select the Search button. The page is updated to display any available modifications to the specified User Record field. If the search matches multiple fields, then modifications to all matching fields are displayed.

This functionality is only available when User Record Auditing is enabled.

Filter Modifications

The following filter options are available and can be used in conjunction with the Search functionality:

  • Field Type - Use this filter to view changes to specific types of fields. The following options are available:
    • User Standard Field
    • Organizational Unit
    • Employee Relationship
    • User Custom Field
  • Reason for Change - Use this filter to view changes with a specific reason for change. All available reasons for change are available in the drop-down menu. This functionality is only available when Reason for Change is enabled and there is at least one reason for change enabled in User Preferences. See User Preferences - Reasons for Change.
  • Include Scheduled Changes - Select this option to include modifications that have an effective date that is in the future. This option is only available when Effective Dating is enabled.

This functionality is only available when User Record Auditing is enabled.

Sort Modifications

The following columns within the Modification History table can be sorted by selecting the column heading:

  • Effective Date
  • Change Date

This functionality is only available when User Record Auditing is enabled.

Modifications Table

The following information is displayed for each modification:

  • Effective Date - This column displays the date and time at which the change is effective. The date and time are displayed in the timezone of the administrator who is viewing the page. Modifications are only displayed if they have successfully completed and have an effective date that is in the past. Note: This column is only available if Effective Dating is enabled.
  • Change Date - This column displays the date and time at which the modification was saved.
  • Field Changed - This column displays the field that was modified.
  • Field Type - This column displays the type of field that was modified (e.g., User standard field, Organizational Unit).
  • Changed From - This column displays the value from which the field was modified. This is the old value of the field. If the modified field is an encrypted field, then the field value is displayed as asterisks. If there was no value for the field (i.e., the field was empty), then the column is blank for the field.
  • Changed To - This column displays the value to which the field was modified. This is the new value of the field. If the modified field is an encrypted field, then the field value is displayed as asterisks. If there is no value for the field (i.e., the value is removed), then the column is blank for the field.
  • Changed By - This column displays the name and username of the administrator who modified the field.
  • Reason for Change - This column displays the reason for change that was selected when the modification was made. This column is only available if Effective Dating is enabled.
    • If the modification was made through a self-service location such as My Account, then the self-service location is displayed in this column.
    • If no reason was selected for the modification, then "None" is displayed.
    • If the reason for change for an effective dated record is modified, then any new modifications are associated with the newly selected reason for change, and any unaffected modifications remain associated with the previous reason for change.
    • For user record changes made via a form, the Reason column displays the reason that is selected in the Reason for Change field on the form. See Create Form - Build Tab - Define Fields.

By default, modifications are sorted chronologically by effective date and can also be sorted by Change Date. Click the Effective Date or Change Date column heading to sort the table using the column data. Clicking the column heading a second time changes the sort order of the table.

If User Record Auditing and Effective Dating are both enabled, then when the User Record page is saved, all current, past, and future modifications are captured in the Modification History section.

The following special cases may occur:

  • New User Record - When a user record is created, the detailed field changes are not tracked in the Modification History section. See the Inserted by section below for additional information.
  • New Custom Fields - When a new custom field is created and appears on a user record, this addition is not tracked in the Modification History section. This applies even if a default value is defined for the custom field.
  • Password Changes - Password changes are tracked in the Modification History section. However, the original and new values are not tracked. As a result "Not tracked" is displayed in the Changed To and Changed From column for the entry.
  • Single-select Checkbox Fields - For single-select checkbox fields, the values are "Selected" or "Unselected."
  • Multiple-select Checkbox Fields - For multiple-select checkbox fields, each option that is selected or unselected is tracked as an individual modification and they appear as separate entries in the table.

Inserted by

When a user record is created, the detailed field changes are not tracked in the Modification History section. Instead, "Inserted by" is displayed at the bottom of the table with the name of the administrator who created the user record and the date and time at which the user record was created (e.g., "Inserted by Lori Mullen (lmullen) on 9/2/2011 11:00:05 AM").

Sensitive Personally Identifiable Information (SPII) Fields

When SPII values are modified, the details of the modification, that is the Changed From values and the Changed To values, are not currently displayed in the Modification History.

SPII fields are only available on the User Record when Encrypted Sensitive Information is enabled in the portal, and this functionality is only available to organizations using Cornerstone HR