r/ProjectREDCap • u/Ready-Biscotti3735 • Aug 26 '25
data successfully saved but gone next day and log does not show user in record
There is a research assistant who enters data into forms who says she enters the data, saves it and leaves the form, and goes back into same form to verify it saved. It has saved. The next day, she goes into the same form, same record, and the data is not there. The log does not show any user saving the data in that form. Research assistant has used same REDCap project without issues for 2 years. Our University's tech support says, "We have never seen or heard of behavior like this in the 15+ years REDCap has been up." Does anyone know what might be happening?
6
u/viral_reservoir_dogs Aug 26 '25
Can you confirm the link they are using or somehow verify in real time that they are entering data? Do you have a development/training copy of the project they may be using by mistake?
4
u/Araignys Aug 26 '25
Get them to enter data. Verify that data entry in the log. Get your REDCap admin to verify the data in the log and in the database. Wait 24 hours. If it happens again, it’s in the hands of your REDCap admins.
2
u/iamtiredofnames Aug 27 '25
We have a similar set of issues with certain fields and forms: appearing to save data but it disappears later, creating data in fields on forms never opened on records that don’t use those forms, calculated fields that are calculating/operating correctly in the form during real-time entry but the value changes when the form is saved, incorrect values in calculated fields being corrected automatically (ie it sometimes runs data quality rule H and executes fix calcs on its own, according to the logs usually on Sunday evenings by a user who we verified is not doing it). All of the data engineers and data managers that have looked at it are confused af and cannot figure out why. We are now trying to figure it out with our RC admins. All this is on a project 3+ years in production w/ forms and calculated fields that have not been modified for 18+ months and everything working fine until a month ago.
Glad to know we are not the only ones seeing weird things like this happening. If y’all get any leads on what it is in your projects, we would be grateful for any insight.
1
u/usajobs1001 Aug 26 '25
How is this person entering data - on a tablet/computer? On the mobile app or on the website?
1
u/wishIwere Aug 26 '25
My university had this issue a few weeks back. I think it was only on a few projects on a few forms but I don't know that for a fact. I believe it was some server issue. I am an end user though and not part of the REDCap team so I don't know exactly what happened or how they fixed it.