Guides / PDFs, CSVs and backups

A PAT Logbook field guide. PAT Logbook provides certificate and asset-register PDFs, CSV export, and a one-file backup and restore. Use each output for its own purpose and check the saved copy before relying on it.

Give each file a clear purpose

The PDF preserves the report you issued. It is useful for reading, printing and handing over the visit's results. Save the actual issued file; generating another PDF later can produce a different document if the underlying details have changed.

The CSV gives you rows to search, sort or compare in a spreadsheet. Check which records the export includes and which identifiers connect them. A readable spreadsheet does not establish that photos, signatures, documents or every relationship needed by the app are included.

A backup is the recovery route supported by the software that created it. Check its documented scope and restore process. Keep the issued documents alongside it if their inclusion is uncertain. Copying a PDF or CSV into a folder does not establish that you can restore the working database.

Close the job with a checked handover

1. Save the issued report. Use a filename that identifies the client, site, visit date and document revision. Keep a superseded report distinct from its replacement.
2. Open the saved PDF. Confirm the client and site, visit date, item coverage and any failed-item summary. Check that notes and follow-up actions remain readable. Use the certificate and failed-item handover checklist to review the content.
3. Check the CSV separately. Preserve the original export and inspect a copy. Confirm its scope and record count against the matching source view. Check an appliance ID, a date, a result and a note. Import ID columns as text where needed so a spreadsheet does not remove leading zeroes.
4. Make a recovery copy. Record when the backup was made and where it is kept. Confirm that the file has reached the intended storage location; a copy held only on the working device cannot help if that device is lost.
5. Send the agreed client pack. Usually the client needs the report and clear outstanding actions. Send a site register or CSV when agreed and check its client/site scope. Keep a whole-database backup under your control if it contains other clients' records.

Keep the inspection result, completed action and outstanding follow-up distinct. Sending a report does not complete an unresolved repair or establish that an unexamined item was checked.

Check recovery while you still have the originals

The NCSC's backup guidance advises knowing how to restore a backup and checking that it contains your important data. A filename or successful upload alone cannot answer that question.

Use the software's supported restore process with a separate test device or isolated test setup where available. Establish whether restore replaces existing data before starting. Keep the working records and original files untouched; if you cannot isolate the check, obtain the vendor's recovery instructions before using restore on the live database.

• Open an older job and the latest job after the test restore.
• Check the client → site → appliance → result links and sample notes.
• Check any photos, signatures and issued documents that the backup claims to include.
• Record the backup used, restore date, software version, checks performed and any gaps.

Repeat the check when a material change to the software or backup method could affect recovery. This guide has not tested PAT Logbook's native restore or another product's import process.

Keep the history useful for the next visit

The IET's March 2021 explanation of its fifth-edition Code of Practice includes previous inspection, testing and maintenance records among the factors for deciding suitable intervals. Retaining readable reports and correctly linked records supports that review.

Keep appliance identities consistent across return visits. A previous result is history: HSE INDG236, page 4 explains that a test indicates condition at the time and does not guarantee safety for a further period. Saving the file does not change that limit.