Linking records with synced tables

Hello,

 

You're on the right track with linking and lookups, but it sounds like you're encountering a common hurdle when working with synced tables across different Airtable bases. Let's break down the process and troubleshoot the potential issues.    e-zpassnh

Understanding the Challenge: Synced Tables and Data Transfer

Synced Tables are Primarily for Viewing: When you sync a table from one base to another, the primary purpose is to view and maintain a read-only (or sometimes limited write) copy of the data in the destination base. You can't directly edit the original data from the synced table in the destination base.
Lookups and Links Rely on Relationships: Lookups and links work effectively when you establish relationships between records within the same base. When dealing with synced data, the link might exist, but the destination base doesn't inherently understand the relationship in the same way.

 

Best Regards

Hey ​@Birdsfoot!

Handling lookups and rollups on a synced base where you need to get the value also on the original base is usually an issue. A workaround which I do not love but which many times gets the issue solved:

Have a single line text field on the synced base and table where you have your lookup created.
Manually copy and paste all values from the lookup into your new single line text field.
Make sure you set field permissions so that only automations can make edits to the field.
Have an automation that gets triggered each time the lookup field gets updated.
Have the automation update the value on the single line text field.

You should be able to get the single line text field on your original base via 2-way sync.

Let me know if you need to go through this in further depth! Feel free to schedule a call.

Mike, Consultant @ Automatic Nation

Hmm, how do the two tables link to each other?  Could you provide some screenshots of the two tables and some example data?  Is one base just Order data and the other is Inventory?

Thanks for the replies! I think I’m starting to understand the limitations and may just try to combine all the data in one base now that I’ve upgraded from the free account. Record limits were one of the factors in keeping the two bases separate.

If there is no good reason for splitting bases, I would usually suggest to have everyithing within one unique base!