Goal Tracker

Minimal daily tracker for Ansible + UMGC. Syncs across devices through a self-hosted PocketBase instance; localStorage stays underneath as an instant-write offline cache.

Run it

npm install
cp .env.example .env   # point VITE_POCKETBASE_URL at your PocketBase instance
npm run dev

Then open the printed localhost URL. You'll land on a login screen — see "Sync backend" below for how to stand up PocketBase and create your account. Once logged in, data persists both in your browser's localStorage (instant, works offline) and in PocketBase (synced across devices). Log in with the same account on another device to pick up where you left off.

Sync backend (PocketBase)

The repo includes everything needed to self-host the sync server:

docker compose up -d --build

This builds and runs PocketBase (schema in pb_migrations/ is applied automatically) on port 8090, backed by SQLite in ./pb_data (gitignored). Run it wherever you like — the README's original plan was to expose it through an existing Tailscale/Cloudflare tunnel rather than the open internet.

First-time setup:

1. Open http://<host>:8090/_/ and create the PocketBase admin account (superuser, separate from your app login).
2. In the Admin UI, go to the users collection and create the one user account you'll log into the app with. Public self-registration is off on purpose — this is a single-user app.
3. Set VITE_POCKETBASE_URL (in .env for dev, or your build environment for a deployed build) to wherever PocketBase is reachable from your devices, then log in from the app.

Sync model: whole-blob, last-write-wins. Each login pulls your whole goal_data record on load and pushes the whole thing (debounced ~800ms) after each change — there's no field-level merge. If you edit offline on two devices before either reconnects, whichever device's push reaches the server last wins. Fine for one person using two devices sequentially; not built for concurrent editing.

Where the data lives

The goal_data collection in PocketBase (one record per user, goals + history JSON fields — same shape as the two keys below) is the source of truth. localStorage mirrors it locally so the app loads instantly and keeps working offline; it's a cache, not the primary store, now.

Open your browser devtools → Application tab → Local Storage → your localhost origin to see the local cache. You'll see two keys:

• goalTrackerGoals — the goal definitions themselves: title, type (project | skill | habit | log), color, and either a dailyTarget + unit (for goals tracked by a manually-entered daily count) or a subtasks[] array (for goals whose progress derives from subtasks checked off, e.g. a UMGC unit = reading + assignment + discussion). Only project goals carry a status of active or backlog — it's what the Today/Backlog tabs and the WIP limit key off of. Skills, habits, and logs ignore status entirely: every skill always shows on the Skills tab, every habit and every log always shows on Today.

  [
    {
      "id": "umgc",
      "title": "UMGC Cybersecurity",
      "type": "project",
      "status": "active",
      "subtasks": [
        { "id": "reading", "label": "Reading", "done": false },
        { "id": "assignment", "label": "Assignment", "done": false },
        { "id": "discussion", "label": "Discussion", "done": false }
      ]
    }
  ]

• goalTrackerHistory — the daily log, keyed by date, holding the manually-entered amount per goal id (only meaningful for goals that don't use subtasks). For log-type goals, the per-day value is an array of entries instead of a number:

  {
    "2026-08-11": { "ansible": 8 },
    "2026-08-12": {
      "ansible": 5,
      "notes": [
        { "id": "...", "text": "Fixed the router VLAN issue", "time": "2026-08-12T15:54:08.661Z" }
      ]
    }
  }

Tabs

• Today (default) — active projects + every habit + every log, regardless of status. Only active projects and habits count toward the streak and "Done for today" header — logs have no target, so they're excluded from that calculation.
• Skills — every skill goal, always, tracked by its own daily cadence. Skills don't participate in Today's streak.
• Backlog — projects with status: 'backlog', i.e. not currently active. Each row has an Activate button to promote it.
• History — read-only. Every log entry across every log goal, grouped by date (most recent first), newest entry first within a date.

WIP limit

Only 2 projects can be active at once. Trying to activate a 3rd (from the New goal form, editing a project's Status to Active, or the Backlog tab's Activate button) is blocked until you pick one of the current 2 to swap out — it gets moved to backlog automatically when you save. Skills and habits aren't limited.

Editing goals/targets

Use the "New goal" button (its defaults follow whichever tab you're on), or the pencil/trash icons on each card/row. The form's fields change based on the selected type:

• Project — target + unit (optional), deadline (optional), an optional subtasks checklist, and Active/Backlog status (subject to the WIP limit above). Progress derives from subtasks checked when subtasks exist, otherwise from target vs. amount logged.
• Skill — a daily target + unit (its cadence), tracked with the +/− counter.
• Habit — just a title. Tracked with a single "Mark done" toggle per day.
• Log — just a title. Tracked with a free-text input; each entry is timestamped and appended to a running list for the day, newest first. Entries can be deleted individually from the Today card (the History tab itself is read-only).

Deleting a goal asks for confirmation first. DEFAULT_GOALS in src/App.jsx is only the seed used the first time the app runs with no saved goals yet — it has no effect once goalTrackerGoals exists.

Next steps (not yet — after Ansible/UMGC deadlines)

• PWA installability: npm install -D vite-plugin-pwa, add to vite.config.js, add a manifest + icons.