The Fastest Way to Invoice Your Clients

Using our Mac OS X Time Tracker widget

First, an important note on security

It is not recommended to use the widget on a shared computer, as your authentication token is stored as a widget preference. If a malicious person got a copy of the token, he/she could access your account through the API. Only use the widget on computers with users that you trust!

Getting started

  1. First, install the widget.
  2. In your FreshBooks account, head to your Settings page and choose Enable FreshBooks API. If it isn’t enabled, enable it. Once enabled, it will show you the authentication token for the admin user (you!). If you have staff, they will now have tokens as well, found on each staff member’s Profile page, or on the Edit Staff page (for admin only).
    Where to find your authentication token
  3. On the back of the widget, enter your FreshBooks site name — if your FreshBooks site is “yourcompany.freshbooks.com” or “yourcompany.billingarm.com”, you’ll enter “yourcompany”. Enter your authentication key, too — you can use ⌘-C to copy the token from your browser, and ⌘-V to paste it into the Token field.
    Back of the widget
  4. Press Return or click the Done button. Your projects and tasks should now load!
  5. Pick the project and task you’re working on, and click the Start button to begin the timer. You can pause it at any time by clicking Stop, and restart it later. You can also edit the time manually by clicking on the time readout. You can use the mouse, arrow keys, or tab key (⇥) to go to the next field.
  6. To insert the current time of day into the Notes field, double-click the FreshClock!
    Front of the widget
  7. When you’re ready to submit your time, click Submit Hours. You’ll need an Internet connection for this to work — if you’re offline, just wait until you have one, then submit the time. It’ll stay there even if you turn off your computer.
  8. If you have to track time for multiple clients at the same time, make more copies of the widget. They’ll live happily side-by-side in the Dashboard, even if you have more than one FreshBooks account.

Need more help?

If you have any questions or comments about the widget, just contact us. If your question is about your account, use the Help link from within FreshBooks (it’s at the top beside Settings, Forums, and Logout).

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