Common Filter Patterns

A collection of frequently used filter patterns for Precision Bridge. Each example shows the filter configuration (field, operator, value) and explains the use case.

Date-Based Filters

Important: Always use date() or datetime() functions when comparing against date and datetime fields. Do not pass raw date strings — PB needs proper date objects to translate them into the source system's format.

1. Records from the last 30 days

Field	Operator	Value
sys_created_on	Greater Than	datetime.now() - timedelta(days=30)

Extracts only records created in the last 30 days. The value is a formula expression — toggle the formula switch on.

2. Records from the last 90 days

Field	Operator	Value
sys_updated_on	Greater Than	datetime.now() - timedelta(days=90)

Useful for incremental migrations targeting recently changed records.

3. Records created after a specific date

Field	Operator	Value
sys_created_on	Greater Than	datetime(2024, 1, 1)

Use datetime() for datetime fields or date() for date-only fields.

4. Records within a date range

Field	Operator	Value	Connector
sys_created_on	Greater Than or Equal To	datetime(2024, 1, 1)	AND
sys_created_on	Less Than	datetime(2025, 1, 1)

Extracts records from all of 2024.

5. Incremental / delta migration (since last run)

Field	Operator	Value
sys_updated_on	Greater Than	LAST_EXECUTION_TIMESTAMP

References the built-in system variable that holds the start time of the previous successful run. Updated automatically by the platform — no procedure input variable or external persistence required. Empty on the first run; combine with the Override switch on the variable, or with a formula fallback such as LAST_EXECUTION_TIMESTAMP or datetime(2000, 1, 1, tzinfo=timezone.utc), to handle the first run cleanly. See Using Variables in Filters.

Status and State Filters

6. Active records only

Field	Operator	Value
active	Is Equal To	true

The most common filter — excludes inactive or retired records.

7. Records in specific states

Field	Operator	Value
state	In	[1, 2, 3]

The In operator takes a Python list. Toggle the formula switch on so the value is evaluated as an expression. This extracts records in states 1, 2, or 3.

8. Exclude closed records

Field	Operator	Value
state	Is Not Equal To	7

Extracts everything except records in state 7 (Closed).

9. Multiple status exclusions

Field	Operator	Value	Connector
state	Is Not Equal To	7	AND
state	Is Not Equal To	8

Excludes both Closed (7) and Cancelled (8) records.

Text-Based Filters

10. Records matching a category

Field	Operator	Value
category	Is Equal To	Hardware

Exact match on a category field.

11. Records containing a keyword

Field	Operator	Value
short_description	Contains	network

Substring match — extracts records where the description contains "network".

12. Records NOT containing a keyword

Field	Operator	Value
short_description	Does Not Contain	test

Excludes test records from the migration.

13. Records with non-empty fields

Field	Operator	Value
assigned_to	Is Not Null

Extracts only records that have an assigned user. Useful for ensuring data completeness.

14. Records with empty fields

Field	Operator	Value
resolution_notes	Is Null

Finds records missing resolution notes — useful for data quality checks.

Reference Field Filters

15. Records assigned to a specific user

Field	Operator	Value
assigned_to	Is Equal To	6816f79cc0a8016401c5a33be04be441

Filters by the user's sys_id. Useful for testing with a single user's records.

16. Records in a list of categories

Field	Operator	Value
category	In	["Hardware", "Software", "Network"]

Extracts records in any of the listed categories. Toggle the formula switch on so the value is evaluated as a Python list expression.

Variable-Based Filters

17. Filter by a procedure input variable

Field	Operator	Value
number	Is Equal To	incident_number

References the procedure variable incident_number. Useful for testing with a single record.

18. Filter using a list variable

Field	Operator	Value
sys_id	In	list(id_map.keys())

Uses a formula expression to extract the keys from a dictionary variable. Toggle the formula switch on.

19. Filter child records by parent IDs

Field	Operator	Value
element_id	In	list(incident_id_map.keys())

Extracts journal entries only for incidents in the ID map. This is the manual equivalent of what child filter auto-configuration does automatically.

Combined Filters

20. Active high-priority incidents from the last year

Field	Operator	Value	Connector
active	Is Equal To	true	AND
priority	In	[1, 2]	AND
sys_created_on	Greater Than	datetime.now() - timedelta(days=365)

Combines status, priority, and date filters.

21. OR logic: multiple categories

Group	Field	Operator	Value	Connector
1	category	Is Equal To	Hardware	OR
1	category	Is Equal To	Software

Equivalent to using the In operator but shown for illustration. Prefer In when matching against a list of values.

22. Nested AND/OR groups

Group	Field	Operator	Value	Connector
1	active	Is Equal To	true	AND
2 (OR group)	priority	Is Equal To	1	OR
2 (OR group)	priority	Is Equal To	2

Extracts active records that are either Priority 1 or Priority 2.

23. Exclude test data

Field	Operator	Value	Connector
short_description	Does Not Contain	TEST	AND
short_description	Does Not Contain	test	AND
category	Is Not Equal To	Testing

Removes test records from the migration by filtering out common test markers.

Testing Filters

24. Single record for development

Field	Operator	Value
number	Is Equal To	INC0010001

Extracts exactly one record. Ideal for developing and testing field mappings before running a full migration.

25. Small sample by date range

Field	Operator	Value	Connector
sys_created_on	Greater Than	datetime(2024, 6, 1)	AND
sys_created_on	Less Than	datetime(2024, 6, 8)

Extracts one week of records — a manageable sample for validation.

Tips

• Always use date() or datetime() for date comparisons — raw strings like '2024-01-01' will not be translated correctly to the source system's format.
• Use In instead of multiple OR conditions when matching against a list of values — it's cleaner and more efficient.
• Start with a narrow filter during development (e.g., single record), then broaden for testing, then remove or widen for production.
• Use formula toggle when the value should be evaluated as an expression (variables, function calls, arithmetic).

Related Documentation

• Filter Operators — Complete operator reference
• Combining Conditions — AND, OR, NOT, and nesting
• Using Variables in Filters — Parameterized filters
• Formulas in Filters — Formula expressions as filter values
• Native Query Filters — Raw query strings for advanced use cases
• date() — Date constructor reference
• datetime() — Datetime constructor reference
• timedelta() — Duration for date arithmetic