Testing calendar conflict handling

Test calendar conflict handling with an outside event whose status and time you know. Check the public booking page, then try the same time through the staff booking route. A connected-calendar icon does not establish which events block availability or whether staff can override a warning.

Set the expected result

Use a harmless test appointment within a staff member's working hours. Record its duration, buffers and the calendars selected for conflict checking. Before adding outside events, write down which start times should remain available.

When a slot disappears, check working hours, buffers, booking limits and existing appointments before attributing the result to the outside event.

Know the documented boundaries

Square Appointments: Its Australian Google Calendar guidance says Free and Busy events import, but Busy events block appointment time. The import and export directions are configurable. Edit an event in its calendar of origin.

Google Calendar sync is listed for Plus and Premium. Square's manual scheduling guide describes a warning before booking over an existing appointment, rather than an unconditional block.

Acuity Scheduling: Verify calendar-sync behaviour in the configured account. Check which outside calendars are selected, how event statuses and all-day entries affect availability, and how long the initial connection takes rather than assuming a default behaviour.

Calendly: A user selects the connected calendars checked for conflicts and one calendar that receives new bookings. Free connects one calendar; paid plans allow up to six per user.

Calendly's Troubleshoot tool can identify a Busy calendar event, an inaccessible calendar or insufficient event duration as a reason a slot is unavailable. Check the selected calendars rather than assuming every calendar in a connected account is included.

Booking Platform Summary: Australian Availability & Limits

Run the sequence

After the initial connection completes, add a timed Busy event and inspect the public slots. Move it, mark it Free and delete it, recording the result after each change. Repeat with an all-day event and a second calendar if that reflects the business's setup. Note the event's status and the time allowed for syncing before judging an unexpected result.

Try the same time through the staff screen and record whether the action is stopped, warned about or accepted. If bookings also depend on a room, check that resource separately; a staff calendar does not prove the room is protected. Ask the supplier to show what happens when a calendar connection fails, and agree on a temporary booking process for that situation.

Keep the account plan, time zone, selected calendars, event status and observed slots together in the evaluation record. Accept the setup when the events and calendars staff actually use produce a clear rule that the team can maintain.