Unpublish a form version
Unpublishing returns a published form version to Draft, clears its published date and applies to all its child forms. Use it to revise fields, logic or content. Use it to refine a configuration during user acceptance testing (UAT). It also saves you from creating extra versions while you configure. What happens next depends on whether the version has submissions and which environment you are in.
Who this applies to
- Audience: Configurators.
- Access required: The Publish permission on the scheme.
- Assumed knowledge: The difference between staging and production. Refer to Staging and production environments.
Outcome by environment
| Situation | Staging | Production |
|---|---|---|
| No submissions | The version returns to Draft. | The version returns to Draft. |
| Has submissions | All submissions are permanently deleted, and the version is unpublished. You confirm in a dialog. | The system blocks the unpublish with the message “A form cannot be unpublished once a submission has been created”. |
In production, to change a form that has submissions, create and publish a new version. Refer to Create and delete form versions.
Steps
- On the scheme overview page, select the Versions card.
- Find the parent form version, select More, then select Unpublish.
- Confirm:
- If there are no submissions, confirm to continue.
- If there are submissions (staging only), a dialog lists the form types that have submissions. Enter the confirmation keyword, then select Unpublish anyway.
The version status changes to Draft and the Published Date/Time is cleared.
What happens to submissions in staging
Warning: Unpublishing a version that has submissions in staging permanently deletes them. You cannot recover them.
After the unpublish:
| Area | Behaviour |
|---|---|
| Submissions | All submissions under the version are deleted, with their overview, history and export data. |
| Submission owners | They get an error if they open a deleted submission. |
| Data export | Deleted submissions cannot be exported. |
| Data import | You cannot import into an unpublished version. |
| APIs | You cannot create or update submissions through APIs. |
| Webhooks | No further submission automations trigger. |
| Document generation | No documents are available for deleted submissions. |
Constraints and limitations
| Constraint | Detail |
|---|---|
| Production with submissions | Blocked. Create a new version instead. |
| Deleted submissions | Permanent. They cannot be recovered or exported. |
Related features
- Publish a form version: publish the version again.
- Create and delete form versions: change a live form.
