# How to publish an instruction and work with versions

> Publishing a draft, major change vs minor edit, notifying employees, version history, comparing and restoring versions.

Источник: https://jecheck.io/en/docs/instructions/publish-and-versions

Each time you publish an instruction, a new version is created: 1, 2, 3… A published version can't be changed — you can only release the next one. That way you always have a history of what changed, when and by whom.

## Step by step: publishing

1. **Open the instruction in the editor.** The **Publish** button is active when there are unpublished changes.
2. **Click “Publish”.** A window opens with the number of the upcoming version.

   ![The window for publishing a new version](/docs-media/en/instructions/publish-dialog.jpg)
3. **Describe what changed.** The **What changed** field is optional for the first publication and required from the second version on. Employees see this text at the top of the instruction and in the push notification.
4. **Choose the change type** (from the second version on): **Major change** or **Minor edit**.
5. **Decide whether to notify employees.** The **Notify employees** checkbox sends a push to the mobile app and a notification in the web dashboard to everyone in the audience. It's on for the first publication and for a major change, and off for a minor edit; check or uncheck it manually if needed.
6. **Check the audience.** The bottom of the window shows who the instruction is for; the **Edit** link opens the settings.
7. **Confirm publishing.** Afterwards, the instruction opens in reading mode.

> [!NOTE]
> You can't publish an instruction without a name, an empty one, or while files are uploading — the window tells you what to fix.

## Major change or minor edit

- **Major change** — the order of actions, norms or requirements have changed. If the instruction requires the “I've read it” acknowledgement, employees will have to confirm again: old acknowledgements don't count for the new version. Employees who opened the previous version see an **Updated** badge in the list and in the instruction itself.
- **Minor edit** — typos, formatting. Acknowledgements are kept.

The first publication always counts as major.

> [!NOTE]
> The **Notify employees** checkbox switches along with the change type: choose **Minor edit** and it's unchecked, **Major change** and it's checked. If you toggle the checkbox manually, the window stops changing it.

## A draft on top of the published version

After publishing, you can keep editing: employees see the latest published version while your changes accumulate in a draft. The editor status shows **Has unpublished changes**, and the list shows a **Has changes** badge.

To drop your edits, choose **More → Discard draft** — the draft reverts to the latest published version.

## History, comparison and restoring

The **Versions** button in the editor opens the history: number, date, author and type (**major** or **minor edit**). For each version you can use:

- **View** — see how the instruction looked;
- **With draft** and **With previous** — comparison: additions and deletions are highlighted; you can turn on **Changes only**;
- **Restore to draft** — the old version's content replaces the current draft. The published version stays the same until you publish again — then a new version is created.

![Version history: change type, notes and comparison](/docs-media/en/instructions/versions.jpg)

Employees in reading mode can also pick an older version from the **Version** list. Viewing an old version doesn't count as reading the current one.

## Archive and deletion

- **Archive** (in the editor's **More** menu or the instruction's menu in the list) — employees stop seeing the instruction; history and statistics are kept. To bring it back, use **Restore from archive**.
- **Delete** — the instruction is deleted together with all versions and acknowledgement statistics, and can't be restored.

## Frequently asked questions

### Will employees notice that the instruction was updated?

If you leave **Notify employees** checked, they get an “Instruction updated” notification with the text from the **What changed** field. The same text is shown at the top of the instruction. After a major change, people who already read the instruction see an **Updated** badge in the list and next to the version number. The badge disappears once the employee opens the new version. A minor edit doesn't add the badge. If acknowledgement is required and the change is major, the instruction reappears on the employees' **To acknowledge** tab.

### I made a mistake when publishing. How do I roll back?

Open **Versions**, click **Restore to draft** on the version you need, and publish. This creates a new version with the earlier content.

### Can I fix a typo without resetting acknowledgements?

Yes: choose **Minor edit** when publishing — acknowledgements are kept, and the **Notify employees** checkbox unchecks itself.