When To Use Version History And Trash
Version History and Trash are recovery tools for survey editing. Use Version History when you need to return to an earlier survey snapshot. Use Trash when a block or question was deleted but should be restored.
Recovery tools are most valuable before and after risky edits: major wording changes, Flow rewrites, condition changes, imported blocks, or cleanup work before publishing.
Block Builder: Recovery Context
Save And Restore Versions
Step 1: Save before a major edit. Open Version History and create a manual save before changing live-critical wording, Flow, quotas, or variables.
Step 2: Review the version list. Compare the time and label of each saved snapshot to identify the version you need.
Step 3: Choose Restore in Place or Restore as Copy. Restore in Place changes the current survey. Restore as Copy preserves the current survey and creates a separate copy from the old snapshot.
Step 4: Recheck Flow and Preview. Restoring content can change paths, variables, or respondent experience.
Step 4: Recheck Flow
Step 5: Export a test response if variables changed. Confirm the restored version still produces the expected columns.
Step 5: Check Export
Restore Deleted Blocks Or Questions
Trash stores deleted blocks and questions so accidental deletions can be reversed. Restore from Trash when you need the original content back instead of rebuilding it manually.
- Restore a block when the whole study section was deleted.
- Restore a question when one item was removed from a block by mistake.
- Empty Trash only when you are sure deleted material is no longer needed.
- Preview after restoring. Restored items may need page breaks, Flow placement, or variable review.
Preview: Restored Content
Recovery Checklist Before Publishing
- Create a manual version before final launch edits.
- Restore as Copy when you are unsure whether the older version should replace the current one.
- Review question names, recodes, and condition labels after a restore.
- Walk through the restored path in Preview.
- Publish only after confirming the recovered survey is the intended live version.
Deploy: Publish After Recovery