Revision History

Every time you save a page, Promptless WP records a version of its sections as a WordPress revision. The History panel lists those versions, shows each one rendered next to the current page with the changed sections outlined, and lets you bring an earlier version back into the editor.

When to use it

• A section was deleted or edited by mistake and the change is already saved.
• You want to see what a colleague changed on a page, and when.
• You want to go back to how the page looked before a larger rework.

For changes you have not saved yet, use undo (Ctrl+Z, or Cmd+Z on a Mac) instead. History only holds saved versions.

How to see earlier versions

1. Open the page in the Promptless WP editor.
2. In the toolbar, select the icon button next to the Preview button. Its tooltip reads Revision history.
3. The History panel opens on the right, newest version first.

Each row shows when the version was saved (hover over the time for the exact date), who saved it, and what that save changed, for example “2 edited”, “1 added”, “1 removed” or “1 moved”. The oldest version reads First version. The version that matches the saved page is marked Current, and an older version with identical sections is marked Same as current.

Select the refresh icon at the top of the panel to reload the list, or the close icon to hide it.

How to compare a version with the current page

1. In the History panel, select Compare on the version you want.
2. The Compare with the current page window opens and draws both versions as visitors would see them.
3. Choose a view: Side by side, Current (the current page only) or This version (the older version only).

Sections that differ are outlined and labelled inside each frame:

• In the older version’s frame, a section is labelled Added, Edited or Moved when it differs from the current page.
• In the Current page frame, a section labelled Removed is one the older version does not have. Restoring that version takes it away.

The window’s heading also summarises the difference as counts of edited, added, removed and moved sections.

Note

“Current” means the last saved page, not what is in the editor right now. Unsaved edits are not part of the comparison; you can see them in the canvas and in Preview.

How to restore a version

1. In the History panel, select Restore on the version you want. You can also select Restore this version from the compare window.
2. The editor loads that version’s sections and shows a message that it has been loaded. Nothing on the live site has changed yet.
3. Check the page in the canvas.
4. To keep it, save the page with Update (or Publish on a draft). To discard it, undo with Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on a Mac) before saving.

Saving a restored version records it as a new version of its own, so you can go back again if you change your mind.

Restore is not available on the version marked Current or Same as current, because loading it would change nothing.

Limits and common problems

• How many versions are kept follows your host. History uses WordPress revisions, so the site’s revision limit (the WP_POST_REVISIONS setting) applies. When the site sets a limit, the panel states it, for example “This site keeps the last 5 revisions of each page”. Ask your site administrator or host if you need more.
• The panel says revisions are turned off. The site has disabled WordPress revisions, so no new versions are being recorded. A site administrator can turn them back on with the WP_POST_REVISIONS setting.
• The panel says this WordPress version cannot keep section history. Section history needs WordPress 6.4 or newer.
• The panel says “No history yet”. Nothing has been saved since the feature arrived. Each save from now on records a version.
• Older versions are missing. Versions saved before Promptless WP 1.8.1 hold no section content, so the panel does not list them and they cannot be restored. If someone restores one from the WordPress Revisions screen, Promptless WP leaves the page’s sections as they are rather than wiping them.
• A version shows “No section changes”. WordPress recorded a revision on that save without any section changing. Publishing a page, for example, can add two entries at once.
• Only sections are versioned here. Global settings such as colours and fonts have their own history; see Staging Global Settings Changes.

Available since Promptless WP 1.8.1.

Related pages

• Preview & Publishing — Preview a page with your unsaved changes, publish a draft or update a live page from the editor, and where scheduling and unpublishing happen.
• Working with Sections — Add, edit, reorder, duplicate, copy, convert, remix and delete the sections that make up a page, and the keyboard shortcuts for each.
• Audit While You Edit — How the editor checks your unsaved page as you work, what the badges on sections mean, and how to find and fix each finding.