What’s changing
We’re starting to add version history for sites created in new Google Sites, a highly requested feature from our site owners and editors.
Version history will roll out over the course of 2020 for both users creating new sites as well as for previously existing sites. Version history will be gradually enabled on a user-by-user basis for newly created sites, while a separate rollout will enable version history for previously existing sites. We anticipate:
- By March 2020, all users will have version history enabled for newly created sites
- By the end of 2020, most existing sites will have version history enabled
Who’s impacted
End users
Why you’d use it
Version history allows site editors to easily:
- Revert to previous versions of a site
- Restore deleted site content
- View the history of who has made changes to a site
How to get started
- Admins: No action is required, as this feature will be available by default for newly-created sites once it rolls out to a user. Rollout will not be on a domain basis — it will roll out to newly created sites on a user-by-user basis and to existing sites on a site-by-site basis. Not all of your users will get access to the feature at the same time.
Additional details
How can I tell if version history is available for my site?
You’ll see “Version History” as an option when you click the overflow (three-dot) menu when editing a site or when you select “All changes saved in Drive” from the top menu bar.
Will version history be available for existing sites?
We’re introducing version history gradually for existing sites over the course of 2020, and we anticipate most existing sites will have version history by the end of the year.
Because of changes required to bring users this feature, version history will become available site by site for existing sites and per user for newly created sites. So, until this feature is fully rolled out, users may have version history for some sites, but not others.
If a user who has version history enabled creates a new site, will other editors have access to version history on that site?
Yes, once a site has been created by a user with version history enabled, other users who are editing that site will be able to access the version history of that site.
When does version history start collecting and storing site content changes?
Any changes made before version history is available will not be stored. Changes are only logged once the feature is available for that specific site.
What qualifies as a “newly created” site?
Any site created from the Sites home screen, Google Drive, or sites.new is considered a newly created site and will have version history once the feature is available to the site creator.
Converting a site from classic Google Sites to new Google Sites or creating a copy of an existing new Google Site does not qualify as a newly created site.
Helpful links
Availability
Rollout detailsNewly created sites:- Rapid Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on December 4, 2019
- Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on December 4, 2019
We’ll update this post when the rollout for newly created sites is complete.
Existing sites:- We anticipate that most existing sites will have version history by the end of 2020. We’ll update this post once rollout begins and once rollout is complete.
G Suite editions
- Available to all G Suite editions
On/off by default?
- This feature will be available by default.
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