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Publishing and Versions

Publishing makes an agent's draft live. The first publish turns a draft into a working agent. After that, each publish creates a new numbered version, and the live version is the one callers reach and runs use. Every published version is kept, so you can compare versions and bring an earlier one back.

Before You Start​

  • Role: Admin or Organisation Admin. See Roles and Permissions.
  • A tested draft. Try the draft in the playground first. Publishing is where changes start reaching callers.

Publishing for the First Time​

A new agent can be published from the builder's Publish step or from the Publish button in the editor. Both show the same checklist.

  1. Open the agent's draft and select Publish.
  2. Work through the checklist. Each item that is not done has a Fix button that goes to the setting, or Ask IQ to have IQ sort it out.
  3. For a Frontline agent, choose a phone number, or leave it for later. See Phone Numbers and Deployment.
  4. Press and hold Hold to Publish until it fills.

Holding stops an accidental click from putting an agent live. When it finishes, the agent appears in Agents as Live, and its page opens on the Metrics tab.

If publishing does not go through:

  • No Draft to Publish: the draft has gone, usually because someone discarded it. Reopen the agent from Agents.
  • This Agent Changed Somewhere Else: someone else saved the draft. Select Reload and check their changes before publishing.
  • Couldn't Publish: try again shortly.

Publishing Changes to a Live Agent​

Edit the draft in Quick Config or the full editor, then:

  1. Select Publish Version followed by the next version number in Quick Config, or Publish in the editor.
  2. Review the changes in "Publish Version N?". Each setting that changes is listed as Added, Removed, Changed or Edited, with the old and new values.
  3. Optionally, describe the change under What changed, such as "Friendlier greeting". It is shown in version history.
  4. Select Publish Version followed by the version number.

A message confirms the version is live. The editor is unavailable for publishing when there are no changes, and its tooltip reads "There are no changes to publish."

Warnings on the Publish Review​

This agent is answering calls. Publishing applies to the next call to the agent's number. Calls already in progress finish on the current version, so nobody is cut off mid-call.

The number callers dial changes. The draft moves the agent to a different phone number. Calls to the old number stop reaching the agent as soon as the version is published, so update anywhere that number is advertised.

Version N was published after this draft started. Someone published a newer version while this draft was being edited. Publishing the draft replaces their version, including any of their changes that are not in the draft. Compare the two first. To go ahead, tick Publish over the newer version.

Discarding Changes​

To throw away a published agent's draft and go back to the live version:

  • In the editor: select Discard changes, then Discard changes in "Discard your changes?".
  • In Quick Config: select Discard Draft. See Quick Config.

Discarding removes the draft for everyone working on the agent. Version history is not affected.

Version History​

Select History on the Quick Config tab to open Version History. It lists every published version, newest first, with who published it, when, and the note from What changed. The live version is marked Live, and any draft is shown at the top with the version it is based on.

Each version's menu has:

  • Compare With Live
  • Compare With Draft
  • Restore To Draft

To compare any two versions, select both, then Compare Selected.

Comparing Versions​

Compare Versions shows two versions side by side. Choose them under Compare from and Compare to, or select Swap sides. Changed Only shows only the settings that differ, and All Settings shows everything. Tools are compared one by one, including their address, description and headers.

Restoring an Earlier Version​

Restoring copies an earlier version into the draft. It does not publish anything.

  1. Select Restore To Draft in the version's menu, or Restore Version N To Draft in the comparison.
  2. Select Replace Draft in "Replace The Current Draft?". Any changes already in the draft are lost.
  3. Check the draft, then publish it as a new version.

Changes From Connected AI Apps​

A connected AI app can update an agent, but it cannot publish. Its changes land in the draft, and a person reviews and publishes them here like any other change. See What Connected Apps Can Do.

What Happens Next​