Sheets provides the Version history feature to allow you easily access previous versions of a sheet and see how it has been edited. When content is modified, the system automatically retains a version and records the modifier, modification time, and modification details. When necessary, you can restore a sheet to any previous version with a single click. To ensure the security of the data in your sheets, only users with edit permission can view or restore version history.
- 1.Open the version history list: In the navigation bar at the top of the Sheets interface, click the ... icon in the upper-right corner then click Version history. You will see that all previous versions are listed in reverse chronological order, along with modifiers and modification time.
- 2.View a complete version history: In the version history list, click on the version for which you want to view detailed information to see the full content of the sheet at the selected time point.
Note: The system adds a blue background to cells that have changed since the previous version. Hover over a blue cell to see the editor who performed the operation.
- 3.Expand groups of version history: The system automatically groups version histories in list by editing time. Click the > icon to expand the corresponding group and see version history details.
- 4.Close: Click the X icon in the upper-right corner of the list to close the version history list.
How to restore a previous version?
- 1.In the version history list, click on the version you want to restore.
- 2.Check on the left side of the screen that this is the version you want to restore.
- 3.Click Restore this version at the top of the screen to restore sheet to the selected version history.
Q: Who can see version history?
A: To ensure the security of confidential information, only users with edit permission (including the sheet's owner) can view or restore version history.
Q: Why are some sheets missing the Version history option?
A: Only users with edit permission can view or restore version history. Therefore, users with view permission will not be able to see the Version history option in the menu.
Q: After a version history is restored, will deleted content be recovered?
A: First, make sure you have selected the correct version history before restoring it. If you restore a version history with a description like "Deleted..." that means the selected version contains deleted content from a previous version, and the deleted part will not exist in the restored version. To recover the deleted content, you will need to restore a previous version from before the content was deleted.
🎉Congratulations! Now you have learned how to use the version history feature in Sheets.
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