---
title: Replacing, unpublishing or deleting a document
description: Uploading a new version, finding previous versions, withdrawing a document from employees or deleting it permanently.
url: "http://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/company-documents-versions-and-withdrawal/"
updated: "2026-11-11"
category: "Core HR services / Storage & e-signature"
---

# Replacing, unpublishing or deleting a document

Company documents change over time: internal rules are revised, a policy is updated, a guide becomes obsolete. This article explains how to upload a new version of a document, find its previous versions, withdraw it from employees by unpublishing it and, if necessary, delete it permanently. It is aimed at HR staff and administrators.

## Before you start

- The actions in this article require the **Publish, replace and unpublish company documents** permission at the **Execute** level (**Administrator** and **HR Manager** roles). With the **Access** level, you can only view the table and the version history.
- Everything happens in **Settings › Documents › Company documents**: your role must also give you access to Settings.
- To publish a first document, see [Publishing a company document and choosing its audience](https://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/company-documents-publishing/).

## Reading the documents table

The table lists every document, published or not, whatever its audience, sorted by category and then by title.

- **Document**: the title, the effective date and the language (FR, EN, DE, IT).
- **Category** and **Audience**: the library section and a summary of the audience.
- **Version**: the number and size of the current version, for example “v2 · 41 KB”.
- **Status**: **Published** or **Unpublished**.
- On the right, five icons: **Versions** (clock), **Edit** (pencil), **New version** (upward arrow), **Unpublish** or **Republish** (crossed-out eye or eye), **Delete** (red bin). Hover over an icon to see its name.

![The Company documents table in Settings, with the Publish a document button and the columns Document, Category, Audience, Version and Status. The Charte informatique row, category Policies, audience 1 group(s), version v2 · 41 KB, is unpublished: its eye icon offers to republish it, whereas the five other documents, with the status Published, show a crossed-out eye.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/documents-entreprise-04.en_-scaled.png?resize=800%2C296&quality=80&ssl=1)
Charte informatique, moved to version 2 and then unpublished, among the published documents.

## Uploading a new version

When the text of a document changes, upload a new version rather than a new document: the title, category and audience stay the same, and employees read the new text straight away.

1. On the document’s row, click the **New version** icon (upward arrow).
2. Your computer’s file picker opens. Select the updated file: **PDF**, **Word** (.docx) or **text** (.txt), up to 20 MB. The format may differ from that of the previous version.
3. The message “New version published.” confirms the upload. The **Version** column moves to the next number.

From that moment:

- employees in the audience only read the new version, with its new number;
- searches only cover the text of the new version, read when it was uploaded;
- the previous version is kept and can still be viewed by HR, with its replacement date.

Uploading a new version does not notify the audience. If the change needs to be announced, use another channel, for example an announcement on the dashboard. To change the title, effective date or audience at the same time, also use **Edit**.

## Viewing the version history

1. Click the **Versions** icon (clock) on the document’s row.
2. The window shows the document’s title and reminds you: “Employees only read the current version; previous ones remain available here.”
3. Each version is listed, most recent first, with its number, the name of the uploaded file, its publication date and, for a replaced version, its replacement date.
4. Click **Open** to display a version in a new browser tab.

![The versions window for Charte informatique: the sentence “Employees only read the current version; previous ones remain available here.”, then v2 · charte-informatique-v2.pdf, published on 11.11.2026, and v1 · charte-informatique-v1.pdf, published on 11.11.2026 · replaced on 11.11.2026, each with an Open button.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/documents-entreprise-05.en_.png?resize=512%2C238&quality=80&ssl=1)
Two versions: v2 is current, v1 has been replaced and can still be viewed by HR.

These versions let you find the text that applied on a given date, for example to answer an employee who refers to the previous rules.

## Unpublishing or republishing a document

Unpublishing withdraws a document from employees without erasing anything: the details, the audience and every version are kept. It is the right action for an outdated document you want to keep, or for a document that needs reviewing before it becomes visible again.

1. Click the **Unpublish** icon (crossed-out eye) on the document’s row.
2. The message “Document unpublished.” confirms the withdrawal. The status changes to **Unpublished** and the icon becomes **Republish** (eye).

The document disappears immediately from the library, the search and the assistant’s answers, for everyone. To make it visible again, click **Republish**: the message “Document republished.” appears and the document returns, with its current version and audience unchanged. Republishing does not send a notification.

## Deleting a document

Deletion is permanent: it erases the document, all its versions and their files.

1. Click the **Delete** icon (red bin) on the document’s row.
2. The **Delete the document?** window reminds you that the document and all its versions will be deleted, and suggests unpublishing it if you only want to withdraw it from employees.
3. Click **Delete** to confirm, or **Cancel** to back out. The message “Document deleted.” confirms the deletion.

![The Delete the document? confirmation window: “The document and all its versions are deleted. To only withdraw it from employees, unpublish it.”, with the Cancel and Delete buttons.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/documents-entreprise-06.en_.png?resize=448%2C190&quality=80&ssl=1)
The deletion confirmation, which reminds you of the alternative: unpublishing.

Before deleting internal rules or a policy, consider whether you may later need to show what applied at the time: if so, unpublish it instead, or upload a new version.

## Good to know

- Every publication, new version, status change and deletion is recorded in your workspace’s activity log.
- An employee who opened the document in a tab just before a new version was uploaded keeps the old text on screen until they open it again from the library.
- The effective date does not change by itself with a new version: update it with **Edit** if the new text applies from a different date.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the difference between unpublishing and deleting?

Unpublishing withdraws the document from employees and keeps everything, so you can republish it. Deleting erases the document and all its versions, with no way back.

### Can I go back to a previous version?

There is no button to restore a version. Open the previous version from the versions window, save the file, then upload it as a new version.

### Are employees notified of a new version?

No. The “new document” notification is only offered at the first publication. Announce the change through another channel if needed.

### *Similaire*