You will need the Full Write App permission to perform these actions. Your One Church Software subscription also needs the App Builder add-on to access this area.
A version is a complete copy of your app design. It holds every screen, every block on those screens, and the navigation menu. You can keep as many versions as you like, and exactly one of them is live in the app at any moment.
Versions are what let you work on a change in private. Build it in a version nobody can see, look it over, then make it live when it is ready.
Working with versions
Versions are managed at Mobile App > Builder. The Version dropdown at the top of the canvas chooses which version you are looking at, and everything below it belongs to that version.
The version that is live shows a green Published badge. Every other version shows an amber Publish this version button instead.
Add New and Copy do different things
Both create a new version, and the difference catches people out more than anything else in this area.
+ Add New - creates an empty version. It has no screens and no menu. Use it when you want to design the app over again from nothing.
Copy - duplicates the version you are viewing, with every screen and the whole navigation menu. Use it when you want to change something about a design you already have.
Tip: If you are trying out a change to the app your members already use, Copy is almost always the one you want. Copy the published version, make your changes in the copy, and publish it when you are happy with it.
Renaming and deleting a version
The 3-dots menu beside the Version dropdown holds the actions for the version you are viewing:
Copy - creates a duplicate of this version.
Rename - changes the version's name. The name is only ever seen by your staff, so name versions in a way that tells you what is in them.
Delete - removes the version and everything in it.
Delete does not appear on the version that is currently published. To remove a version that is live, publish a different version first, then delete it.
Publishing a version
Publishing is how a version becomes the design your members see. Only one version is published at a time, so publishing a version also takes the previous one out of the app.
Publish a version
Select the version you want to make live in the Version dropdown.
Click Publish this version beneath the dropdown.
Read the confirmation. It reads This will make the selected version live. The previously published version will revert to Unpublished.
Click Publish to go ahead, or Nevermind to back out.
The version that was live is not deleted. It moves back to unpublished and stays in the list, so you can publish it again if you need to undo the change.
What One Church checks before publishing
Publishing checks the whole version, not only the screen you were last working on. A version publishes when all of the following are true:
One screen is set as the home screen.
Every menu item, button, and list item points at something that still exists.
Every icon used in the navigation menu is one the app supports.
Every Web URL screen has a web address filled in.
If something does not pass, a red banner appears naming what needs attention. Fix the items it lists, then publish again.
Editing the version that is live
You can edit the published version directly, and the builder tells you when you are: a banner reads You are editing the live, published design. Changes appear in the app immediately.
Warning: Changes you save on the published version reach members straight away. There is no separate step to release them. If you want room to experiment, copy the published version first and work in the copy.
What publishing does not do
Publishing does not submit anything to the Apple App Store or Google Play. Your app is already in the stores, and the design inside it is what changes.
Publishing happens right away. There is no way to schedule a version to go live later, so publish at the moment you want members to see it.
Publishing does not change the app's name, icon, or colors. Those live on the General tab.
Tip: After publishing, close and relaunch the app on a phone to see the new design. An app left open in the background can keep showing the previous one.