Versioning

What you'll learn

• The version types in Artifact (Draft, Snapshot, Release, Cancelled) and when to use each
• How to open Version History and branch new drafts
• How to save a snapshot and how to publish a Release with metadata and PDFs
• How to release the wiring diagram and its harnesses together — or pick just the items you need
• The end-to-end release process — readiness checks, sign-off, cutting the release, distribution, and superseding old releases
• How to copy shareable links for diagrams and specific versions

Prerequisites

• Complete Tutorial 4: Make your First Diagram. You need a diagram with at least one draft version to work with.
• Complete Tutorial 6: Harness Editor if you want to release harnesses — only harnesses you've laid out (and saved) in the Harness Editor are eligible to release alongside the diagram.

Steps

1Understand the version types

Every diagram in Artifact has a tree of versions linked by parent/child relationships. Each version is one of four types:

• Draft — editable working copy. Drafts autosave continuously.
• Snapshot — frozen read-only copy meant as a historical checkpoint.
• Release — approved, build-ready version with release metadata, drawing number, and optional PDF artifacts.
• Cancelled — a former release that has been withdrawn; shown struck through.

A diagram can have many drafts and many releases over its lifetime. Snapshots are great for marking design reviews; releases are for handing files to manufacturing.

2Open Version History

Two main entry points:

• From an open diagram: open the Properties pane (right side, Ctrl/Cmd+P). Just under the diagram name you'll see the current version name (e.g. Initial Draft) next to an orange GitBranch icon with the tooltip Version history. Click it.
• From the Diagrams sidebar: right-click any diagram → Open Version History (GitBranch icon).

A new editor tab opens, titled {DiagramName} Versions. It contains:

• A visual branch tree on the left showing all versions and their parent/child relationships.
• A table on the right with columns Name, Description, Last Modified, and Author / Last Modified By.
• A Current Releases panel at the top with release pills you can click for release info or download the release PDF.

Screenshot

3Branch a new draft

Drafts are the only versions you can edit. To start a new draft from an existing version:

1. In the Version History tab, right-click a version (or click the row's gear ⋮ icon).
2. Choose Branch a New Draft.
3. A new version named Draft from {parent name} appears in the tree and enters inline rename mode.
4. Type a meaningful name (e.g. Add Power Distribution Loom) and press Enter.

You can also branch from inside the editor itself. Open a snapshot or release; the canvas shows a Read Only banner with a Create Draft button — click it to branch and immediately switch to the new draft.

4Save a snapshot

Use a snapshot when you want to lock in the current state of a draft without releasing it for build (e.g. after a design review).

1. In Version History, right-click the draft you want to capture.
2. Choose Save Snapshot (Save icon).
3. The draft becomes a read-only snapshot. Any further work happens on a new draft you branch from it.

5Release the diagram and its harnesses

A release is the formal hand-off. It captures metadata you'll need for manufacturing and produces PDFs for the wiring diagram and each harness you include.

1. Right-click a draft in Version History → Release Drawing.
2. The Release modal opens. Fill in:
   • Version — the release version label (e.g. R1, 1.0)
   • Description — short summary
   • Release — release name
   • Drawing # — your drawing number
   • Release Notes — change summary
   • Items to Release — tick what this release includes: the Wiring Diagram plus any of the diagram's harnesses, each listed by name. Everything is selected by default; use the toggle-all button to select or clear them. Only harnesses you've laid out and saved in the Harness Editor (Tutorial 6: Harness Editor) appear here, and each harness you tick is released as its own harness drawing PDF.
   • Cancel Prior Releases — optionally retire previous releases of the same drawing
3. Click Release Now, then confirm with Confirm Release.

The released version appears as a pill in the Current Releases panel. Click the pill for release info; click the arrow icon to open it; click the download icon for the release PDFs — the wiring diagram and each released harness.

Releasing just a harness. Because Items to Release is a per-item choice, you can clear Wiring Diagram and tick only the harness(es) you want to hand off — useful when a harness revs independently of the schematic. At least one item must be selected.

Screenshot

6Follow the end-to-end release process

Cutting a release (step 5) is one action inside a larger workflow. Use this checklist to take a design from "in progress" to "handed off to manufacturing" with confidence:

• Get the design build-ready. Finish wiring (no disconnected wires, every pin assigned), fill in part numbers for components, ports/connectors, and wires, and set wire gauges and lengths. Lay out and length the harness(es) in the Harness Editor (Tutorial 6: Harness Editor).
• Verify readiness. Run the in-diagram ERCs pane (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+R) and clear failures like disconnected wires, missing P/Ns, and undefined lengths. For program-level sign-off, open the Project Dashboard (Tutorial 10: Library & Project Dashboards) and check Data Completeness (the release-readiness %) and Release Maturity, then run Project Rules Checks across every active diagram — including cross-diagram Duplicate Pin Assignments.
• Capture a checkpoint (optional). Save a Snapshot (step 4) at a design review so you have a named, frozen reference before any further edits.
• Review and sign off. Use pinned canvas comments (the Add review comments step below) for redlines and resolve them before releasing. Share a version link (the Copy a shareable link step below) so reviewers see exactly the version under review. See Tutorial 13: Collaboration.
• Cut the release. Run Release Drawing on the approved draft (step 5): fill in the version label, drawing #, and release notes, and tick the Items to Release (the wiring diagram plus each harness). Enable Cancel Prior Releases when this supersedes an earlier release of the same drawing.
• Distribute the artifacts. A release produces PDFs, with optional Connection Tables, BOMs, and Comment Threads (Tutorial 9: BOMs & Exports). Download them from the release pill in the Current Releases panel, or share the released version's link — the released PDF stays downloadable any time afterward.
• Maintain releases over time. When a release is superseded, Cancel it (it shows struck through) and Branch a New Draft (step 3) from the latest release to start the next revision. The Project Dashboard's Release Maturity flags any active versions that are behind the latest release.

7Switch between versions

In the Version History table, click any underlined version name to open that version. By default it opens in the current tab; the context menu also offers Open in New Tab, which is useful for side-by-side review since Artifact does not have a built-in two-version diff view.

Each open version is its own editor tab labeled with the version name. The right-pane Properties header always shows which version you're viewing.

8Copy a shareable link

Artifact provides shareable links at multiple levels. Anyone with the link who has access to the organization (and the project) can open the same view.

• Properties header — click the LinkIcon next to the version name. Tooltip: Copy shareable link. Confirmation: Link copied to clipboard.
• Export Diagram area (bottom of Properties) — a separate link button next to Export Diagram.
• Version History header — click the Link icon. Tooltip: Copy Diagram Link.
• Version History context menu — Copy Shareable Link. Toast: Shareable Link Copied.

There is also Copy API Info in the version context menu, which copies a JSON payload with project, diagram, and version IDs for use in scripts or the API.

Screenshot

9Add review comments

Comments are version-scoped threads pinned to points on the canvas, so they're the natural way to capture redlines on the snapshot or release under review. Right-click the canvas → Add Comment, or open the Comments pane (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+C) to browse and resolve them. See Tutorial 13: Collaboration for the full comments workflow.

Don't confuse comment threads with Comments in the diagram's title block — the latter is a single text field used as metadata on exported drawings, not a collaborative thread.

10Review changes between versions

Artifact does not provide a built-in version-to-version diff UI. The practical workflows are:

• Open two versions in separate tabs and compare side by side.
• Snapshots as named checkpoints to make timeline navigation easier.
• Branch a New Draft from an older version and edit forward.
• Update from Library in Diagram Properties to surface library drift (note: this compares the diagram to library items, not version to version).
• Release PDFs with optional Connection Tables, BOMs, and Comment Threads for offline review.

Summary

You now know the four version types, how to navigate the version tree, how to branch drafts, save snapshots, and publish releases with metadata and PDFs. You walked through the end-to-end release process — readiness checks, sign-off, cutting the release, distributing artifacts, and superseding old releases. You can also copy shareable links at multiple granularities, leave pinned canvas comments, and review changes by opening versions side by side.

What's next

• → Tutorial 8: Design Blocks — package this version of the diagram as a reusable subsystem you can drop into other diagrams.
• → Tutorial 9: BOMs & Exports — produce the BOM, connections table, cut list, and diagram exports that round out a release.