SharePoint Version History and File Restoration

SharePoint is a document repository. Instead of emailing documents to others, (and dealing with the versioning issues that often create) instead, you can email hyperlinks to documents on the SharePoint site when collaboration needs to happen. As users modify and update files, the latest version — as well as previous versions, if you wish — is stored in a single place, along with the history of who revised what, when.

Instructions 

Enable Versioning

When adding a new Document Library to a SharePoint site, under Advanced options link in the Add Document Library window, select the radial for Yes under Create a version each time you edit a file in the document library?. This will turn on the automatic creation of anew version each time a file is edited and saved.

1. To edit versioning settings on an existing Document Library, go to Site Contents,
2. Hover over the Document Library, then click the ... (ellipse) beside the Document library and click Settings.
3. In the settings page, select Versioning settings.
4. From the Version settings page, under Create a version each time you edit a file in this document library?,
   1. Select the radial for whether to create a new major version
   2. or a new minor version.
5. To ensure only one person can edit a document at a time,
   1. Under Requires documents to be checked out before they can be edited?,
   2. Select the radial for Yes.
   3. Select No if users will be collaboratively editing documents together. Click OK when finished editing Versioning settings.

Check Out a Document

Online

1. First, from OneDrive, scroll to the bottom of the left navigation pane and click Return to classic OneDrive.
2. To prevent others from editing a file while you are working on it, hover over the filename in the Document Library, then click the ... (ellipse) beside the file and
3. select Check Out.
   • This will lock the file. If another user tries to edit the file while it is checked out, they will be notified that they cannot edit the file until the user who checked it out, check it back in makes it available for editing.

Local Office Applications

Word

1. Click File, then click Info.
2. Click on the down arrow on the Manage Document button in the main pane
3. Click Check-out.

Excel

1. Click File, then click Info.
2. Click on the down arrow on the Manage Document button in the main pane
3. Click Check-out.

Manage Versions

1. To access the version history of a file, hover over the filename in the Document Library,
2. then click the ... (ellipse) beside the file and
3. select Version History.
   • A window will appear with the version number, when it was last modified, the user who modified it, the size, and any comments.
   • To view a version, click on the little down-pointing triangle and select view, restore or delete as desired.
   • If you click directly on the modified date, then you will receive a prompt to download. 

References

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/enable-and-configure-versioning-for-a-list-or-library-1555d642-23ee-446a-990a-bcab618c7a37

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/how-versioning-works-in-lists-and-libraries-0f6cd105-974f-44a4-aadb-43ac5bdfd247

Environment

SharePoint