How to restore a previous Zendesk email template

To restore a previous Zendesk email template, open Lettercrest's History, find the version you want, check it with Preview or Compare with live, and click Roll back to this. It becomes the live template at once, saved as a new version "Rolled back to version N", and the version that was live stays in History. This works for any version applied through Lettercrest, plus the template that was live before you first used it.

Why there is something to roll back to

Zendesk's Admin Center editor saves the template you type. Lettercrest keeps a copy of every version in your own Zendesk account, in a custom object called "Lettercrest version". The first time you apply anything, Lettercrest saves the template that was live as "Template in Zendesk before Lettercrest". After that, every Apply to Zendesk saves the new version with who applied it, when and the note from What changed.

Steps

1. Open Lettercrest from the left navigation bar and go to History. Versions are listed newest first, with who applied each one, when, its note and size. The live one is marked.
2. Preview the version with the same options as the editor: Desktop or Phone, the brand, and Customer email, Agent notification or Help center notification.
3. Compare with live. Lettercrest shows the lines that differ, the live template in red and the version in green.
4. Roll back. Click Roll back to this. Lettercrest writes that version to Zendesk and reads it back.
5. Check a real email. Send yourself a test ticket update, since the preview approximates mail apps.

What each History action does

When someone edited the template in Admin Center

If an admin saved a change in Admin Center, or another admin applied from Lettercrest, after you opened it, Lettercrest notices when you click Apply to Zendesk. It reads the live template again, stops and asks. Apply anyway replaces that change, and saves it as a version first, so their work isn't lost either.

If Zendesk refuses the template

Lettercrest saves the new version, writes the template and reads it back. If Zendesk refuses it, the new version is removed again and the live template stays as it was.

Storage and limits

Each version is stored compressed in one or more records, because Zendesk limits a record to 32 KB. The records count toward your account's custom object records. Versions to keep (default 100) only controls what Delete N older offers; nothing is deleted until an admin clicks it.

What it costs

Lettercrest is $79 a month per Zendesk account on the Standard plan, with every feature, including history and rollback. Zendesk bills it monthly after a 14-day trial with a card. Version history uses a custom object, so you need any Zendesk Suite plan or Support Enterprise. The Lettercrest documentation has the full reference.