Publishing
Forms have draft and published states. Edits don’t affect live forms until published.
Versioning Model
Draft vs Published
| Schema | Who Sees It | Purpose |
|---|
draft_schema | Admins (preview) | Work in progress |
published_schema | Applicants | Live form |
draft_schema. Applicants continue seeing published_schema until you re-publish.
export async function publishForm(formId: string) {
const form = await getForm(formId);
await supabaseAdmin
.from("forms")
.update({
published_schema: form.draft_schema,
last_published_at: new Date().toISOString(),
published_version: form.published_version + 1,
status: "published",
})
.eq("id", formId);
// Create version snapshot
await recordFormVersionSnapshot(formId, form.draft_schema);
}
Scheduled Publishing
Forms can be scheduled to go live at a future date:
// Set scheduled publish time
await formsRepository.schedulePublish(formId, new Date("2025-02-01T00:00:00Z"));
published_at has passed:
async function processScheduledPublishes(): Promise<number> {
const result = await formsRepository.getFormsDueForPublish();
for (const form of result.data) {
await supabaseAdmin
.from("forms")
.update({
status: "published",
published_schema: form.schema,
})
.eq("id", form.id);
logger.info("Auto-published form", { formId: form.id });
}
return result.data.length;
}
Scheduled Closing
Forms can also be scheduled to stop accepting submissions:
// Set scheduled close time (deadline)
await formsRepository.scheduleClose(formId, new Date("2025-03-31T23:59:59Z"));
closes_at has passed:
async function processScheduledCloses(): Promise<number> {
const result = await formsRepository.getFormsDueForClose();
for (const form of result.data) {
await supabaseAdmin
.from("forms")
.update({ status: "closed" })
.eq("id", form.id);
logger.info("Auto-closed form", { formId: form.id });
}
return result.data.length;
}
After a form receives its first submission, it becomes frozen. Frozen forms:
- Cannot have their schema modified
- Can still be closed/reopened
- Can have settings changed (branding, etc.)
This protects data integrity—changing questions after receiving responses would break historical data.
Freeze Fields
interface Form {
frozen: boolean;
frozen_at: string | null;
frozen_reason: string | null;
}
Auto-Freeze Behavior
The background worker automatically freezes forms:
async function processAutoFreeze(): Promise<number> {
// Find published, non-frozen forms with submissions
const { data: forms } = await supabaseAdmin
.from("forms")
.select("id, title")
.eq("status", "published")
.eq("frozen", false);
for (const form of forms) {
const { count } = await supabaseAdmin
.from("submissions")
.select("*", { count: "exact", head: true })
.eq("form_id", form.id);
if (count > 0) {
await supabaseAdmin
.from("forms")
.update({
frozen: true,
frozen_at: new Date().toISOString(),
frozen_reason: "First submission received",
})
.eq("id", form.id);
}
}
}
Manual Freeze/Unfreeze
Super admins can manually freeze or unfreeze forms:
// Freeze a form
await formsRepository.freeze(formId, "Locked for audit");
// Unfreeze (be careful!)
await formsRepository.unfreeze(formId);
Unfreezing a form with existing submissions can cause data integrity issues. Only do this if you’re certain the schema changes won’t break existing responses.
Preview Mode
Admins can preview draft changes before publishing:
/f/rental-assistance?preview=draft
draft_schema instead of published_schema. Only authenticated admins see the preview.
Effective Status
The effective form status considers scheduling:
function getEffectiveFormStatus(
status: "draft" | "published" | "closed",
publishedAt: string | null,
closesAt: string | null
): "draft" | "published" | "closed" {
const now = new Date();
// If closed, stay closed
if (status === "closed") return "closed";
// If draft and published_at hasn't passed, still draft
if (status === "draft") {
if (publishedAt && new Date(publishedAt) <= now) {
return "published"; // Scheduled publish time has passed
}
return "draft";
}
// If published, check if closes_at has passed
if (closesAt && new Date(closesAt) <= now) {
return "closed";
}
return "published";
}
| Status | Accepting Submissions | Schema Editable | Trigger |
|---|
draft | No | Yes | Create / Edit |
published | Yes | Yes (to draft) | Publish |
published + frozen | Yes | No | First submission |
closed | No | No | Manual / Scheduled |
Lifecycle Diagram