---
title: "Publishing and versioning"
description: "Understand draft autosave, published snapshots, unpublished changes, and event-pinned inventory."
---

> Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.seatlayer.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Publishing and versioning

Publishing creates a stable chart snapshot that can be used for events. Draft
editing and live event inventory remain deliberately separate.

## Lifecycle

```text title="chart-lifecycle.txt"
draft
  └─ Publish ───────────────> published
                                  │
                                  └─ edit draft ──> published_draft
                                                         │
                                                         └─ Publish ──> published
```

| Status | Meaning | Can create an event? |
|---|---|---:|
| `draft` | Autosaved working document, never published | No |
| `published` | Draft and latest published snapshot agree | Yes |
| `published_draft` | A published snapshot exists, with newer draft edits | Yes, from the published snapshot |

## Events pin a snapshot

> **A chart is not a live pointer**
>
> Event creation materializes inventory from the chart's published snapshot at
> that moment. Later chart edits or republishing do not silently move seats in
> an event that is already selling.

This protects seat identity, capacity, booking mode, labels, and buyer trust.
Changing an existing event's chart is a separate inventory migration decision
with its own safety rules.

## Publish safely

1. **Validate the draft**

   Resolve duplicate labels, malformed geometry, missing categories/focals, and
   accessibility issues.
2. **Review buyer evidence**

   Preview 2D, 3D where enabled, mobile, tiers, GA, tables, and accessible
   inventory.
3. **Publish**

   Create the immutable snapshot. Embedded Designer sessions require
   `canPublish: true`; otherwise publication returns `403`.
4. **Create or update events intentionally**

   New events use the new snapshot. Existing events remain pinned until an
   explicit supported refresh/migration is chosen.

## Republish versus duplicate

- **Republish** updates the source chart's published snapshot for future use.
- **Duplicate** creates an independent draft chart, even when the source was
  published.
- **Create event** materializes inventory from the selected published snapshot.
- **Edit event inventory** is an operational action, not chart draft editing.

## Platform automation

Platforms can follow the same lifecycle with server credentials:

```text
create or duplicate chart
→ update the versioned draft
→ validate
→ POST /v1/charts/:id/publish
→ POST /v1/events
```

Use an `Idempotency-Key` for provisioning mutations so retries do not create
duplicate resources. Keep the chart id, published version/evidence, and event key
on your tenant records.

## Change-management checklist

- [ ] Draft autosave is not treated as publication.
- [ ] Validation and buyer preview pass before publishing.
- [ ] The publisher has explicit permission.
- [ ] Teams understand which existing events remain pinned.
- [ ] Automation uses idempotency keys and records resource ids.
- [ ] Duplicate charts are reviewed and published independently.
- [ ] Any existing-event refresh has a capacity/identity migration plan.

Continue with [platform integrations](/integrations/platforms) or
[going live](/start/going-live).

Source: https://docs.seatlayer.io/designer/publishing-and-versioning/index.mdx