Archive and delete a ticket

Archive a ticket to hide it, restore it, delete it for good when no time has been billed, or redact its content when it cannot be deleted.

Written for
user, admin
Roles
owner, admin, member, project-manager, elevated-client-user
Requires
Archive and restore: Owner, Admin, or a member of the ticket's project; Delete and redact: Owner or Admin, in the browser, with a recent re-authentication
Feature
tickets

Three operations take a ticket out of daily view, with very different consequences. Archiving hides it and can be undone. Deleting removes it for good and is allowed only while nothing on it has been billed or frozen by a closed period. Redacting keeps the ticket, its time, and its billed amounts but replaces every word of content with a marker; it is the way out when deletion is refused.

Before you start

Operation Who Where
Archive, Restore Owner, Admin, or a member of the ticket's project (elevated client users included); Inbox tickets: Owner or Admin Ticket page only
Delete Owner or Admin Ticket page only, after re-authentication
Redact content Owner or Admin Ticket page only, after re-authentication

None of the three operations is available to API tokens; they are browser-only. See session-only operations.

Archive a ticket

  1. Open the ticket and select Archive ticket at the bottom of the Details rail.
  2. The header shows an Archived chip and the timeline records "archived the ticket".
  3. To bring it back, select Restore ticket. The timeline records "restored the ticket".

Rules:

  • An archived ticket disappears from the Tickets list, boards, search, the command palette, and My work. It still opens by its address or id, and links to it from other tickets keep working.
  • To list archived tickets, add archived=true to the Tickets list address: /w/acme/tickets?archived=true.
  • Fields and state cannot be changed while archived ("Restore the ticket before editing it."). Comments can still be posted.
  • Nothing else changes: time entries, links, viewers, and billing stay as they are.

Delete a ticket

  1. Open the ticket and select Delete ticket… at the bottom of the Details rail. Only Owners and Admins see this action.
  2. Read the panel: "The ticket goes for good with its comments, attachments, links, and time entries. Child tickets stay and lose their parent. Only a ticket with no billed time and no time in a closed period can be deleted."
  3. Type the ticket id (for example ACME-184) to confirm, re-authenticate when asked, and select Delete.
  4. The page confirms "ACME-184 was deleted."

Rules:

  • Refused when time is billed or frozen. If any time entry on the ticket has been picked up by a billing run (voided or not), or lies in a closed period, deletion is refused: "This ticket cannot be deleted: time on it has been billed or lies in a closed period. Redacting its content is the only option; use 'Redact content' below."
  • What goes. The ticket, its comments, attachments (the files are removed from storage), links in both directions, GitHub links, viewer grants, timeline, notifications, and its time entries. Email attached to the ticket goes with it.
  • What stays. Child tickets stay and lose their parent. Other tickets lose only the link that pointed here. The ticket number is never reused.
  • Audit. The audit log keeps a row for the deletion with the actor and "ACME-184 Title", so the log still says what was deleted once the ticket is gone. See Audit log.

Redact content

  1. Open the ticket and select Redact content…. Only Owners and Admins see this action.
  2. Read the panel: "Title, description, comments, and attachments are replaced by a marker. The id, the time entries, and the billed amounts stay. Documents that carried the description are superseded by a numbered revision; copies already downloaded or emailed cannot be recalled."
  3. Enter a Reason (at least three characters), type the ticket id to confirm, re-authenticate when asked, and select Redact content….
  4. The page confirms "Content redacted. 2 document(s) are being superseded."

Rules:

  • What is replaced. The title, the billing description, every comment, and every attachment name become [redacted]; the description is emptied; attachment files are removed; stored copies of the emails on the ticket are scrubbed; pending outbound emails for the ticket are cancelled; timeline entries that carried the old title or a filename lose those words.
  • What stays. The id, kind, state, project, billing client, links, viewers, time entries with their notes (staff-only work facts, not ticket content), and every billed amount.
  • Client timesheets. Every billing run whose document listed this ticket's description is re-rendered as a numbered revision with [redacted] in place of the description. Documents of voided runs are removed. See Client timesheets.
  • Afterwards. The ticket stays visible to the same people. Email replies to a redacted ticket no longer reopen it or append to it. Redaction cannot be undone, and can be applied again if content reappears.
  • Audit. The audit log records the redaction with the reason, and the timeline gets a Staff-only "redacted" event.

Examples

A duplicate request was answered on another ticket: a project member archives it so it leaves the board, and can restore it if the reporter comes back.

A ticket created by mistake with no time on it: an Admin deletes it; the audit log shows who deleted "ACME-190 Test".

A client asks for personal data to be removed from a ticket that was billed in March: deletion is refused, so the Admin redacts it with the reason "Client request, personal data". The March timesheet gets a revision.

Common problems

  • I do not see Archive ticket. You are not a member of the ticket's project, or the ticket is in the Inbox and you are not an Owner or Admin.
  • "Time on this ticket has been billed; redact it instead of deleting it." and "Time on this ticket is in a closed period; redact it instead of deleting it." Use Redact content….
  • "Confirm your identity to continue." Delete and redact need a recent login confirmation; enter your password or use your passkey when asked.
  • "Give a reason for the redaction." The reason must be at least three characters.
  • The client still has the old timesheet. Copies already downloaded or emailed cannot be recalled; the revision is available under Documents.
  • Find tickets Use the Tickets list, its filters, search, the command palette, and keyboard shortcuts to find any ticket you may see.
  • Close a period Close a month or week so its time entries are frozen for billing, using the four-step wizard with its advisory checklist, first-period boundary, re-authentication, and typed confirmation.
  • Client timesheets (documents) What the timesheet documents a billing run produces contain, who can download them, how they are delivered to billing recipients, and how to fetch them through the API or MCP.
  • Audit log What the workspace audit log records, who can read it, and how to filter the 200 most recent entries.
  • Period A period is a calendar month or week of time entries; closing it, in order and permanently, is the only lock in SAQ and the precondition for billing.
  • Session-only operations A catalogue of every SAQ API operation that exists only for the browser session, so integrators know the full surface and why API tokens are refused on it.