Versioning for whole book #5576

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OVERLORD · 2026-02-05T10:10:46+03:00

OVERLORD commented

2026-02-05 10:10:46 +03:00

Originally created by @LilMouse on GitHub (Jan 22, 2026).

Describe the feature you'd like

We would like to see a way to save/version/freeze/archive/tag a whole book and all its chapters and pages for version management but still keep it inside bookstack.

Describe the benefits this would bring to existing BookStack users

It would allow users to link directly to a specific book version and keep it for reference.

Can the goal of this request already be achieved via other means?

Yes, by copying the book and tag it with a version number. And after that edit the permissions to make it read only for all users.
But that does mean we end up with multiple books, all with the same name but with (slightly) different data and versions.

The same goes for exporting all as a zip and importing to a different shelf.

Or we could export the book as a PDF and put it in our document management system.
But then our data is outside of bookstack and loses the many features bookstack has and the links to other books.

Have you searched for an existing open/closed issue?

I have searched for existing issues and none cover my fundamental request

How long have you been using BookStack?

3 months to 1 year

Additional context

Our use-case is that we write specifications for a product in book format.
And after a specification for a product is done we would like to keep our whole book as a reference point for future versions and implementation of the product.
Then we could link the specific version of our book in the development and release of the product.

We now plan to do this by creating a shelf per product " Versions" and tagging each version of the book.
But that does generate a lot of data/duplication.

Might also be easier after #5411 though I don't see any versioning for whole books mentioned there, only pages/chapters. Which is also already a great help.

Originally created by @LilMouse on GitHub (Jan 22, 2026). ### Describe the feature you'd like We would like to see a way to save/version/freeze/archive/tag a whole book and all its chapters and pages for version management but still keep it inside bookstack. ### Describe the benefits this would bring to existing BookStack users It would allow users to link directly to a specific book version and keep it for reference. ### Can the goal of this request already be achieved via other means? Yes, by copying the book and tag it with a version number. And after that edit the permissions to make it read only for all users. But that does mean we end up with multiple books, all with the same name but with (slightly) different data and versions. The same goes for exporting all as a zip and importing to a different shelf. Or we could export the book as a PDF and put it in our document management system. But then our data is outside of bookstack and loses the many features bookstack has and the links to other books. ### Have you searched for an existing open/closed issue? - [x] I have searched for existing issues and none cover my fundamental request ### How long have you been using BookStack? 3 months to 1 year ### Additional context Our use-case is that we write specifications for a product in book format. And after a specification for a product is done we would like to keep our whole book as a reference point for future versions and implementation of the product. Then we could link the specific version of our book in the development and release of the product. We now plan to do this by creating a shelf per product "<PRODUCT NAME> Versions" and tagging each version of the book. But that does generate a lot of data/duplication. Might also be easier after #5411 though I don't see any versioning for whole books mentioned there, only pages/chapters. Which is also already a great help.

OVERLORD added the 🔨 Feature Request label 2026-02-05 10:10:46 +03:00

OVERLORD commented

2026-02-05 10:10:47 +03:00

@azeem-SC commented on GitHub (Jan 23, 2026):

I too am using book stack for some time for product specific documentation. This feature will reduce lot of data duplication. Also we can version a whole book of product specification

This feature is a must for people managing large dynamic documentation.

@azeem-SC commented on GitHub (Jan 23, 2026): I too am using book stack for some time for product specific documentation. This feature will reduce lot of data duplication. Also we can version a whole book of product specification This feature is a must for people managing large dynamic documentation.

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Reference: starred/BookStack#5576