Edit tab, and then you make an edit, but when you click Save at the bottom, the changes do not display. Usually there is no record in the history that you made a change (although I have gotten a credit in the history a few times even though no change is made). When you go back to edit it, your previous edits aren't made, and you cannot make any changes.
When the article is in this state, and you click the HTML button, the HTML Source Editor comes up blank with no content. I found out a way to fix the article and remove it from this state. The state is most likely caused by copying in content from other sources and bringing in formatting like <form> tags that prevent the Editor from working properly.
To fix an article that is in an unintentionally locked state
- In the Edit tab, identify that the article is in this locked state. Your edits will not be saved. The HTML Source Editor contains no content.
- In the Edit tab, highlight all the page's content and copy it. This will ensure that you don't lose the page's content.
- Click the HTML button. The HTML Source Editor opens.
- Type "<p>x</p>" into the box. Don't paste it because you want to keep the page's content on your clipboard.
- Click Update in the HTML Source Editor to save your changes and close the dialog box. You should see "x" on the screen in the Editor.
- If you lost your content, paste it back in, and remove the "x" that you added.
- To check to make sure you are no longer in the locked state, click the HTML button. If the HTML content now appears in the HTML Source Editor, then you're probably out of the locked state (that's the way it has behaved for me 100% of the time).
- Highlight and copy the entire article or at least your changes (in case the changes don't save).
- Click Save at the bottom of the Editor's page.
- In the Article tab of your article, verify that your changes were saved.
- If your changes were not saved, try again back at step 1. If you get to step 10 again and your changes are not saved, skip step 11 and go to step 12.
- Contact me (edprice at microsoft dot com) and tell me what article you are having difficulty with. I will try to figure it out.
NOTES:
- If the article does not have an Edit tab, and you are logged in, the article might be intentionally locked by an admin, but that is done as seldom as possible.
- If you are using IE9, and you're having trouble in the Editor, click the Compatibility View button to the right of the address bar, at the top of your browser (and try editing the article again).
See Also
