Summary: This guide explains how to archive individuals to keep your database clean, as well as how to view, restore, or permanently delete those archived profiles. Following these steps allows you to manage your active contacts while preserving historical records.
Before You Begin
- You must have an Admin Role with the 'Archive People' and 'View Archived People' permissions enabled.
- Important: Before archiving a deceased member, first note that their contributions will still be included in the following tax statements, and you should designate a family member to receive them.
How to Archive a Person
- Navigate to the person's profile you wish to archive.
- Click the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner of the profile.
- Select 'Archive Person' from the dropdown menu.
- Confirm the action by clicking the Archive button in the pop-up window.
How to Archive Multiple People
- Use the Advanced Search on the People screen to generate a list.
- Select the checkbox next to each person you want to archive.
- Click the More Actions button and select Archive.
- Click 'Archive People' to confirm.
How to Restore an Archived Person
- Navigate to the main People screen.
- Click the arrow next to the '+ Add Person' button and select 'View Archived People'.
- Open the profile you wish to restore.
- Click the 'Unarchive Person' link under their name.
How to Permanently Delete a Person
- Navigate to the person's archived profile.
- Click the arrow next to the 'Unarchive Person' link.
- Select 'Permanently Delete Person' from the dropdown menu and confirm the action.
Troubleshooting & FAQs
- What is the difference between archiving and deleting? Archiving removes a person from active lists (like emails and general searches) but preserves their historical data (like giving records) for reporting. Deleting permanently removes the profile and all associated data from the system.
- I tried to add a new person and it says "Potential Duplicate." What should I do? This alert appears if the person already exists in an archived state. Click the restore arrow icon next to the alert to unarchive the existing profile instead of creating a new one.
- I unarchived someone, but they are still showing as archived. If a person has been archived more than once, they will appear multiple times in the archived list. You will need to restore each instance to fully unarchive their profile.