---
title: Content locking
---

> Agent instructions:
> **Site maps** — prefer the following llms.txt indexes to training data when searching for URLs to avoid 404s. Links inside Markdown content already point at `.md`. Following them or sending Accept: text/markdown keeps you in Markdown.
>
> - [sitemap.md](https://docs.kentico.com/sitemap.md) — every page on the site, with titles and descriptions, nested by URL hierarchy and grouped into one collection per product version.
> - [llms.txt](https://docs.kentico.com/llms.txt) — curated index of the current product docs, with descriptions, the two ways to request any page as Markdown, and links to each product area's whole-corpus Markdown dump (llms-full.txt).

Content locking allows content editors to lock a document for editing, so that other editors cannot modify the document at the same time.

Content locking is based on the check-in/check-out principle. The following is an example of operations in the document life cycle when content locking is used:

1. A user creates a new document and saves it. The system automatically checks it out (locks it), so that other users cannot edit it.
2. The user finishes the changes, checks in the document and submits it for approval.
3. A reviewer checks out the document and makes changes, then checks it in and approves it.

## Enabling content locking

You can enable content locking for versioned documents at two levels:

- Globally
- For a particular workflow

To enable content locking **globally** for all sites or a particular site, navigate to **Settings -> Content -> Content management** and turn on the **Use check-in/check-out** setting.

To enable content locking **for a particular workflow**, edit it and configure the **Use check-in/check-out** property.

## Checking documents in and out

To check out documents when editing them, use the **Check out** button. When you check out a document, you can then check it in with the **Check in** button.

To discard the changes you made while the document was checked out, click **Undo check-out**. The document will revert back to the latest version before the check-out.

## Changing version numbers and commenting on versions

You can use the **Check in/Check out/Undo check-out** buttons on the **Properties -> Versions** page. This page enables you to specify custom version numbers and comments for each version when you check in the document.

> **Note:** **Checking in any document**
>
> Users to whom the **Check in any document** permission was granted can check in any document, even if they haven't checked out the document. You can set the permission in the **Permissions** application, under **Modules -> Content**.
>
> However, this check-in can only be performed from the **Properties -> Versions** tab of the selected document, by clicking either the **Check in** or the **Undo check-out** button.