We get a lot of questions about features and functionality in Support, as well as in the Ask a Question forum here in the Customer Care community, and we'd like to make a habit of sharing them and expanding on them here when the answers are interesting. There's room to talk about niche features, process questions, and some of the challenges that other digital workplaces face when working to succeed. 

What happens when an item's Archive date arrives? 

Posts, events, and files can be archived manually by Administrators, or automatically by setting up Archiving policies in the Channel, or in the Control Panel itself. When an item's archiving date comes up, it isn't archived immediately. Instead, it enters a grace period, and visiting the item will display a message that tells you that it's scheduled to be archived on a particular date. 

The grace period gives members the chance to make any final edits or comments, and to check in with Administrators if the item shouldn't be archived yet. The length of the grace period can be customized from the Global Settings area of the Control Panel, and once it expires, the item is archived for real. Of course, Administrators can add or remove things from the archive as they please, and archived items are never automatically deleted; they remain exactly where they are, exactly as they are. You can find some archiving best practices in our article on planning for the future of your digital workplace. 

How often is the Preview environment updated?

Most Igloos have access to a Preview environment, a complete copy of their site that has access to the features from the next release. Your Preview url can be found in the Community Details area of the Control Panel, and it's only accessible to Administrators. It's often used as a way for Administrators to test out new areas or configurations, to ensure they'll work as expected in their Production Igloo. 

The Preview environment is typically updated with the features and fixes of the next release a week before the release itself, though our IT and Development teams may make additional deployments as necessary. When that happens, your digital workplace is copied directly from Production, so any data that was entered only in Preview will be overwritten. 

How can I increase my member count?

This is a common question that comes through Support, and we always try to make sure it's passed on to the right people. The digital workplace available through igloosoftware.com is limited to ten members, and you can find additional information on costs for additional members in the pricing guide.  You'll be able to book a demo, and our sales team can help you create the digital workplace package that's right for your organization. If you're already a client, your project manager or Customer Success manager will be able to ensure you have the member count you need. 

If you have questions about the Igloo platform, workflows, or best practices, you can leave a comment here, or ask a question in the Community area.