Version History

Outerline keeps a snapshot of a document each time it is saved, so you can look back at earlier drafts, compare them against what you have now, and restore one if you need it. Snapshots are stored with your library, alongside your Markdown files.

Open Version History

With a document open, press ⇧+⌘+H, or choose View > Version History…. Press the same shortcut again to close the panel.

Each entry in the list shows when the snapshot was captured and its word count. Snapshots you created with an explicit save are labelled Manual, which makes it easier to find a deliberate checkpoint among automatic ones.

Compare a Snapshot

Select a snapshot to preview its contents. Switch the panel to the diff view to compare that snapshot against the current document. The diff header summarises the change as lines only in This Snapshot and lines only in the Current Version, and unchanged runs are collapsed so you can scan straight to what moved. If the two sides match, the panel says there are no changes between them.

Restore a Snapshot

Choose Restore This Snapshot to replace the current document with that version. Outerline captures a snapshot of the document's current state first, so a restore is always reversible — the version you just replaced becomes the newest entry in the list.

Working With History From an AI Tool

Version history is also available through Outerline's MCP server, so an agent can search across snapshots, diff them, recover a passage you cut, or chart how a note grew over time. See the MCP Guide for list_versions, diff_versions, search_version_history, find_deleted_content, restore_version, and get_writing_timeline.

If There Are No Snapshots Yet

A document that has never been saved in Outerline has no history, and the panel says so. Save the document once and the first snapshot appears.