# Publish checks

What Formstep checks before your form goes live, which findings block publishing, and how to clear the ones you are most likely to meet.

## Where to find the checks

Your edits save as a draft, and respondents see the last published version until you click **Publish**. The issue indicator beside Publish is green when all is well, amber for warnings, and red for errors. Click it to see the list, and click an entry to go where you fix it. The list updates as you type.

![Close-up of the editor toolbar on a published form with changes to publish: Edit, Translate, and Preview, then Publish history, Integrations, Settings, the green issue indicator, Publish changes, and the Inbox button.](https://formstep.io/docs/images/building-forms/preview-publish.png)

The issue indicator sits beside Publish changes.

## Errors and warnings

| Level | What happens when you press Publish |
| - | - |
| Error | Publishing stops, and nothing goes live. The same checks apply when an automation or AI agent publishes. |
| Warning | A **Review needed** dialog lists the warnings. Fix them, or click **Publish** to go ahead. |

For a settings warning, **Publish** also applies the fix the warning names, such as turning off a password gate that has no password. You fix content warnings yourself.

## Common errors

| Message | How to fix |
| - | - |
| Variable “Email” references a deleted field and will show as empty. | An @ mention points at a question you deleted. Remove the mention or pick another question. |
| A reference points to a field that no longer exists. | An email, a redirect parameter, an integration, or a translation still uses a deleted question. The entry names the place to update. |
| A logic rule references a deleted field or page. | Update or remove the rule. The Logic tab lists it under Needs attention. |
| Field key “total” is used by more than one field. | Give each field its own key in the Fields tab. See [Field keys](https://formstep.io/docs/requests/field-keys/). |
| Complete setup for this Payment question before publishing. | Set a currency and amount, and connect Stripe. See [Payment collection](https://formstep.io/docs/building-forms/payment-collection/). |
| Connect Cal.com before publishing forms that schedule appointments. | Connect Cal.com and pick an event type. See [Cal.com](https://formstep.io/docs/integrations/cal-com/). |

## Common warnings

- “Page 2 has no content respondents can see.” The page holds only logic or hidden blocks, so respondents would walk into a blank step. Add content or remove the page break.

- “A page jump sends respondents back from Page 3 to Page 2.” Respondents could loop between the two pages. Similar warnings flag a jump that targets its own page, or one on the last page, where Next submits the form. Review the rule.

- “Field key “company\_name” will no longer exist after this publish.” Workflows that read it stop getting that answer. See [When a key is about to disappear](https://formstep.io/docs/requests/field-keys/#removed-keys).

- “French: 12 strings missing.” Some text has no translation yet, or changed after it was translated. See [Multilingual forms](https://formstep.io/docs/building-forms/translating-form-content/).

- “Slack connection expired.” The form publishes, but submissions stop reaching that app until you reconnect it.

- “The decision question has no approve, decline or changes option.” Requests would finish with no outcome. Insert a Decision question from the / menu.

## Settings that Publish fixes for you

When you publish anyway, Formstep turns these settings off or cleans them up:

- A password gate with no password is turned off, so respondents can open the form.

- [Edit after submit](https://formstep.io/docs/submissions-analytics/edit-after-submit/) is turned off on a form that does not allow it.

- New-submission notifications with no valid address are turned off, and invalid addresses are dropped from the list.

- A confirmation or reminder email with no email question to send to is turned off.

- A redirect address that is not a valid web address is cleared, and respondents see your thank-you page.

## Other reasons a publish is refused

These appear as a red notification when you press Publish:

- The form is in the trash. Restore it first.

- An email question has [respondent email verification](https://formstep.io/docs/building-forms/email-verification/) switched on and the workspace owner's plan is not Business. Upgrade, or switch verification off.

- A field key you typed is already published on another field. Give each field its own key and publish again.

## Next steps

[Publish history](https://formstep.io/docs/building-forms/version-history/) — Browse past versions and go back to one

[Field keys](https://formstep.io/docs/requests/field-keys/) — Keep workflows matching after an edit