What happens when I edit a running automation in SendFox?
Edits to a running automation in Automations apply when you save: unsent emails get your changes, emails already sent keep theirs, and nothing pauses. Every plan.
Does editing a running automation pause it?
SendFox lets you edit a live automation at any time—and the changes apply silently. There's no confirmation prompt, the automation keeps running, and contacts already moving through the series are affected at different points depending on where they are. That's why we recommend planning the whole sequence before you start it.
Every plan can edit, stop and restart its automations. The Free plan includes one automation.
What does each change do?
| Change | What happens |
|---|---|
| Edit an email's subject or content | Every copy of that email that hasn't been sent yet gets the new version, including copies already scheduled. Emails already sent keep the old version. The automation keeps running while you edit. |
| Change a delay | Applies to contacts who haven't reached that step yet; emails already scheduled keep their original send time. See how to change the delay between emails. |
| Stop the automation | Sending pauses (Stopped badge). Contacts keep their place in the sequence. |
| Start it again | Sending resumes, and every email that fell due while it was stopped goes out right away, including ones more than 14 days overdue. |
| Delete the automation | All of its scheduled emails are canceled—nothing else from that series will send. |
How do I edit an automation safely?
Because changes land mid-flight for anyone already in the series, the safest approach is to set up the full email sequence in advance and let it run without changes. If you must edit a live automation:
- Remember that an edit reaches every contact whose copy of that email hasn't been sent yet.
- Avoid reordering or deleting steps in a series with active contacts. Build a corrected copy with Clone instead. A clone starts with the same trigger list and the same Running or Stopped status, so stop one of the two, or new signups get both.
- Remember each contact goes through an automation only once, so you can't re-run the fixed series for people who already passed through it.
Troubleshooting
A contact received the old version of an email I edited
- That email had already been sent before you saved. Edits reach every copy that hasn’t been sent yet, but a sent email can’t change.
Emails went out in a burst after I restarted the automation
- That’s expected: every email that fell due while the automation was stopped is sent as soon as you start it again. If you plan a long break and don’t want the catch-up, Clone the automation first (stop the copy), then delete the original, which cancels its scheduled emails.
A contact stopped getting the automation’s emails
- A contact who unsubscribes gets no more emails from the series. With per-list unsubscribe on, leaving the automation’s trigger list stops it too. See how unsubscribing and resubscribing work.
Still stuck? Browse the SendFox Help Center or email support@sendfox.com with the automation’s name.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does editing pause the automation?
No. The automation keeps its Running status while you edit, and there's no warning prompt—changes are live as soon as you save.
If I stop and restart an automation, do contacts start over?
No. Contacts keep their place, and each contact only ever goes through an automation once.
What happens if I delete the whole automation?
Every email it had scheduled is canceled, and nothing further from that series will send.