Resolve Conflicting Document Edits
Design a conflict-resolution flow that helps collaborators reconcile overlapping document changes without hiding authorship or losing work.
The brief
Understand the problem
Background
Real-time editing handles many simultaneous changes, but conflicts still occur after offline work, permission changes, imports, or structural edits. A generic save error leaves people unsure which version survived.
User context
Mateo edited a proposal during a flight. When he reconnects, his rewritten timeline conflicts with changes that Erin made to the same section and comments added by a reviewer.
Product problem
Writers need to understand exactly what conflicts, preserve unaffected edits, and agree on a merged version without reading raw change data.
Objective
Create a focused comparison and merge experience for one conflicted document section.
What to design
Define the experience
Required experience
- Recognize that offline edits conflict with the current document
- Compare changes with authorship and timing context
- Accept, combine, or defer individual conflict blocks
- Save a resolved version and notify affected collaborators
Screens and states
- Conflict alert
- Side-by-side comparison
- Merge review
- Resolved version confirmation
Core user flow
Follow the critical path
- 01
Mateo reconnects and sees that his local version was preserved but not published
- 02
He opens the conflicting timeline section and compares both versions
- 03
He keeps Erin's dates, incorporates his rationale, and preserves the review comment
- 04
He previews the merged section and saves it as the latest version
- 05
Erin receives a concise summary with a link to the version history
Product rules
Requirements and constraints
Requirements
- Preserve both complete versions until resolution is confirmed
- Distinguish conflicting changes from edits that can merge automatically
- Keep comments, suggestions, and formatting attached to the correct text
- Allow a collaborator to postpone resolution without blocking access to a safe copy
- Create a named version entry for the merge result
Constraints
- The experience must remain usable for long paragraphs without horizontal scrolling
- Only users with edit permission can publish the resolution
- The document cannot be locked for all readers during review
Reality check
States worth considering
Finish line
What to deliver
- Four responsive screens resolving one text conflict and one deleted-section conflict
Optional direction
Visual resources
Use these as a starting constraint if you want one. They are not part of the required solution.
Updock & Source Serif Pro
Clear interface writing gives people the confidence to understand what changed and decide what to do next.
Updock & Source Serif Pro
Clear interface writing gives people the confidence to understand what changed and decide what to do next.