How to archive, restore or delete a contact

To stop using a contact in Viindoo, open Contacts in list view, tick the contact and click Actions ‣ Archive: the contact is hidden from lists and selection fields, but every quotation, order, invoice and message linked to it is kept, and you can restore it at any time with Actions ‣ Unarchive. Use Actions ‣ Delete only for a contact created by mistake that has no documents yet, because deleting cannot be undone.

Who	Users with the Contact Creation right (see Contacts app: overview and configuration). Other users can only view contacts.
App	Contacts (also reachable from Sales, CRM, Purchase and Accounting)

Before you start

• Install the Contacts app.

• If the contact is a copy of another contact, merge the copies instead, so that their documents are kept on one contact. See How to find and merge duplicate contacts.

Should I archive or delete a contact?

Action	When to use it
Archive	The contact is no longer used (a customer who stopped buying, a vendor you no longer work with, an employee’s old address) but has history you want to keep. Can be undone.
Delete	The contact was created by mistake and nothing has been recorded on it yet. Cannot be undone. If the contact is already used on a document, Viindoo refuses to delete it and asks you to archive it instead.

How do I archive a contact?

1. Go to Contacts and switch to the list view.

2. Tick the contacts to archive, then click Actions ‣ Archive.

3. Click Archive to confirm.

The contact disappears from the list and can no longer be selected on new quotations, orders or invoices. Existing documents still show it.

To archive a contact from its form, open it and click the gear icon ⚙ ‣ Archive.

How do I find and restore an archived contact?

1. In the list view, open the search options and choose the Archived filter.

2. Tick the contacts to restore, then click Actions ‣ Unarchive.

The contact is active again and appears in lists and selection fields.

How do I delete a contact created by mistake?

1. In the list view, tick the contacts to delete, then click Actions ‣ Delete.

2. Click Delete to confirm, or No, keep it to cancel.

To delete a single contact from its form, open it and click the gear icon ⚙ ‣ Delete.

Common errors

Message	What to do
The operation cannot be completed: another model requires the record being deleted. If possible, archive it instead.	The contact is already used on a document (quotation, order, invoice, stock move…). Archive it instead of deleting it.
You cannot delete contacts linked to an active user.	The contact belongs to a user account. Archive the user first, then archive the contact.
You cannot archive contacts linked to an active user.	Archive the user first in Settings ‣ Users & Companies ‣ Users, or ask an administrator to do it.

Next steps

• How to find and merge duplicate contacts: merge copies of the same customer or vendor instead of deleting them.

• How to create a new contact: create a contact with complete details.