Project files becomes corrupted 
Author: Stephen L.I am experiencing major problems with pages and blogs that I create through my WebSite X5 software. This problem appeared a little less than 2 months ago.
The following is a short description of the symptoms:
1) I write a Blog or Page (sometimes, but not always, containing multiple rows in the page’s structure). I upload to the host. It appears fine when I review it online.
2) After that, at some point after the initial upload, but after updates to the WebSite X5 software (maybe coincidence, but I don’t think so), my project files become corrupted. By corrupted, I mean old versions of the page or blog reappear and replace the newer versions. In some cases, middle portions of a page containing multiple rows in the structure become empty of content, i.e., blank row(s). The content that remains seems to be the proper text, but other portions are completely blank. The row remains a text row, but completely blank.
The most recent example, but only 1 of several, involves an article I wrote on whether Mary experienced labor pains in the birth of Jesus. The URL for the article is: https://stossbooks.com/mary--pain-during-birth-of-jesus.html#TOC-Mary-no-pain Below are some pertinent points:
1) This article was originally posted on 02/25/2026 and updated on 023/28/2026. I have done nothing on that article in WebSite X5 software since then. On the WayBack Machine from Internet Archive, a total of three captures of that URL took place; 03/12/2026, 03/13/2026, and 04/30/2026. All three captures reveal the full content of the article as originally written in February. When I checked (08/08/2026) the Page on the regular browser, large sections (literally 9.9 rows of content were missing. The Endnote section contained the Title, but none of the text of the citation was there. I don’t believe I have made any edits to the article since it was posted online except *maybe* one minor edit. The Page file in WX5 reflected the corruption.
2) There were at least three X5 software updates since the most recent capture by WayBack Machine. They are: 06/08/2026; 06/17/2026; and 07/28/2026. Note that I am in the Preview and Beta program. When I get updates followed by an upload to the host, I upload all files and have them replace existing files on the host’s computers. Originally, I thought that might be part of the problem, until I realized the problem originates with corruption in the Project files (not vice versa), which are then uploaded to the host.
3) I don’t believe my problem stems from any hardware issues. My SSD is fairly new, and I run regular integrity checks on it, which fail to identify any issues. The computer is protected from malware and viruses.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. I can't tell you how much time I have wasted rebuilding project files.
Beta and preview versions should only be used for test projects, but not for real projects, see
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How should I manage my projects?
...
Moreover, please consider that the Beta and Preview versions may could show malfunctions which could negatively affect the projects you are working at.
Because of this, we suggest you to use Beta and Preview versions for test projects only ...
>> https://helpcenter.websitex5.com/en/faq
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Looking at your link, the page seems complete until you get to the heading "Endnote". Because we don't have your original text to compare it with, there are no obvious "gaps" elsewhere. You may need to send in a copy of your Project to Incomedia to check for issues. Hopefully they will be online on Monday to help out.
Author
Thank you, Daniel. I just deactivated my Beta participation.
Author
Wayne, what you are seeing from the link appears to be the original article, but it is not. Here is the URL for the Wayback Machine capture from 04/30/2026. It shows the complete article, which reveals how much of the original article has been lost. It also reveals another aspect of the problem I am writing about. In the capture, the Hamburger menu shows the article about Mary. On the STOSS Books website, that menu item is missing, which is another example of the WebSite X5 page uploading old, corrupted files.
The WayBack Machine capture link: https://web.archive.org/web/20260430212032/https://stossbooks.com/mary--pain-during-birth-of-jesus.html#TOC-Mary-no-pain#TOC-Mary-no-pain" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://stossbooks.com/mary--pain-during-birth-of-jesus.html#TOC-Mary-no-pain#TOC-Mary-no-pain">https://web.archive.org/web/20260430212032/https://stossbooks.com/mary--pain-during-birth-of-jesus.html#TOC-Mary-no-pain#TOC-Mary-no-pain
Author
https://web.archive.org/web/20260430212032/https://stossbooks.com/mary--pain-during-birth-of-jesus.html#TOC-Mary-no-pain#TOC-Mary-no-pain
Hi Stephen,
Thank you for your message.
Based on the issue you described, one possibility we would like to investigate is related to project duplication when the WebSite X5 core version changes.
When a new core version requires a project to be duplicated, WebSite X5 may create a new copy of the project. If, after the duplication, the older version of the project is opened instead of the newly created one, any changes made to the newer copy would not be present in the older project. This could give the impression that content has been lost or that older versions of pages have replaced newer ones.
To verify whether this is what is happening in your case, could you please send us a screenshot of the project list shown when you open WebSite X5?
In particular, we would like to check whether there are multiple copies of the same project and compare their names and dates. This should help us determine whether the project is being duplicated following a core version update and whether the wrong copy is subsequently being opened.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Kind regards.
Author
Below is the picture you requested. Your thoughts make sense because I keep having to rebuild files where newer editions are replaced by older versions. Additionally, it tends to happen with the same files. It happens with Pages, and it also happens with Blogs, maybe even more so. I have to tell you, it has caused a GREAT deal of frustration on my part. I think I might have spent over a hundred hours rebuilding files and trying to figure out what is going on.
Hi Stephen,
Thank you for sending us the screenshot.
After reviewing it, we can confirm that the situation appears to be consistent with the possibility I mentioned in my previous message: there are multiple copies of the same project, with very similar names, which can make it difficult to identify which is the most recent version.
We therefore recommend cleaning up the project list to avoid accidentally opening an older copy in the future. You can either delete the very old copies of the project that you are certain you no longer need, or archive them in a separate subfolder, so that they remain available if needed but do not appear alongside the active project versions.
We would particularly recommend keeping only the current project. This will make it much easier to identify the correct project when launching WebSite X5 and should help prevent the confusion you experienced.
Kind regards.
Author
Thank you so much for your help. I have a question. If I delete a project in WebSite X5 software, will it delete the file copies on my hard drive?
To be on the safe side, the projects can be saved to the hard drive as backup copies with the ending .iwzip using 5 Export > Export Project.
The exported backup copies can later be imported back into WebSite X5.
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Author
Thanks, Daniel.
Author
It seems that my problem is not yet resolved. I did as Elisa recommended and deleted previous versions of the Project. They disappeared from my list. Last night I restarted my computer, which is a regular routine for me. This morning, the deleted versions are back in my list.??? What now?
Hi!
Can you please share the path where your projects are saved? Is it an online folder?
Thanks!
Author
Hi Elisa, this is the path to my project files: C:\Users\OEM\OneDrive\Documents\Incomedia
From there, there are subdirectories for each core version. For example: C:\Users\OEM\OneDrive\Documents\Incomedia\WebSite X5 v13 – Professional
While my files are stored locally, they are automatically uploaded to OneDrive as a backup.
The problem could be with OneDrive, but OneDrive users would have to comment on that.
Hi Stephen,
Thank you for the information.
In this case, the issue is most likely caused by the fact that your projects are stored inside a OneDrive folder. Even if the files are also available locally, WebSite X5 is still working with a folder that is synchronized by OneDrive.
Please try moving your project to a completely local folder, then set this local folder as the project folder in WebSite X5 and check whether the deleted projects remain removed after restarting the PC.
Please let me know how it goes.
Best regards.
Good morning. I, too, have been working with a cloud-synchronized folder for years, but I don't use OneDrive; instead, I rely on Synology Drive Client. I’ve never encountered any issues, even though I manage dozens of projects.
For added safety, I pause synchronization while working and resume it once I’m finished; this avoids any potential conflicts with operations performed by Website X5. It’s a precautionary measure I adopted for peace of mind, although I have noticed that, on occasion, leaving synchronization active didn't actually cause any problems.
Since I don't use OneDrive, I unfortunately can't give you specific advice regarding it. It might simply have a more cumbersome synchronization system or handle files differently, but having never used it myself, I couldn't say for sure.
Author
In response to the OneDrive issue, I started this website in 2017. During that entire time, I have used OneDrive with the exact same file structure as the one currently used. I never had this problem before. It only started with a WebSite X5 software update in June. So, to be on the safe side and out of an abundance of caution, I will follow your advice, Elisa. Thanks to all who offered help. It was most appreciated.