# Can't approve, edit or delete a testimonial

Find out why an inbox action says Failed to update testimonial, or why its button is missing, and fix it, from your role to a read-only project.

When something you do to a testimonial doesn't go through, your inbox shows a short message that doesn't say why:

- **Failed to update testimonial**, after a button on a card such as **Approve**, **Reject**, **Restore to Inbox** or **Delete**;
- **Failed to perform action**, after an action on several selected testimonials;
- **Failed to approve testimonial** or **Failed to reject testimonial**, after the `A` or `R` keyboard shortcut.

Or the button you're looking for isn't on the card at all. Work through these checks to find the cause.

## Check this first

Reload the page and try again. A lost connection gives the same message, and so does a testimonial that a teammate deleted a moment ago. Reloading also shows the buttons your role has now.

Then see which case is yours:

- **The button isn't there.** Your role in this project doesn't include that action. See [A button is missing](#a-button-is-missing).
- **The button is there, and the message comes back.** Check whether [the project](#the-project-is-read-only) or [the workspace](#the-workspace-is-read-only) is read-only. While it is, every change is refused.

## A button is missing

What you can do to a testimonial depends on your role in its project:

|                                                      | Owner | Admin | Member | Viewer |
| ---------------------------------------------------- | ----- | ----- | ------ | ------ |
| See testimonials                                     | Yes   | Yes   | Yes    | Yes    |
| Approve, reject, archive, restore, edit and tag them | Yes   | Yes   | Yes    | No     |
| Delete them, or add them to a Wall of Love page      | Yes   | Yes   | No     | No     |

A **Viewer**'s cards have no **Approve**, **Reject** or **Edit**, and no checkbox to select them. A **Member**'s cards have no **Delete** and no heart button for Wall of Love pages.

To find your role:

- Open the **Projects** page. A project under **Shared with you** shows your role on its card: **Admin**, **Member** or **Viewer**. In the projects under **Your workspace**, you're the owner.
- Or open the project, click the gear icon next to its name at the bottom of the sidebar, and choose the **Team** tab. **Project Team** lists everyone who can open the project, with their role.

Only the workspace owner can change a role. See [Invite team members](/help/account/invite-team-members#roles).

Some buttons depend on the view you're in, not on your role:

- **Approve** and **Reject** are on cards in **Pending** only.
- **Edit** and **Delete** appear once you click **Show more** on the card. In **Approved**, **Archive** is there too, under **More**.
- A card in **Spam** has no **Approve** or **Edit**. Click **Not Spam** first, then act on the testimonial where it lands.

If the project doesn't open any more and you land on **Projects** instead, you've lost access to it: your role there was set to **No Access**, you were removed from the team, or the workspace is no longer on a plan with teams (Premium and Business). Ask the workspace owner.

## The project is read-only

A project beyond your plan's project licences is read-only: it still opens, but approving, rejecting, editing, tagging and deleting are all refused. To check, open the **Projects** page: a read-only project's card says **Read only**. The workspace owner brings it back with **Reactivate** on the **Billing** page's **Usage** tab. See [Project is read-only](/help/troubleshooting/project-is-read-only).

## The workspace is read-only

After a failed payment that isn't fixed in time, the whole workspace is read-only and no change goes through in any of its projects. The owner's **Billing** page shows a **Payment recovery required** notice: click **Update payment method**. Teammates can't open the workspace's projects meanwhile. See [Payment failed](/help/troubleshooting/payment-failed).

## Messages that name the cause

A few places show the full reason instead of the short message: **Not Spam** and the selection bar in **Spam**, the approve, archive and delete actions in **All Imports**, and **Apply** in the **Edit Testimonial** window of a written testimonial.

| Message                                                                                 | Cause                                                     |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| A message that starts "This project is read-only because it has no project licence."    | [The project is read-only](#the-project-is-read-only)     |
| A message that starts "This workspace is read-only while payment recovery is required." | [The workspace is read-only](#the-workspace-is-read-only) |
| A message that restoring "would go past your plan's limit"                              | [Not Spam is refused](#not-spam-is-refused)               |
| A custom field's name followed by "is required" or "must be checked"                    | [Saving an edit fails](#saving-an-edit-fails)             |

## Not Spam is refused

Testimonials in **Spam** don't count toward your plan's testimonial limits, but restored ones do. **Not Spam** is refused when restoring would go past a limit, and its message says so. On Free, the limits are 10 written, audio and linked media testimonials and 2 video testimonials across the workspace. On Pro, the limit is 10 video testimonials per project.

Archive testimonials you don't show, or upgrade, then try again. [Plan limits](/help/account/plan-limits#collecting-testimonials) says what counts. See [Keep spam out of your inbox](/help/manage/review-spam#review-testimonials-in-spam).

Approving never runs into these limits, because a pending testimonial already counts toward them.

## Saving an edit fails

For a written testimonial, the **Edit Testimonial** window tells you why **Apply** was refused. **Edit Video Testimonial** and **Edit Audio Testimonial** show only **Failed to update testimonial**.

If neither the project nor the workspace is read-only, check **Custom Fields**, at the bottom of the window when your project has any. Every field marked with \* must be filled in: a dropdown needs an option chosen, and a checkbox must be ticked. See [Edit a testimonial](/help/manage/edit-a-testimonial).

## Still stuck?

[Contact us](/contact) and include:

- your project's name, and your role in it;
- the view you were in and the button you clicked;
- the message you saw, word for word;
- roughly when it happened.

## Next steps

- [Approve, reject and archive testimonials](/help/manage/approve-reject-and-archive)
- [Act on several testimonials at once](/help/manage/bulk-actions)
- [Plans and pricing](/help/account/plans-upgrades-and-cancelling)