Active field in the Knowledge Article header fields - what is it for exactly?

[Stacey C]

I've searched high and low for information in the ServiceNow product documentation and community, but I can't find an answer to this question: what is the Active field for in the Knowledge Article header fields? Is it for making a previous version of an article active again?

Thank you for your insights and answers!

Stacey Cash

Documentation and Training Specialist at WestRock

[Taylor20]

The active state designates whether the article is visible to viewers/contributors or simply to Knowledge Base owners and admin. This is overwritten by the rules of the workflow though. So if the state is active but the workflow is retired your customers won't be able to see the article. Hopefully, this helps clarify it! 

Short answer: Yes it has a rule behind it but you can ignore it and focus on the workflow rules.