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This thread is resolved. Here is a description of the problem and solution.

Problem:
The client wants to test the 'fallback function' for displaying untranslated content in secondary languages using the default language as a fallback, and is concerned about whether they can revert the settings back to the original state without any residual changes.
Solution:
We assure the client that they can safely test the fallback function without risking permanent changes to their website. This function is ideal if the client has content that is not yet translated and prefers to show content in the default language temporarily rather than showing nothing. The settings for this function can be easily switched back and forth without any risk of losing data or leaving residual settings. Once a translation for a page becomes available, WPML will automatically display the translated content instead of the fallback.

If this solution does not resolve your issue, or if it seems outdated or irrelevant to your specific case, we highly recommend checking related known issues at https://wpml.org/known-issues/, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If further assistance is needed, please open a new support ticket at WPML support forum.

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This topic contains 1 reply, has 2 voices.

Last updated by Mihai Apetrei 1 year ago.

Assisted by: Mihai Apetrei.

Author Posts
May 23, 2024 at 7:10 am #15660609

Sytse

Can I test the 'fallback function' and turn it off again, after which everything is back to normal?

I want to test the following function:
https://wpml.org/documentation/translating-your-contents/displaying-untranslated-content-on-pages-in-secondary-languages/#using-the-default-language-as-a-fallback-for-untranslated-content

Suppose unwanted things happen, can I reset the settings and is the site then back to exactly the state it was in before the conversion? (I'm a bit worried that changes might be left behind in the settings or database and would like confirmation that this won't happen.

(I need to do this on in a live website, but can possibly make a backup of this in advance, just to be on the safe side.)

May 23, 2024 at 7:50 am #15660800

Mihai Apetrei
WPML Supporter since 03/2018

Languages: English (English )

Timezone: Europe/Bucharest (GMT+03:00)

Hi there.

Sure.

This function should be used only if you have content that might not have translation yet and you would like to rely on the default language content if that happens just so that you at least have some content in the other languages compared to not having anything.

Some people prefer to not show anything as long as they don't have an existing translation, some prefer to show the default language until they will have available translated content.

You can easily change the settings from one to another without risks of loosing anything but if you use the middle option (the one with the fallback function), you wouldn't need to change anything if at some point you would go from a state where you don't have a translation for a page to a state where you now have a translation for that page.

WPML will see the new translation (when it becomes available) and it will serve that instead automatically.

I hope that you will find this information helpful. 🙂

Mihai Apetrei

May 23, 2024 at 8:57 am #15661556

Sytse

Thanks Mihai for your clear answer.
I'll test this soon after office hours.
Sytse