> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.easy2patch.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.easy2patch.com/managing-easy2patch/easy2patch-4.0/macos-apps/publish-options-and-retire.md).

# Publish Options and Retire

**Application Publish Options** decides what happens to the application that is already in Intune when a new version of the same product is published. It is found on **Settings › Deployment Settings › Intune Deployment** and it has two values.

### The two options

| Option                        | What happens in Intune                                                                                        | Existing assignments          | How the new version reaches devices                       |
| ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Overwrite** (default)       | The same application object is updated: a new content version is uploaded and the fields are refreshed.       | **Kept**                      | Through the assignments that are already there.           |
| **Retire and send a new one** | The existing application is **deleted** from Intune and a **new** application is created for the new version. | **Gone with the application** | Only through assignments created for the new application. |

{% hint style="info" %}
Unless you have a reason to do otherwise, leave this on **Overwrite**. It is the option that keeps working without help.
{% endhint %}

### Overwrite

The application keeps its identity. Its object ID does not change, its assignments do not change, its place in Company Portal does not change. Easy2Patch uploads the new package as a new content version and updates the bundle identifiers, the version, the icon and the rest of the fields.

Because the assignments survive, devices pick up the new version through the assignment that is already in place. Nothing else has to happen.

### Retire and send a new one

The existing application is **removed from Intune** and the new version is published from scratch as a separate application.

{% hint style="danger" %}
**Removing the application removes its assignments.** The new application starts with none. It will reach devices only if an assignment is created for it — that is, only if **Auto Assignment** is on, or the product's own **Auto Deploy** setting is on, or you press **Deploy**.

The combination **"Retire and send a new one" + Auto Assignment off** produces a silent gap: the new version is published, the old application and its assignments disappear, no new assignment is created, and the product quietly stops reaching devices. Nothing fails, so nothing is reported as a failure.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="warning" %}
**The removal is not filtered by origin.** Everything attached to that application goes with it, including assignments you created by hand in the Intune portal for your own groups or schedules. If you maintain assignments of your own on Easy2Patch-published applications, use **Overwrite**.
{% endhint %}

### When does the retire path actually trigger?

With **Retire and send a new one** selected, Easy2Patch still does not touch the application on every run. It compares what it published last time with what is in Intune now:

| Situation                                                 | Action                                                 |
| --------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| The product has a new version (new package)               | Delete the old application, publish the new one.       |
| The application in Intune was modified outside Easy2Patch | Delete and republish, and write a warning to the log.  |
| Nothing changed                                           | Nothing. The run is recorded as **already published**. |
| The product was never published to Intune                 | Publish it as a new application.                       |

### Deleting applications from Easy2Patch

When you delete an Easy2Patch-published application from the management screen, the same order is followed: the assignments are removed first, then the application itself.

The screen lists only applications that Easy2Patch published — they are identified by the naming suffix Easy2Patch gives them. Applications you created by hand in the Intune portal are not listed and cannot be removed from here.

### Related pages

* [Auto Assignment](/managing-easy2patch/easy2patch-4.0/macos-apps/auto-assignment.md)
* [Configuration Recommendations](/managing-easy2patch/easy2patch-4.0/macos-apps/configuration-recommendations.md)