A reminder moves through these lifecycle statuses based on where it is in its notification sequence and whether it has been handled:
- Upcoming — no notification in the sequence has been sent yet.
- In Process — at least one notification in the sequence has been sent and the expiration date is getting near.
- Completed — the item has been renewed.
- Expired — the expiration date has passed and the item has not been marked complete.
- Inactive — switched off by a user so the remaining sequence won't send.
- Archived — set aside, and excluded from your plan's tracked-item count.
Important: when an item expires, you must manually mark it complete once it's renewed. Remindax does not auto-renew it for you.
The lifecycle in detail
Upcoming. The reminder exists and is scheduled, but none of its sequence steps have fired yet. The date is still far enough out.
In Process. Once at least one sequence step has been sent, the item is in process — notifications are actively going out and the deadline is approaching.
Completed. An item becomes Completed when it is renewed. This can happen two ways:
- Manually — you mark the item complete (required for expired items once you've renewed them).
- Via recipient reply — when a recipient replies to a reminder email, they can update the status using your defined Reply Status options, leave a comment, and attach the renewed document. See Reply Status and Renew on reply.
Expired. The date has passed and no one has marked it complete. Expired items don't send further notifications. Once you've renewed the underlying document, mark the item complete, or duplicate it with a new future expiry date.
Inactive. A user switched the item off so no further sequence steps send. A common reason is that a recipient already acted on the first reminder, making the rest unnecessary. Use Inactive to pause notifications without deleting or archiving.
Archived. The item is no longer needed for tracking — for example, a license or contract that has ended, or one you're parking for now. Archived items are excluded from your plan's tracked-item count, so archiving frees up capacity. Archived items can be restored at any time, at which point they count toward your plan again.
Inactive vs Archived — the key distinction
| Inactive | Archived | |
|---|---|---|
| Sequence sends? | No (paused/off) | No |
| Counts toward plan limit? | Yes | No (frees capacity) |
| Typical reason | Recipient already acted; pause notifications | Document no longer needed, ended, or parked |
| Reversible? | Yes | Yes — restore anytime |
What happens next
- Completed and Expired items do not send notifications. To re-track something, duplicate it and set a new upcoming expiration date.
- Archiving removes the item from your tracked count and active lists but keeps the record; you can restore it anytime.
- Renewing an expired item requires you to mark it complete manually.
Edge cases & gotchas
- Expired items never auto-resolve. You must mark them complete after renewing — there's no automatic renewal today.
- To restart reminders for a renewed item, the cleanest path is to duplicate it with a new expiry date rather than editing an expired item.
- Archiving is the lever for plan capacity — if you're near your tracked-item limit, archive items you no longer need.
Related questions
- My expired item won't send reminders — why? Expired items stop sending. Renew it and mark it complete, or duplicate it with a new date.
- What's the difference between Inactive and Archived? Inactive pauses sending but still counts toward your plan; Archived stops sending and frees plan capacity.
- How does an item become Completed? It's renewed — either you mark it complete, or a recipient updates the status via an email reply.
- Do archived items count toward my limit? No — archiving frees capacity, and restoring re-counts them.
- Will Remindax auto-renew an expired item? Not today — you mark it complete manually.
Related articles
Glossary · Explorer · Dashboard · Reply Status · How compliance % is calculated