Situation

You are needing to set up, modify a retention policy to be able to keep backed up SharePoint sites for a certain period of time.


Prerequisites

This section lists the requirements to be able to set up a retention policy for SharePoint sites.

  • One of the following Dropsuite dashboard accesses:
    • Full Admin
    • Group Supervisor (This will only work for users that are within the group they are an admin of)
    • IT Admin
    • Compliance and Review Officer
    • Data Protection Officer


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Site Level Retention Policy

This section will explain how to create a policy at the site level for SharePoint sites. It will also explain the process to modify or delete a previously created policy. 


Creating a retention policy

  1. Login to the backup dashboard using the proper access level.

  2. Hover over the compliance tab, and then select "Retention Policy".


  3. On the next page select the "Site Level" tab and then select "+Create New".

  4. On the next screen, you will have 3 sections to fill out:
    • Policy Name: Create a name for the policy. This must be unique and can not be a duplicate name of another policy previously created.
    • For: Here you will need to select "SharePoint Site" to specify a site, or "All" to apply the retention policy to all backed up sites. In this example, we have specified a site.
    • Retention Period: Here you will need to select the retention length of the data for the specified site(s). You can select between 1 month to 11 years or unlimited to never have the data permanently deleted.

       
  5. Lastly, read the disclaimer that will be tailored to the retention period you selected, agree to the terms by selecting the checkbox, and select "Save".

  6. Your policy will then be displayed on the retention policy page. To view the details more in depth, select the policy name and a box will appear with all notable details.  


Modifying a retention policy

This section will explain how to modify an already existing retention policy at the account level.

  1. Hover over the compliance tab, and then select "Retention Policy".
  2. On the next page select "Site Level".
  3. Find the policy you are needing to modify and select the 3 dots in the top right corner, and then select "Edit". 
  4. In the next window, you will get a disclaimer which will explain that any modifications you make to the retention policy will only be applied to any sites that have not already been deleted by the retention policy. Select "Continue". 
  5. Next, modify the policy as needed, agree to the terms and select "Update".


Deleting a retention policy

This section will explain how to delete a retention policy that is no longer needed.

  1. On the retention policy page, find the policy you need to delete and select the 3 dots in the top right corner, and then select "Delete".
  2. In the next window, be sure to read the warning, and then select "I Agree". 

  3. The data that was included in this retention policy will now be using the default policy to never be deleted.

Important Mentions

Important things to note when creating retention policies.

  • More than one policy can be applied to SharePoint sites, the system will automatically go with the policy with the longest retention period.
  • Once a retention policy has deleted a site, there is no way to retrieve it. The only option would be if the site still exists in which case it would be backed up again.
  • The default retention policy is unlimited. This would mean that by default, all data is kept forever.
  • The policy applies as soon as it is created.
  • Data is deleted within 24 hours after the retention period has expired.