Changing Retention Policy Settings

Required User Credentials

[Flosum User] - Backup & Archive license with App Settings permissions

Overview

The Retention Policy feature automates the removal of backed-up and archived data after a configured period. This helps control storage growth and aligns data lifecycles with internal governance and compliance requirements, without the risk of accidental data loss from manual cleanup. This article explains how Retention Policies work and how to add, edit, and remove them from an organization.

How Retention Policy Works

Retention Policies are specific to each organization, and you can add as many as needed. A Retention Policy sets the retention period for one or more objects, up to all objects in the organization. You configure retention periods separately for backup and archive records, with values ranging from 1 month to 12 years.

If multiple Retention Policies apply to the same object, the policy with the longer retention period takes effect. For example, suppose you have two policies: one that retains all objects for 6 months, and one that retains only Account objects for 1 year. Account objects are retained for 1 year, while all other objects are retained for 6 months.

Two Records Retained

Regardless of the configured retention period, the system always retains the two most recent versions of any record. This helps prevent data loss from accidental deletions or data corruption.

New Objects

New objects added to an organization are not included in any existing Retention Policies. To include a new object, first create a backup or archive that contains it, then add it to the desired Retention Policy.

Example Scenarios

In each of the following cases, for simplicity, a single Retention Policy applies to all objects. The cases illustrate different usage patterns and retention lengths, and they account only for backed-up versions.

Case 1: Frequently Changed Objects

Detail	Description
Retention Period	12 months
Usage	Objects change daily.
Retention Behavior	All versions created within the past 12 months are retained; older versions are deleted.
Versions Retained	~365 versions

Case 2: Infrequently Changed Objects

Detail	Description
Retention Period	12 months
Usage	Objects change every 6 months.
Retention Behavior	Two versions are created during the 12-month period, and all older versions are deleted.
Versions Retained	2 versions

Case 3: All Versions Older Than Retention Period

Detail	Description
Retention Period	6 months
Usage	Objects have not changed for 2 years. Before that, 100 versions were backed up.
Retention Behavior	No new versions were created during the 6-month retention period. Because the system always retains at least 2 versions, the 2 most recent versions are kept and the rest are deleted.
Versions Retained	2 versions

Retention Policy Settings

1

Access Retention Policy Settings

Below are instructions for accessing the Retention Policies for the selected organization and for adding, editing, and removing a policy.

1. Click Settings from the sidebar menu.
2. Click the Organization to change a Retention Policy for.

   
3. Click the Retention Policy tab.

   

2

Add Policy and Set Period

1. Click Add more at the bottom of the Retention Policy Templates section.

   
2. Enter a Name for the policy template.

   
3. Set the retention period for Backup Records.

   1. In the Backup Keep For text box, enter the number of months or years to retain backup records for this policy.
   2. Click the Month/Year dropdown menu.
   3. Select the time interval to use for backup records for this policy.

      
4. Set the retention period for Archive Records.

   1. In the Archive Keep For text box, enter the number of months or years to retain archive records for this policy.
   2. Click the Month/Year dropdown menu.
   3. Select the time interval to use for archive records for this policy.

3

Add Objects

Add All Objects

1. Click Select All to include all objects in this retention policy.

   
2. The Added tab will now include all objects.

   

Add Individual Objects

1. Enter the object you want to add in the Search Bar.
2. Click Add for the object you want to include in this retention policy.

   
3. The Added tab will now include the object you added.

   

Remove Objects

1. Click the Added tab.
2. Click the Added button to the right of each object to remove.

4

Finish Adding Policy

1. Click the Add button at the bottom of the retention policy template.

   
2. Once added, the new retention policy will be listed in the Retention Policy Templates section.

   

5

Edit Retention Policy

The process of editing a retention policy is the same as adding a new one. See the sections above for more details.

1. Click Edit for the retention policy you want to edit.

   
2. Make the desired changes to the retention policy.
3. Click Save to save the changes.

6

Deleting a Retention Policy

1. Click the Trash Can button for the retention policy you want to delete.

   
2. Click Confirm in the Delete retention policy template confirmation dialog.

   
3. The retention policy has now been deleted.