There comes a time in every business owner’s career to ask, ‘Is the Microsoft 365 retention policy the endmost solution for M365 data?’
If your mind boggled at this in the first place, the answer is a resounding no. Microsoft 365 does retain data unless you delete them. Nonetheless, you should never perceive retention as a data backup or recovery solution.
The Stumbling Block to Microsoft 365 Retention Policies
In essence, we should always view the Microsoft 365 retention policy and M365 data backup as two independent services. Relying solely on intangible mailboxes prone to accidental deletions and network breaches can result in profound complexities.
Microsoft’s Overview of Microsoft 365 Retention Policies details the many options and overrides for setting these policies on specific data types and situations.
How long does the software keep deleted files?
The most recent change in Microsoft’s Exchange Server hosting permits users to keep deleted items as long as ‘forever.’ When you delete a file, it goes into the Deleted Items folder or empties itself upon logout with Outlook Web Apps (OWA).
If you delete it yourself, it moves to the Hidden Deleted Items folder. From there, you have about 30 days to recover the data before it is permanently irretrievable unless otherwise specified.
While users can modify and control certain retention tags, each Microsoft 355 solution—SharePoint, OneDrive, etc.—has its own rules. You will have to manually set instructions and maintain various individual retention policies for your firm’s different data types in M365.
Microsoft’s retention policy doesn’t mention recovery time
A bonafide M365 backup solution allows you to restore lost data to a secondary system quickly. Be it from corruption, hacks, or accidental deletion; you can still recover and access that data from a connected device.
On the other hand, the Microsoft 365 retention policy evades the question of the restoration process altogether. How laborious will it be? When will you have access to the data again?
Since the retention policies vary according to the cloud platform’s applications, there’s no guarantee of a complete and speedy recovery of lost data. If you or your employee inadvertently deletes a vital folder, this minor slip-up could take a toll on your business functions and intellectual property.
There goes your company’s productivity, credibility or worst of all, its reputation.
Back up M365 data with Aegis Cloud Office 365 Backup (COB)
Microsoft might not account for backing up corporate data, but Aegis COB does. Setting retention policy rules and periods for critical data is a step in the right direction. However, it is purely a tiny component of a broader protection strategy.
With a trusted third-party backup provider like Aegis, you can quash any worries about these policies. Aegis COB provides unlimited cloud backup storage so that you can afford ‘forever’ retention of your M365 data backup.
If you’re sceptical, you’ll find assurance in the longtime Cloud Backup and Disaster Recovery expertise that Aegis holds. With over a decade’s worth of experience in the industry, we have amassed over a hundred backup deployment success stories.
Microsoft 365 vs Aegis COB
Uh-oh, something catastrophic has caused corporate data loss. What do you do?
Without a proper solution, you must contact Microsoft for assistance. Although the company may sometimes help restore your data, their service-level agreement focuses more on availability than recoverability. Plus, they may not do it in your desired timeframe withal.
By engaging Aegis COB, the process is as straightforward as this: a single sign-in to Aegis COB’s self-service portal, and all your M365 user’s backup will be in view. You can perform monitoring, backup or restore anytime, anywhere.
Why depend on your service provider’s support hours for such fickle matters? Find out more about Aegis’ services and implement the best backup and disaster recovery solution now.