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Microsoft 365 Retention Labels and Policies

Simple file classification
Apply a retention label to a document to set rules for use. Retain important files and clear space by deleting what’s not needed with an intuitive and responsive platform set up by Valto. Easily define which users have access to content and set usage limits.
Data retention and management
Comply with your industry regulations, keep important business data and make sure you classify and organise the files you need. Applying retention labels to content classifies items as record so you can set rules for retaining or deleting information as required.
On demand support
With Valto’s Microsoft 365 packages you have flexible support from our entire team of Microsoft experts whenever you need it. Whether it’s help with setting up retention labels, assistance applying labels to content automatically or categorising information within a SharePoint site or OneDrive accounts – let us help.
Data breach limitation
By applying retention policies and retention labels to content you make compliance and information protection more efficient and hassle-free. Using Microsoft retention labels means easy management and access to files.

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How to get the best out of retention labels for Microsoft 365 and beyond

When it comes to business, there are so many complexities, issues, tasks and transactions to take care of. Protecting your organisation’s data is vital, and a key part of everyday processes. With Microsoft retention labels you can organise and manage hundreds of items quickly and simply – ensuring you remain compliant with government and industry regulations on data protection and retention and keeping your IT premises streamlined with ease.

Minimise the risk of damaging data breaches or security issues by applying retention labels to content to automatically delete them after the right amount of time. Make work tasks more efficient by organising data and designating which information users can access.

With Valto’s Microsoft 365 consultants, you’ll be able to create retention policies and retention labels that apply to your entire business system. Our team will show you how to set up your system to apply labels to content automatically, choose when to start the retention period, manage SharePoint and OneDrive files and more.

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Microsoft 365 Retention Labels and Policies

What is retention in IT, and why is it important?

It’s likely your business already has retention policies in place, even if you don’t realise it. Retention is simply the amount of time you keep a certain piece of information, so if you have to delete files or alter data after a period of time, this is part of a retention policy.

Where it can get complicated is when different items, teams, companies or sectors require different retention periods. The start of the retention period may be triggered as soon as you save a certain data set, or might come later depending on the file in question. It’s really important to stay on top of the retention endpoint and required deletion date (if there is one), because missing it and storing data too long can cause you to fall foul of important data protection rules and regulations such as GDPR.

With Microsoft and Valto’s hassle-free policies, creating robust and fool proof retention policies and retention labels for your business is straightforward. In essence, there are three main actions for retention labels:

Delete only: after the retention period ends, content is permanently deleted
Retain only: store content indefinitely, or until the retention period ends
Retain and delete: keep the content for the specified retention period, and then permanently delete

What is the difference between retention policies and retention labels?

In a nutshell, retention labels are more specific and applied on an item by item level, compared to retention policies.

Use a retention policy to set the same level of retention management to all the items within a particular location – perhaps across an entire mailbox or storage site. Retention labels should be applied when you went to use retention settings at a more specific level – for example on individual documents, files or folders.

Undergoing a Microsoft 365 migration, or moving data for another reason? When you apply a retention label to a document or file, it stays in place if that file is moved. So, your retention settings for that item migrate with that content. However, retention policies are specific to a particular site, so stay in place and won’t move over with any content you transfer.

When to use retention labels

Because retention labels apply at a file level, it allows businesses flexibility and control when it comes to retaining certain data. At Valto, we offer a complete security audit in which our team will make recommendations for automatically applying labels, depending on the type of information and your particular industry.

Some of the best uses of retention labels include:

Setting a deletion date for time-sensitive information and choosing when to start the retention or deletion period – for example when an employee leaves the business or when a particular arm of the business is closed
Applying labels automatically to certain content if it contains certain criteria – for example credit card numbers, financial details, medical records or other sensitive data
Setting a set retention limit that starts from when the document or file was labelled, for easy GDPR control
Using a ‘default’ retention label setting to an entire location, so that each file within is treated with the same retention period, and can be migrated

For help with applying retention labels automatically to content and setting up retention policies, get in touch with the Valto experts

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Using retention labels in Microsoft 365 with Valto

With Microsoft’s retention policies and retention tools, you can choose how to apply rules and systems at a granular level if you have multiple different types of sensitive data – or on a broader scale if you need the most simple and efficient method possible. Choose what your retention policy includes and excludes, set specific time limits and create separate rules – i.e. one for data stored on a Microsoft Teams site and one for a SharePoint site.

As an official Microsoft Partner in the UK, Valto’s team of specialists can shape your company’s retention policies and retention labels to exactly suit your industry’s requirements. Keep your data under control, avoid file clutter across your M365 tenant, and take all the hassle out of setting up security settings for file storage.

With Valto, you won’t need to worry about setting up the correct retention period, working out the amount of time labels need to be applied, or configuring policies for deleting sensitive data. Our experts can take care of everything, make sure your on-premises or server architecture is fully protected, or provide Microsoft 365 training across retention labels and more.

The easy way to organise business data and comply with UK GDPR regulations at work.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a retention label?

Retention labels are used to mark certain files – for example emails or documents – and designate how long the information is to be stored for. After a certain amount of time, noted on the retention label, has passed, the file is automatically deleted.

What is a retention label used for?

Retention labels are an important part of a robust data protection strategy. Complying with regulations such as GDPR means certain information must not be stored after a certain amount of time, and retention labels help automatically delete and store the right items.

How do I apply a retention label in OneDrive and SharePoint?

Within both SharePoint and OneDrive, navigate to ‘Open the details pane’ in the top right corner – the icon is a lowercase i in a circle. Head to ‘Apply label’, then ‘Choose a label’ – select the correct label for your content and save if necessary. For items inside SharePoint’s document library, head to Settings, Library settings and Permissions and Management, then select ‘Apply labels to items in this list or library’.

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Microsoft 365 Retention Labels and Policies

Simple file classification

Data retention and management

On demand support

Data breach limitation

Contact our Microsoft 365 Experts

How to get the best out of retention labels for Microsoft 365 and beyond

What is retention in IT, and why is it important?

What is the difference between retention policies and retention labels?

When to use retention labels

Using retention labels in Microsoft 365 with Valto

Frequently Asked Questions

To get started with Valto and take your business to the next level, get in touch with our team today

What Our Customers Are Saying

Case Studies

Chester Zoo Case Study

Energy One Case Study

Sportily Case Study

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