Retain messages in Groups with Vault

As part of your organization's information governance plan, you can control how long messages in Groups are retained. Use retention rules to set how long to keep messages and when to delete them, if ever.

Set custom retention rules to keep data that matches specific conditions for a set time. Set a default retention rule when you need to keep all data for a service for all licensed accounts in your organization for a set time. Custom retention rules override default retention rules, even when the default retention rule has a longer retention period.

Important information about Groups and retention

Before you set retention rules, we strongly recommend you read about how retention works and review the Google Groups messages supported in Vault.

WARNING: An improperly configured retention rule can allow Groups to immediately and irreversibly purge messages. Use caution when you create or change retention rules. We recommend that you test new rules on a small set of accounts before you apply the rules to your entire organization.

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What data can be retained

Covered:

• Messages and their attachments in groups sent when conversation history is turned on

Not covered:

• Messages in groups sent when conversation history is turned off
• Messages waiting for approval in moderated groups
• Linked files
• Messages in deleted groups

For details, see Supported services and data types.

Messages in Groups are deleted when the group is deleted.

When a group is deleted, messages in the group are also deleted. Messages in Groups are deleted even when the deleted group was subject to a hold or retention rule. However, messages in Gmail that accounts receive through a subscription to a group aren't deleted and are subject to Gmail retention rules and holds.

Set a custom retention rule for Groups

1. Sign in to vault.google.com.
2. Click RetentionCustom RulesCreate.
3. For the service, select Groups and then click Continue.
4. Choose which groups the rule applies to:
   • Specific groups—Enter the email addresses of one or more groups.
   • All Groups—Apply the rule to all groups in your organization.
5. Click Continue.
6. (Optional) Choose the conditions that must be met for messages to be covered by this rule:
   • Enter Date sent values. If you specify only a start date, the rule applies to all messages sent after that date. If you specify only an end date, the rule applies to all messages sent before that date.
   • Enter any terms that messages must match. You can use all supported search operators except wildcards (*).
7. Choose how long to keep messages:
   • To permanently retain messages covered by this rule, choose Indefinitely.
   • To discard messages after a set time, choose Retention period and enter the number of days, from 1 to 36,500.
8. If you set a retention period, choose what to do with messages when the retention period ends:
   • To purge only messages that are already deleted, choose the first option.
   • To purge all messages, including messages that aren't deleted, choose the second option.
   Warning: Vault allows Groups to immediately purge messages that exceed the retention period when you submit a new rule. The purged data can include data that users expect to keep. Don't proceed to the next step until you’re sure the rule is configured correctly.
9. Click Create. If you set a retention period, Vault asks you to confirm you understand the rule's effects. Check the boxes and click Accept to create the rule.

Set the default retention rule for Groups

The default retention rule applies to messages in Groups that aren't covered by a custom rule or a hold.

1. Sign in to vault.google.com.
2. Click Retention. The list of default rules opens.
3. Click Groups .
4. Choose how long to keep messages:
   • To permanently retain messages covered by this rule, select Indefinitely.
   • To discard messages after a set time, select Retention period and enter the number of days, from 1 to 36,500.
5. If you set a retention period, choose what to do with messages when the retention period ends:
   • To purge only messages that are already deleted, choose the first option.
   • To purge all messages, including messages that aren't deleted, choose the second option.
   Warning: Vault allows Groups to immediately purge messages that exceed the retention period when you submit the rule. The purged data can include data that users expect to keep. Don't proceed to the next step until you’re sure the rule is configured correctly.
6. Click Save. Vault asks you to confirm you understand the rule's effects. Check the boxes and click Accept to save the rule.