Feature Release coming soon!
The Data Retention page can be accessed from the Admin section in the Scaffold navigation. Users must also have the permission Data Retention Management enabled.
Creating a Rule
To create a Data Retention Rule from the Data Retention page,
Click “Create Retention Rule”
From the Retention Rule dialog, enter the following details
Retention Type, either User or Course
User removes User Data (e.g. Student) from the course
Course will remove the Course Data
Description of the retention rule
Effective Date, when the rule was decided
Expiration Date, when the rule will expire (optional)
Years to Retain, how long data should be retained for, once the course has ended
Click Create
Once your retention rule is created, a scheduler will run on the last Saturday of the Month starting at midnight UTC time, to check and see if any Retention Rules have been met. Once a Course or Student Retention Rule has been met, the Course or Student Data will no longer be available in your archive instance.
Retention Rules Example
When a Retention Rule is created, the years to retain will be based off of the Course End Date.
For example, if you have the following Retention Rules
Retention Type: User
Description: Retain User data in the archive instance for 3 years.
Effective Date: 9/4/25
Expire Dates: N/A
Years to Retain: 3 years
Retention Type: Course
Description: Retain Course data in the archive instance for 5 years.
Effective Date: 9/4/25
Expire Date: N/A
Years to Retain: 5 years
The Retention Rule for the User Data will retain the students data for 2 years after the course has ended. While the Course Data will be retained for 5 years after the course has ended. Once a Retention Rule has been met, the data will no longer be available in the archive instance
Q & A
Can I have more than one Retention Rule?
Yes, you can have more than one Retention Rule, if there is an overlap in the Retention Rules then the one with the shorter retention time will be used.
What if I have a Retention Rule for older courses?
Simply create the Retention Rule for when the rule became effective in the past and enter the number of years the data should be retained for.
The Retention Rule, looks at how long to retain the data based on when the course ended. The Effective date is when the policy was in place for your institution.
Can I prevent a course from meeting the Retention Rule?
Yes, if a course is about to meet the Retention Rule that is in place, simply place the Course on an Academic Hold by selecting the “Add Academic Hold” on the Data Retention page.
Can I disable or delete a Retention Rule?
You can disabled a Retention Rule, but you cannot delete a Retention Rule. Retention Rules cannot be deleted so institutions can always see the Retention Rules that have been created.
How often is the Scheduler for the Retention Rule ran?
The scheduler is ran once a month, on the last Saturday of the Month at midnight UTC time. Once the Scheduler kicks off, it is ran through all institutions archive instances. Since the Scheduler is ran through all institutions, the scheduler may not start on your institutions instance at midnight UTC time.