SharePoint: Microsoft 365 Archive for Sites – Revolutionizing Data Management

In the digital era, where data grows exponentially, organizations face the challenge of managing inactive data without incurring prohibitive costs or compromising on compliance and security. Microsoft’s innovative solution, Microsoft 365 Archive, now in preview, offers a paradigm shift in managing SharePoint Online sites, aligning storage efficiency with cost-effectiveness.

Introducing Microsoft 365 Archive for SharePoint Sites

Microsoft 365 Archive heralds a new era in data management, specifically tailored for SharePoint Online. This pioneering service empowers organizations to archive inactive SharePoint sites, thereby optimizing storage and reducing costs while maintaining stringent security, compliance, and searchability standards.

The Strategic Advantages of Microsoft 365 Archive

• Efficiency at Scale: Archive SharePoint sites quickly and effortlessly, irrespective of their size or quantity. Microsoft 365 Archive is designed for performance, ensuring that your organization’s data management processes remain agile and responsive.
• Cost-Effective Storage: Navigate the complexities of data storage with Microsoft 365 Archive’s cost-saving strategy. By offering reduced storage prices for volumes exceeding your Microsoft 365 allocated quota, it presents a financially viable solution for managing extensive data repositories.
• Data Integrity: Archiving with Microsoft 365 Archive means no compromise on data integrity. Every site retains its complete metadata and permissions, ensuring that upon reactivation, your data remains intact and as functional as ever.
• Organizational Clarity: Distinguish active content from inactive effortlessly. Microsoft 365 Archive aids in decluttering your digital workspace, promoting efficient lifecycle management of your SharePoint sites.

Seamless Integration Within Microsoft 365 Ecosystem

Microsoft 365 Archive is not just a standalone feature; it’s a cog in the larger Microsoft 365 machinery. Integrated with Microsoft Purview and the Microsoft 365 search index, it offers a robust framework for managing your data in the long term. This synergy ensures that archived SharePoint sites remain searchable, secure, and compliant, in line with Microsoft’s stringent standards.

Navigating the Archive Journey

Archiving SharePoint sites is managed through the SharePoint admin center, accessible by global or SharePoint admins. When a site is archived, it transitions to a colder storage tier, liberating your active storage quota for other purposes. However, it’s crucial to communicate with site owners and users before archiving, as archived sites are not accessible to the broader organization outside of specific admin roles.

Preview Phase Insights

While Microsoft 365 Archive for SharePoint Sites is currently in preview, it’s important to note some temporary limitations:

• Large tenants may encounter challenges in enumerating archived sites, a situation addressable through PowerShell.
• Certain features, such as end-user search visibility and specific site information columns, are pending full implementation.
• Multi-geo tenants and scenarios involving tenant renames have specific considerations regarding archived sites.

How to configure Microsoft 365 Archive for Sites

Managing the storage of inactive SharePoint Online sites efficiently can significantly reduce costs and declutter your digital workspace. Microsoft 365 Archive provides a streamlined process for archiving these sites, thus transforming the way organizations handle their data retention and compliance needs. The following guide offers a step-by-step walkthrough for setting up Microsoft 365 Archive for SharePoint sites, archiving a site, and managing archived sites within your organization. This functionality is essential for maintaining a cost-effective, secure, and compliant data management strategy while ensuring that inactive content does not consume valuable active storage resources. Let’s walk through the process.

Enabling Microsoft 365 Archive

Access Microsoft 365 Admin Center:

• Open your web browser and navigate to the Microsoft 365 admin center. > Once logged in, select the ‘Setup’ section from the navigation pane.

Use Content AI with Microsoft Syntex:

• In the Setup section, look for the option ‘Use content AI with Microsoft Syntex’ and select it.

• On the ‘Use content AI with Microsoft Syntex’ page, select the ‘Manage Microsoft Syntex’ option.

• Within the ‘Manage Microsoft Syntex’ page, find and select ‘Archive (Preview)‘.

• On the ‘Archive (Preview)‘ page, click on the ‘Turn on’ button.

A confirmation pane will appear. Select ‘Confirm’ to enable Microsoft 365 Archive.

Once these steps are completed, Microsoft 365 Archive will be enabled for your organization, and you will be able to archive content from the SharePoint admin center.

How to Archive SharePoint Sites

Now that we have enabled the preview feature for Microsoft 36 archiving, the next step is to head over to Microsoft SharePoint Online.

Navigate to SharePoint Online > https://thatlazyadmin-admin.sharepoint.com

Click on Active Sites > Select the site you want to Archive.

Once you have selected the Active site, you will notice on top Archive is available. Click on Archive to archive the selected site.

You will be presented with a new Windows providing the size of the site and details like last activity. Click on Archive to archive the site.

If your site has been successfully archived, you will receive the following message.

Let’s Head over to Archived sites to view the sites which was just archived.

To restore an archived site, select the archived site and select “Reactivate”.

A Reactivate window will popup, review the site details and click Reactivate.

If your site has successfully been reactivated, you will see the following message.

In Summary

Microsoft 365 Archive for SharePoint Sites is setting a new standard for data management, offering a solution that balances efficiency, cost, and compliance. As this service evolves and matures, it’s poised to become an essential tool for organizations looking to manage their SharePoint Online sites more effectively, ensuring that inactive data remains an asset rather than a liability.