Files accumulate endlessly in Drive: old project folders, duplicate uploads, forgotten attachments take up space, slow down systems, and increase compliance risks.
Many industry regulations (like GDPR, HIPAA, and others) prohibit keeping personal data, such as CVs or customer records, indefinitely.
But with millions of files, there’s no way to clean up manually without losing productivity or making mistakes. The last thing you want is accidentally deleting files still in use.
Choose files to target
Start by specifying which files the data retention policy should target:
Files in specific folders or shared drives – for example, start by deleting files in former employees’ archive accounts.
Activity – files not viewed or modified in more than X months
Age – files created more than X months ago
Access – files that are not shared with anyone – to make sure you are not accidentally deleting files still in use.
2. Set the retention period
Decide how long files should be kept before they’re automatically moved to trash. To avoid deleting active files, you can base this on:
Creation date
Last modified date
Last opened date
For example, trash files that were created over 2 years ago and not opened in the last 12 months. This ensures you’re not accidentally removing files still in use.
3. Set the frequency of automated runs
Choose how often Florbs should apply the policy – daily, weekly, or monthly. This keeps your environment clean and up-to-date without manual effort.
4. Review the data retention policy summary and activate
Before activating the policy, Florbs gives you a clear summary of what the policy will do.
It also prepares the impact analysis, telling you how many files will be affected by the next run, and gives you a preview list of affected files.
You can choose to run policies automatically or manually review and approve changes before each run.
