Preserve Vault data when switching editions

If you set retention rules or holds on your Google Workspace data using Google Vault, your organization can lose data when you switch your Google Workspace edition. Data isn’t protected in the following scenarios:

• You switch to an edition that doesn't include Vault. For a list of supported editions, on this page see Edition support .
• You switch to an edition that doesn't include a service supported by Vault.
• You switch from an edition that includes a Vault license, to an edition that has Vault add-on licenses available.
• You cancel your Google Workspace subscription entirely.

Check if you have retention rules or holds on data

For large organizations, ask your legal and business operations teams to review if they set retention rules or placed data on hold.

For small organizations, you can skip these steps if you never set up anything in Vault. If you're not sure, check your Vault settings:

1. Go to https://vault.google.com and sign in with your Google Workspace super admin account.
2. Click Reports.
3. Click Domain Holds, User Holds, and Group Holds. If any of these pages list holds, you should follow the instructions below to export your organization's data.
4. Click Menu Retention.
5. On the Default Rulespage, confirm that all values are No default retentionor Not set. If any default rules have other values, you should follow the instructions below to export your organization's data.
6. Click Custom Retention Rules. If any custom retention rules are set, you should follow the instructions below to export your organization's data.

What happens when you switch or cancel

When you switch or cancel:

• All retention rules and holds are disabled—Without the protection of retention rules and holds, data by users or admins is subject to standard deletion processes . Data deleted more than 30 days ago can be immediately purged from all Google systems. Purged data can't be recovered.

  Note: If the edition you switch to doesn’t include a specific Vault-supported service, then only the retention rules and holds for that service is disabled. For example, if the edition you switch to doesn’t include Gmail, then Gmail messages are no longer protected.

• Your Vault settings are deleted—30 days after you switch to an edition that doesn’t include Vault or cancel your subscription, all retention rules, matters, and holds are deleted. If you buy Vault again more than 30 days after you switched or canceled, you must configure it as if you’re a new customer.
• Your Vault audit data is deleted—Approximately 30 days after you switch to an edition that doesn’t include Vault or cancel your subscription, your audit data is deleted. Audit data is a log of all the actions taken by Vault users, such as searching data and setting retention rules.

Before you switch or cancel

1. Export your organization’s data with the Data Export Tool . The export includes data that’s deleted but preserved by a Vault retention rule or hold.
2. Export your organization’s Vault audit data from the Vault audit report .
3. Determine if you need to implement email and chat message retention for your organization.
4. If you are switching to an edition that has a Vault add-on license, both the Vault add-on license and lower Workspace SKU must be assigned before the old license is unassigned. Otherwise you risk losing data because you downgraded to an edition that doesn’t include a Vault license.

You can’t save your Vault settings, including retention rules and holds. However, if you buy Vault again within 30 days, your Vault settings and audit data are reinstated.

Edition support

Related Topic

Assign Vault licenses