Microsoft announces public preview of file-level archiving in Microsoft 365 Archive, letting admins archive individual SharePoint files to a cold tier. It preserves security, compliance, and metadata, improves Copilot/search relevancy, reduces storage costs, and exposes Microsoft Graph APIs.
Microsoft announced public preview of file-level archiving for Microsoft 365 Archive. This adds per-file cold-tiering for SharePoint within active sites.
Main feature and impact
File-level archiving lets admins and users archive individual SharePoint files into a cold storage tier. This preserves metadata, security, and compliance settings while removing files from Copilot and regular search indexes. The change reduces active SharePoint storage consumption and improves Copilot relevancy by excluding archived files from active indexing. It also supports Microsoft Graph APIs for automation and partner integrations.Practical implications
Administrators can now target outdated documents without archiving entire sites. Organizations save on primary storage and may reduce costs by up to 75 percent versus buying more SharePoint storage. Archived content remains discoverable to administrators via Microsoft Purview and admin search. Public preview focuses on manual and API workflows, with policy-based automation planned for future releases.“We are delighted to be part of the public preview for file-level archiving for Microsoft 365 Archive. This enables us to build on our Preserve365® integration with Microsoft 365 Archive for site-level archiving as we work together to make Active Digital Preservation a seamless part of the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.” – Stuart Reed, Chief Product Officer, PreservicaMicrosoft’s public preview requires eligible tenants and supports manual and API-based scenarios. Admins should validate tenant eligibility and test Graph API calls in non-production tenants. Monitor rollout for phased activation and consult developer guidance for integration details. Organizations should plan retention policy alignment and Purview search testing to maintain compliance and discoverability.
Key points from the article:
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