Manage Vault Data Retention Settings

Overview

Vault retention is separate from your workspace’s query retention. You can configure Vault Data Retention to apply to all vaults based on either the vault creation date or the time of the last update. Admins will need to work with their Harvey Success or Support team to configure Vault retention using one of two options:

• On vault creation

  • Delete vault x days* after the vault was created
• On vault update

  • Delete vault x days* after it was last updated

*The x value represents the configured number of days for your vault retention period

What Counts as a Vault Update?

When Vault retention is enabled with the "on vault update" setting, certain actions will reset the "last updated" timestamp and extend your vault's retention period. Here's a breakdown of what counts as an update and what doesn't.

Actions that trigger an update:

• Queries: Creating, deleting, renaming, or updating a query

  • Threads: Adding follow-up messages, regenerating content, editing, or creating new revisions
  • Review: Adding, editing, re-running, or deleting columns
• Files & Folders: Adding, modifying, renaming, moving, or deleting files or folders
• Vault Details: Updating the vault title
• Sharing & Access: Adding or removing users, changing access levels

Actions that do NOT trigger an update:

• Viewing a vault without making changes
• Favoriting a vault query in your history
• Providing feedback (thumbs up/down) in threads or Review cells
• Exporting a query
• Scheduled, automatic syncs from Document Management System (DMS)

Customizing Retention For Vaults

From Client Matter settings, you can set custom retention periods for all vaults tied to a client matter. These policies override the workspace default for all associated Vaults, ensuring each matter is handled appropriately.

• For example, if your workspace Vault retention is 7 days from the last update, but the associated Client Matter is set to 30 days, the vault is retained for 30 days after no activity.

Set a Custom Retention Period on a Client Matter

1. Navigate to Settings > Client Matters
2. Check that the admin setting for Associate vaults with a Client Matter is set to Optional or Required.
3. Select Create to create a new client matter, or choose to edit an existing client matter
4. While adjusting the Client Matter, locate Retention settings and select Custom
5. Choose a time period to set your own client matter retention policy that will override the workspace default.

   1. To customize by number of days choose Custom
   2. To ensure the vault never gets automatically deleted, choose Unlimited
6. For an existing matter, select Save or for a new matter, select Create

The customized retention period set to the Client Matter will now apply to all vaults tied to that Client Matter, and will override existing vault workspace default retention.

Checking a Vault’s Retention Period

To check when a vault will be automatically deleted, open its detail panel and check the deletion date.

What happens when an expiration date is approaching?

A vault that’s expiring in less than seven days will have a warning banner within the vault, and a red dot next’s to its name on the Vault homepage.

If Vault Email Notifications are enabled for retention-based deletion, users will also receive reminder emails 7 days and 1 day before expiration.

FAQs