SharePoint Archiving Best Practices for Compliance

by Mark | Aug 27, 2025 | SharePoint

SharePoint Archiving Best Practices for Compliance and Cost Savings

SharePoint Online has become the backbone of document management for many organizations. From project files to legal contracts, HR records to financial reports, it holds critical business data that grows relentlessly.

But as usage increases, so do two unavoidable challenges:

Escalating storage costs – Microsoft charges around $180–$200 per terabyte (TB) per month once you exceed your licensed allocation. For large tenants, that quickly becomes six figures per year.
Tightening compliance obligations – Frameworks like GDPR, HIPAA, SOX, ISO 27001, NIST, and the Australian Essential 8 demand strict retention, defensible deletion, and auditability.

The dilemma? Simply deleting files may reduce storage bills, but it risks non-compliance. Retention policies may satisfy regulators, but they don’t stop your storage from exploding in cost.

The solution is archiving: systematically moving inactive content out of costly SharePoint storage into secure, compliant, and lower-cost storage — without losing access or auditability. This article explores SharePoint archiving best practices to achieve both compliance and cost efficiency.

Understand the Difference Between Retention and Archiving

One of the most common mistakes organizations make is assuming Microsoft’s retention features are equivalent to archiving. They are not.

Retention policies (Microsoft Purview):
These prevent documents from being deleted or altered during a specified period. For example, you can set a 7-year retention for financial files. However, those files remain in your active SharePoint environment, consuming expensive storage.

Archiving:
This is about moving older or less frequently accessed content to a different tier of storage (e.g., Azure Blob). Users may still see stubs or shortcuts in SharePoint, but the heavy lifting of storage cost is moved elsewhere. Metadata, security, and accessibility are preserved.

Example:
A construction company keeps every project’s documents for 10 years. If they rely solely on retention, those files remain live in SharePoint, pushing storage bills above $250,000 annually. With archiving, the same files are securely stored in Azure Blob at a fraction of the cost, while still being retrievable for audits or disputes.

Best practice: Use retention to ensure legal minimums are met. Use archiving to keep costs sustainable while retaining compliance. Both should work together.

Align Archiving with Compliance Requirements

Archiving decisions cannot be random; they must reflect the regulatory landscape your business operates in.

Industry frameworks and requirements:

Financial services (SOX, SEC, APRA CPS 234 in Australia): Often mandates financial record retention for 7 years or more. Non-compliance can result in penalties and reputational damage.
Healthcare (HIPAA): Requires health records to remain accessible, immutable, and secured for extended periods. Archiving provides a way to meet those obligations without costly live storage.
Public sector (Essential 8, ISO 27001): Emphasizes governance, protection against accidental loss, and traceability. Archiving ensures agencies can produce records on demand.

Real risks and penalties:

Under GDPR, improper handling of data can result in fines of up to €20M or 4% of annual global turnover.
The SEC has fined firms millions for failing to retain communication records properly.
In healthcare, HIPAA penalties can run up to $1.5M per year, per violation.

Best practice checklist:

Map each compliance framework you fall under.
Translate requirements into archiving rules (e.g., “Archive project data after 2 years of inactivity, retain for 7 years in immutable storage”).
Document the rationale — auditors will want to see not just the process but the justification.

Create a Clear Archiving Policy

An archiving policy is more than a technical setting. It is a formal governance document that defines what, how, and why data is archived. Without it, you risk inconsistency, shadow IT, or gaps that auditors will notice.

A good archiving policy should cover:

Scope – Define what libraries, sites, or content types are included. Example: “All completed project sites will be archived 12 months after project close.”
Archiving rules – Define triggers such as inactivity (no edits in 24 months), age (files older than 3 years), or event-based (employee departure).
Exemptions – Identify exceptions (e.g., files under legal hold).
Retention length – How long archived content stays before defensible deletion (aligned with regulation).
Access controls – Who can request or restore archived content.
Audit process – How archiving will be verified and reported.

Example policy excerpt:

“All SharePoint documents not accessed in the past 36 months will be archived to Azure Blob storage via Squirrel. Archived files will be retained for 7 years, encrypted at rest, and logged for all access. Exceptions apply to documents under MIP label ‘Legal Hold.’ Restores must be requested via IT Service Desk.”

Best practice: Publish your archiving policy in your governance documentation. Communicate it to business units so users understand that archiving is not deletion — their files remain accessible when needed.

Automate the Archiving Process

Manual archiving is not sustainable. Expecting staff to move files manually, export libraries, or classify documents invites error and inconsistency. Worse, it creates compliance blind spots.

Why automation matters:

Consistency: Automation ensures the same rules are applied across all libraries.
Compliance: Automated logs and policy enforcement prove due diligence.
Scale: Organizations with millions of documents cannot rely on manual intervention.

Example without automation:
A legal department instructs staff to “move files older than 3 years to a separate library.” Compliance drops because staff forget, misunderstand, or leave.

Example with automation:
Squirrel applies rules automatically (e.g., archive files older than 24 months), replaces them with stubs in SharePoint, and logs every action. Compliance is achieved without staff intervention.

Best practice:

Use metadata or MIP labels to drive archiving decisions.
Apply idle-time rules (last modified >24 months).
Replace files with stubs so users can still access them seamlessly.
Ensure every archive event is logged for audit.

Ensure Secure, Auditable Storage

For compliance, archiving is not just about moving files to cheaper storage. The storage itself must be secure, auditable, and compliant.

Key requirements:

Immutability: Archived files must be protected against tampering or deletion until their retention period ends. Azure Blob supports Write Once Read Many (WORM) options.
Encryption: Data should be encrypted at rest and in transit. Azure provides automatic encryption with customer-managed keys.
Audit trails: Every access or restore event should be logged and reportable.
Accessibility: Files must remain retrievable within reasonable timeframes for eDiscovery or regulator requests.

Best practice:
Use Azure Blob as the underlying storage with Squirrel providing:

Stub file placeholders in SharePoint so users do not feel the archive gap.
Immutable storage configurations.
Full reporting dashboards to satisfy audits.

This ensures compliance is not compromised while achieving cost savings.

Review and Update Policies Regularly

Archiving policies cannot be “set and forget.” Regulations change, and so does your business.

Examples of change:

GDPR interpretations continue to evolve.
Australia’s Essential 8 maturity model has updated requirements.
NIST releases revisions that shift compliance expectations.

Best practice:

Conduct an annual governance review.
Involve IT, Legal, and Compliance teams.
Review audit logs from your archiving solution to ensure policies are being enforced.
Adjust rules as needed (e.g., change idle time from 24 months to 18 months if storage costs spike).

Proactive reviews protect you against regulatory surprises and maintain stakeholder trust.

FAQs

Q: How long should we keep archived SharePoint data?
It depends on industry rules. Financial services may require 7 years. Healthcare can extend to the lifetime of a patient. Always align with your sector’s legal requirements.

Q: Does archiving reduce SharePoint storage usage?
Yes. Proper archiving removes files from SharePoint’s active quota, cutting down Microsoft’s storage charges.

Q: Is archiving with third-party tools compliant with Microsoft’s shared responsibility model?
Yes. Microsoft manages the platform; you manage your data. Using solutions like Squirrel ensures you meet your responsibilities.

Q: Can archived files be restored quickly for an audit?
Yes. With Squirrel, stub files remain in SharePoint and can restore on demand with a click, ensuring compliance with audit requests.

Conclusion

SharePoint archiving is no longer optional. Organizations face spiraling storage costs and tightening compliance obligations. Deletion puts compliance at risk; retention policies inflate costs. Archiving delivers the best of both worlds: regulatory alignment and financial sustainability.

Best practices include:

Understanding the distinction between retention and archiving.
Aligning policies with compliance frameworks.
Documenting and communicating a clear archiving policy.
Automating the process to eliminate errors.
Using secure, auditable storage.
Balancing compliance with hard cost savings.
Reviewing policies regularly to stay aligned with evolving regulations.

With solutions like Squirrel, organizations can automate SharePoint archiving, reduce costs by 70% or more, and remain fully compliant with frameworks like GDPR, HIPAA, SOX, ISO 27001, and Essential 8.

Learn more about how Squirrel ensures compliant SharePoint archiving →

Archiving and Compliance in SharePoint doesnt have to be hard.

With Squirrel, you can reduce your SharePoint Online costs, archive to cheaper Azure Storage and remain compliant with your regulations.

Stay compliant and archive your SharePoint Data with Squirrel

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SharePoint Analytics

by Mark | Apr 3, 2025 | SharePoint

Unlock the Power of SharePoint Analytics with SharePoint Storage Explorer

Managing SharePoint storage can be a complex task, especially as your organization’s data continues to grow. Keeping track of how much space each site or user is consuming, identifying trends, and ensuring your storage stays within allocated limits are crucial for effective SharePoint management. This is where SharePoint analytics tools can make a significant difference, and SharePoint Storage Explorer stands out as an essential free tool to simplify the process.

What is SharePoint Storage Explorer?

SharePoint Storage Explorer is a free and user-friendly tool that provides clear and detailed insights into your SharePoint storage usage. It allows you to see exactly how much storage each site, document library, and user is consuming, making it easier to stay on top of storage management. Whether you’re an IT administrator or a site manager, SharePoint Storage Explorer equips you with the data you need to make informed decisions about your SharePoint environment.

Key Features of SharePoint Storage Explorer

Comprehensive Storage Breakdown: With SharePoint Storage Explorer, you get an in-depth view of your storage usage, broken down by site collections, document libraries, and users. This feature helps you quickly identify which sites or users are using the most storage space.
Track Storage Trends Over Time: Understanding how your storage usage evolves is key for managing growth. SharePoint Storage Explorer lets you track storage usage over time, so you can anticipate future needs and avoid unexpected issues.
Simple and Intuitive Interface: Unlike other SharePoint analytics tools, SharePoint Storage Explorer is designed to be simple to use. You don’t need advanced technical skills to navigate the tool and access the data you need.
Find Large Files and Folders: Large files or document libraries can quickly eat up your storage space. SharePoint Storage Explorer helps you find these files so you can take action before they cause problems.
Optimize Storage Costs: With detailed reports on your SharePoint storage, you can identify areas where you can archive or delete unnecessary data, ultimately helping you optimize storage costs and improve efficiency.

Why Choose SharePoint Storage Explorer for Your SharePoint Analytics?

While there are many SharePoint analytics tools available, SharePoint Storage Explorer provides a unique combination of ease of use, detailed insights, and free access. It’s ideal for administrators who want a clear understanding of their SharePoint storage without the complexity and high costs that come with other tools.

By leveraging SharePoint analytics through this tool, you can ensure your SharePoint environment stays efficient, cost-effective, and scalable. It helps you stay ahead of potential issues, such as performance bottlenecks or storage overflow, by offering detailed, real-time data.

How Does SharePoint Storage Explorer Work?

Once you install SharePoint Storage Explorer, it automatically scans your SharePoint environment, gathering data on storage usage across all sites and libraries. The tool then generates a comprehensive report that categorizes storage usage by:

Site collections
Document libraries
User storage consumption
Storage trends over time

These insights allow SharePoint administrators to quickly spot inefficiencies or issues that could affect performance or lead to unnecessary costs.

Benefits of Using SharePoint Storage Explorer

Saves Time: SharePoint Storage Explorer makes storage management quicker and easier. You no longer have to manually track storage usage or generate complex reports; everything you need is right at your fingertips.
Better Control Over Your Storage: With clear data and trends, you have full control over your SharePoint storage. You can prevent unexpected issues and optimize your storage for better performance and cost savings.
Proactive Storage Management: By regularly monitoring your SharePoint storage with SharePoint Storage Explorer, you can proactively manage space, making sure you don’t run into capacity problems.
Free and Easy to Use: SharePoint Storage Explorer is completely free and designed for users of all technical levels. Whether you’re an experienced administrator or new to SharePoint, you’ll find it easy to use.

Get Started with SharePoint Storage Explorer

Ready to take control of your SharePoint storage? Download SharePoint Storage Explorer for free today and start monitoring your SharePoint environment with ease. With its intuitive interface and powerful features, it’s the perfect tool to help you manage and optimize your SharePoint storage efficiently.

Microsoft 365 Backup

by Mark | Mar 27, 2025 | Microsoft Teams, Office 365, Onedrive, SharePoint

Understanding Microsoft 365’s Native Data Protection

Protecting your organization’s data within Microsoft 365 is crucial to ensure business continuity, compliance, and resilience against threats like accidental deletions, cyberattacks, and data corruption. Implementing a comprehensive backup strategy safeguards your critical information and facilitates rapid recovery when needed.

Microsoft 365 offers built-in data protection features designed to maintain high availability and disaster recovery:

High Availability and Disaster Recovery (HADR): Microsoft 365 services are architected for resilience, with replicated data copies to ensure seamless failover during service disruptions.

Data Retention Policies: Tools like Microsoft Purview provide long-term retention capabilities, ensuring critical data remains preserved and compliant with organizational policies.

Versioning and Recycle Bin: Features such as file versioning and a two-stage recycle bin allow users to recover previous versions or deleted items within specific timeframes.

While these features offer a foundational level of data protection, they may not fully address all recovery scenarios, particularly those involving extensive data loss or corruption.

Why Implement Additional Backup Solutions?

Relying solely on native Microsoft 365 protections might leave gaps in your data recovery strategy. Consider the following scenarios:

Accidental or Malicious Deletions: Users might inadvertently delete important emails or documents, or malicious actors could remove critical data. Once retention periods expire, recovery becomes challenging.

Cybersecurity Threats: Ransomware attacks can encrypt or corrupt data, necessitating restoration from clean backups to resume normal operations.

Regulatory Compliance: Certain industries require data to be stored for extended periods or in specific formats, which may exceed Microsoft 365’s native retention capabilities.

To address these challenges, integrating a dedicated backup solution ensures comprehensive data protection and swift recovery options.

Best Practices for Microsoft 365 Backup

Assess Business Requirements and Risks: Identify which Microsoft 365 data—such as emails, documents, and calendars—are critical to your operations and determine the potential impact of data loss.

Select an Appropriate Backup Solution: Consider utilizing Microsoft’s own backup offerings or reputable third-party solutions that integrate seamlessly with Microsoft 365. These solutions should provide features like granular recovery, automated backups, and compliance support.

Define Backup Frequency and Retention Policies: Establish how often backups should occur and the duration for retaining backup data, aligning with your organization’s data recovery objectives and compliance requirements.

Implement Security Measures: Ensure backup data is encrypted both in transit and at rest to protect against unauthorized access. Utilize features like multi-factor authentication (MFA) and role-based access controls to enhance security.

Regularly Test Backup and Restore Processes: Conduct periodic tests to verify the integrity of backups and the effectiveness of restoration procedures. This practice helps identify and address potential issues before a real data loss event occurs.

Monitor and Audit Backup Activities: Implement monitoring tools to oversee backup operations and generate alerts for failures or unusual activities. Regular audits ensure compliance with internal policies and external regulations.

Educate Employees: Train staff on data protection policies and the importance of backups. Awareness reduces the risk of accidental deletions and encourages adherence to best practices.

Conclusion

Implementing a robust backup strategy for Microsoft 365 is essential to protect your organization’s data assets. By understanding the limitations of native protections and adopting comprehensive backup solutions, you can safeguard against data loss, ensure regulatory compliance, and maintain business continuity.

Squirrel vs. Microsoft 365 Archiving: Key Differences Explained

by Mark | Mar 11, 2025 | SharePoint, Squirrel

Squirrel vs. Microsoft 365 Archiving

Which Solution Saves You More?

Managing SharePoint storage efficiently is crucial as data grows—discover how Squirrel Archiving stacks up against Microsoft 365’s built-in options to cut costs and improve accessibility.

SharePoint Online Archiving Solutions

As organizations grow, so does their SharePoint storage. With Microsoft’s built-in options and third-party solutions like Squirrel Archiving, businesses often wonder: Which archiving solution is best for my organization?

This post compares Squirrel Archiving with Microsoft 365’s native archiving features to help IT administrators, compliance officers, and decision-makers choose the right approach for reducing SharePoint storage costs while ensuring easy file access and compliance.

Comparing Squirrel Archiving vs. Native Microsoft 365 Archiving

Feature	Squirrel Archiving	Microsoft 365 Archiving
Storage Type	Azure Blob Storage (low-cost, flexible)	SharePoint Online Storage (costly, limited)
Automated Policies	Yes – Customizable rules for auto-archiving	Limited – Only retention policies available
User Experience	End-users can restore files via SharePoint UI, SharePoint synced folders, and Microsoft Teams (including private Teams channels)	Requires admin intervention for restores
Stub Files (Click to Restore)	Yes – Maintains file presence in SharePoint	No – Archived files are moved elsewhere
Storage Cost Savings	Saves up to 75% on storage costs	Costs remain high for additional storage
Restoration Time	Instant restoration from stubs, can be performed by end user	Manual recovery process, takes between 24 to 48 hours to restore files. Requires Administrator to start restoration.
Integration with SharePoint	Seamless, appears as part of SharePoint UI	Files are not visible after archiving

Understanding SharePoint Archiving

What is SharePoint Archiving?

Archiving in SharePoint Online is the process of moving old or inactive documents from primary storage to cheaper long-term storage while keeping them accessible when needed. This helps organizations reduce storage costs, improve performance, and meet compliance requirements.

Why is Archiving Important?

Avoid Microsoft’s Expensive Overages – SharePoint Online comes with fixed storage limits. Additional storage costs $0.20 per GB per month, which can add up quickly.

Improve SharePoint Performance – Large libraries slow down search and collaboration.

Ensure Compliance & Retention – Many industries require long-term data retention.

Enable Easy Data Recovery – Users need quick access to archived files without IT intervention.

Storage and Cost Efficiency

Microsoft 365 provides additional SharePoint storage at $0.20 per GB per month. For organizations with terabytes of data, this can quickly add up. Squirrel moves files to Azure Blob Storage, offering up to a 70% cost reduction compared to Microsoft’s pricing.

Automated Archiving & User Experience

Microsoft’s native archiving tools focus on retention policies, but these do not move data to cheaper storage automatically. Admins must manually move files, making it inefficient. Squirrel automates archiving based on custom rules (e.g., last modified date, last accessed date, file type, folder location, sharepoint online site), ensuring that inactive files are archived without manual intervention.

Additionally, Microsoft’s approach does not provide stub files in SharePoint, meaning users may struggle to find their archived files. Squirrel, on the other hand, replaces archived files with clickable stubs, allowing one-click restoration without IT assistance.

Compliance & Retention Policies

Both Microsoft 365 and Squirrel support retention policies, but Microsoft’s approach retains files within costly SharePoint storage, whereas Squirrel offloads them to Azure while ensuring archived files remain accessible for compliance needs. This makes Squirrel more cost-effective for long-term storage.

Data Restoration & Accessibility

Comparison of Data Restoration Methods

Feature	Squirrel Archiving	Microsoft 365 Archiving
User Restore Access	Users can restore files via SharePoint UI, synced folders, and Teams (including private channels)	Requires IT intervention
Restore Buttons	Available in SharePoint and Teams	Not available
Stub Files	Yes – Clickable stubs remain in SharePoint	No – Files are moved and not visible
Self-Service Archiving	Yes – Users can archive files without IT	No – Admins must manually configure policies
Restoration Time	Instant via stub file or button	Manual and time-consuming

Squirrel offers restore buttons directly in SharePoint, as well as stub files that allow users to restore their files with a single click. These features extend to SharePoint synced folders and Microsoft Teams (including private Teams channels), making it seamless for users to access their archived content from anywhere. Additionally, Squirrel enables end-users to archive their own files without IT involvement, providing full flexibility for content lifecycle management.

With Microsoft’s built-in archiving, users need IT intervention to retrieve archived files, whereas Squirrel allows self-service restores through the familiar SharePoint interface. This reduces IT workload and enhances productivity.

Which One Should You Choose?

Use Case	Best Option
You need cost-effective archiving	✅ Squirrel Archiving
You want to automate the process	✅ Squirrel Archiving
Users need self-service restore and archive	✅ Squirrel Archiving
You only need basic retention policies	✅ Microsoft 365 Archiving

Dedicated Deployment & Data Ownership

Unlike multi-tenant cloud services, Squirrel is deployed as a dedicated instance for each client. There is no shared infrastructure across clients, ensuring higher security and better performance.

Deployed in the same region as the SharePoint tenant to comply with data residency requirements.
Uses the client’s own Azure Blob Storage, ensuring organizations retain full ownership of their archived data.
While data traverses Squirrel’s appliance, it remains encrypted and compressed before being stored, adding an extra layer of security.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How does Squirrel integrate with SharePoint?

Squirrel seamlessly integrates with SharePoint Online, allowing users to archive and restore files via buttons in the UI, stub files, SharePoint synced folders, and Microsoft Teams.

Where is my data stored when using Squirrel?

Squirrel uses your own Azure Blob Storage, deployed in the same region as your SharePoint tenant, ensuring compliance with data residency requirements.

Is Squirrel a shared or dedicated service?

Each Squirrel deployment is dedicated to a single client. There is no shared infrastructure across clients, ensuring security and isolation.

Does Squirrel encrypt my archived data?

Yes, all archived data is encrypted and compressed before being stored in Azure Blob Storage.

Can users restore their own files without IT help?

Yes! Squirrel provides self-service restore options, allowing users to restore files with a single click via stub files, SharePoint synced folders, or Microsoft Teams.

Can users archive their own files too?

Yes! Unlike Microsoft 365 Archiving, which requires IT to set retention policies, Squirrel allows end-users to manually archive their own files, reducing IT workload.

Does Squirrel affect SharePoint search?

No. While files are archived, stub files remain in SharePoint, ensuring searchability and a seamless user experience.

What happens if my organization decides to stop using Squirrel?

Since your archived files are stored in your own Azure Blob Storage, you retain full ownership of your data, even if you stop using Squirrel.

Final Verdict: Squirrel Wins for Cost & Automation

For organizations that want to reduce SharePoint costs, automate archiving, and allow self-service restores, Squirrel is the superior choice. It provides a seamless user experience, dramatically lowers storage costs, and ensures compliance-friendly archiving.

Microsoft 365’s native archiving is useful for basic retention policies but lacks automation and cost-saving benefits. If your organization is looking for a smarter way to manage SharePoint storage and compliance, Squirrel is the solution you need.

Squirrel: The Smarter Way to Archive and Restore in SharePoint

Tired of bloated SharePoint storage and slow file access? Squirrel automates archiving, reducing storage costs by up to 70%, while keeping your files just a click away. With self-service restore buttons, stub files, and seamless integration into SharePoint, Teams, and synced folders, Squirrel ensures fast, cost-effective content management—without IT headaches.

Stop overpaying for SharePoint storage! Squirrel archives files to your own Azure Blob Storage, cutting costs by up to 70%—while keeping data secure and accessible.

Want to Cut SharePoint Storage Costs?

How to Restore Archived SharePoint Site

by Mark | Mar 5, 2025 | SharePoint, Squirrel

Full Guide to Recovering Your SharePoint Data

Need to bring back archived files in SharePoint? This step-by-step guide walks you through restoring all previously archived files in a SharePoint Online site using Squirrel, ensuring a seamless and efficient recovery process.

Squirrel for SharePoint Site Size Reporting

How to Restore All Files from Archive in a SharePoint Online Site with Squirrel

Restoring an entire SharePoint Online site from Squirrel is a simple and efficient process that ensures all previously archived files are returned to their original location within SharePoint. This functionality is particularly useful when a site requires full access to archived content, whether for compliance, business needs, or reactivation of an old project.

Important Note: This process will restore only the files that were archived in the selected SharePoint site. Any files that were not archived will remain untouched. For this example, we will be restoring all files in the Engineer site, which was previously archived in our earlier blog post.

Why Restore an Archived SharePoint Site?

There are several reasons why you might need to restore an entire site’s archived files:

Business Needs – If a project is reactivated or a department needs historical data, restoring all files ensures they have everything they need.
Compliance & Legal Requirements – Some industries require companies to retain and restore archived documents for audits and regulatory compliance.
Collaboration & Access – If users need to work on a previously archived site, restoring the files provides immediate access to original content.
Accidental Archiving or Policy Changes – If a site was archived in error or business policies change, restoring files allows for a seamless rollback.

Regardless of the reason, Squirrel makes the restoration process straightforward while maintaining data integrity.

Access the Squirrel Dashboard

To begin the restoration process, follow these steps:

Log into your Squirrel web portal then navigate to the Site Archive Settings section of the dashboard.

This section provides an overview of all the SharePoint Sites in your environment, as well as the ability to whitelist a site from a global archive policy, implement the sites own archive policy. But also gives the administrator the ability to either Archive or Restore a complete site..

The dashboard ensures that administrators can quickly find the site they need to restore without navigating through complex menus.

Select the SharePoint Site for Restoration

Locate the Engineer site in the list of archived sites then click on the Restore button to proceed.

Confirm the Restoration Process

Before proceeding with the full restore, Squirrel review the information carefully.

Click Confirm Restore to initiate the process.

A warning prompt will appear, notifying that the restore process may take time and could impact user access. It is recommended to perform restores outside of business hours.

Once confirmed, the site restoration will begin, and you will be redirected to the Restore Queue for progress tracking.

Monitor the Restore Progress

The Restore Queue displays the current status of all active restores.

Navigate to the Restore Jobs section to check the details of the restoration process.

Squirrel provides real-time updates, showing progress bars for large restores.

Depending on the site’s size, restoration may take a few minutes to several hours.

Squirrel ensures that even during large-scale restorations, users can track the progress and plan accordingly.

Verify the Restored Files

Once the restoration process is complete, it’s important to verify that all files have been properly restored:

Open SharePoint Online and navigate to the Engineer site.

Access the document library to confirm that the previously archived files have been restored to their original locations.

Check file metadata such as last modified date and version history to ensure integrity.

At this stage, users should be able to access all files as they were before archiving

Validate Access and Integrity

As seen in the image, you can see that the file has been restored sucessfully back to SharePoint including all the version history.

Before finalizing the restore process, conduct a validation check:

Open several restored files – Ensure documents, spreadsheets, and images open correctly.
Check permissions – Verify that user permissions are still in place as expected.
Validate linked content – If there were interlinked documents or referenced files, ensure that they function as intended.

If any issues are detected, Squirrel’s logging system provides detailed reports that can help diagnose and resolve potential problems.

Conclusion

Restoring archived files from Squirrel is an easy and efficient way to bring back data when needed. Whether for compliance, business continuity, or user access, the step-by-step process ensures that all previously archived files in a SharePoint Online site can be restored seamlessly while maintaining SharePoint’s structure.

Key Takeaways:

✅ Selective Restoration – Only previously archived files are restored, ensuring no unnecessary changes.

✅ Fast & Reliable – The restore process is efficient, even for large SharePoint sites.

✅ Seamless User Experience – Files are returned to their original location with no manual intervention needed.

✅ Complete Control – Administrators can monitor the progress and verify restoration integrity.

With Squirrel, your SharePoint archiving and restoration processes remain secure, efficient, and hassle-free.

Stay tuned for more Squirrel guides and best practices!

Squirrel: The Smartest Way to Restore Your SharePoint Data – Fast, Reliable, and Hassle-Free!

Lost important SharePoint files? With Squirrel, you can instantly restore archived data and get your team back on track with minimal downtime.

No more struggling with missing files—Squirrel seamlessly rehydrates your SharePoint sites, ensuring all archived content is restored exactly where you need it.

Want to see Squirrel in Action?

How to Archive a SharePoint Site

by Mark | Mar 5, 2025 | SharePoint, Squirrel

Effortlessly Archive Entire SharePoint Sites

Managing SharePoint storage can be challenging as data grows over time. Archiving full sites ensures compliance, reduces costs, and keeps your SharePoint environment efficient without losing access to important files.

Complete SharePoint Online Archiving

Managing SharePoint Online storage efficiently is crucial for maintaining an organized and cost-effective environment. Squirrel provides a powerful solution for archiving entire SharePoint Online sites, ensuring that your important data is preserved while reducing storage consumption. This guide walks you through the process of archiving a complete SharePoint Online site using Squirrel.

Understanding the Need for Archiving

SharePoint Online is a robust collaboration platform, but as data accumulates over time, it can become challenging to manage. Large volumes of documents, outdated files, and inactive sites consume storage, leading to increased costs and potential performance issues. Archiving these sites allows organizations to:

Optimize SharePoint storage usage
Improve system performance by reducing clutter
Maintain compliance with data retention policies
Easily restore data when necessary

Before proceeding, let’s look at how an unarchived SharePoint Online site appears.

As you can see, all files in the Engineer site are still available in their original form, meaning they have not yet been archived. Now, let’s walk through the steps to archive this site using Squirrel.

Access the Squirrel Dashboard

Log into your Squirrel web portal, then navigate to the dashboard and go to Site Archive Settings, where you manage archive tasks.

The Squirrel dashboard provides a centralized interface for monitoring and managing archive operations. Here, you can see all available sites and choose the ones that need to be archived.

Select the SharePoint Site to Archive

In this example, I will be archiving the Engineer site. Locate the site under Archive Policies and ensure it is available for archiving. Sites that are actively used may not need archiving immediately, so it’s important to evaluate which sites should be archived based on storage usage and activity levels.

Initiate the Archiving Process

Once you’ve selected the site for archiving, it’s time to begin the process.

Click on the Archive button next to the Engineer site. A confirmation prompt will appear. Review the details to ensure the correct site is selected. Click OK to proceed.

After confirming, Squirrel will begin the archiving process. This may take some time depending on the size of the site and the number of files being archived.

Monitor the Archiving Progress

Squirrel provides real-time monitoring so you can track the status of your archive job.

The site is now queued for archiving. You can check the progress in the Archive Queue section of the dashboard. The queue updates dynamically, so refreshing the page will show the latest progress.

Depending on the number of files, the archiving process might take a few minutes or hours. Once completed, files in SharePoint will be replaced with stub files, meaning they are archived and no longer consuming SharePoint storage.

Verify the Archived Data

After the archive process completes, it’s important to verify the results.

Navigate back to your SharePoint Online Document Library. Open any of the folders, and you will now see that the files have been replaced with stub files. These stub files act as placeholders, allowing users to restore files when needed without occupying SharePoint storage.

At this stage, the archiving process is complete, and your SharePoint site has been successfully optimized.

Restore or Access Archived Files

One of the key benefits of Squirrel is its ability to restore files effortlessly.

If a user needs a file that has been archived, they can simply click on the stub file or use the Restore button within the SharePoint Online UI. The system will automatically retrieve the archived version from Azure Blob Storage. Alternatively, an administrator can restore entire sites or specific folders from the Squirrel dashboard.

This ensures that data remains accessible while optimizing storage efficiency.

Conclusion

Archiving a complete SharePoint Online site with Squirrel is an efficient way to manage storage and ensure compliance with data retention policies. By following these steps, you can:

✅ Reduce SharePoint storage costs

✅ Improve site performance by removing inactive data

✅ Maintain compliance with regulatory requirements

✅ Ensure archived files remain accessible when needed

With Squirrel, organizations can maintain a clean and optimized SharePoint environment without losing access to important files. Try archiving your SharePoint sites today and experience the benefits firsthand!

Stay tuned for more Squirrel tips and guides!

Squirrel: Smart Archiving for SharePoint – Save Space, Stay Compliant!

Tired of SharePoint storage limits and rising costs? Squirrel helps you seamlessly archive entire sites while keeping your data accessible, secure, and compliant.

Stop wasting space on inactive files! Squirrel automatically archives your SharePoint data, optimizing storage while ensuring seamless access when you need it.

Curious how much Squirrel can save you?

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