Retention Policy and Deletion Process

Class Teams Retention Policy

Due to the large number of class teams generated, we will be implementing a retention policy starting from 2026.

All class teams provisioned by NUS, together with their corresponding SharePoint sites, will be:

1. Archived at the end of the 4^th academic year; and

2. Permanently deleted 3 months after archival.

Open

Example: Teams with naming convention 22xx_xxxx_xx (created in AY2022/23) will be archived by end July 2026 (end of AY2025/26) and permanently deleted by end October 2026.

Class Teams Deletion Exercise 2026 (for AY2019/20 to AY2022/23 teams)

Who does this affect?

• All NUS Teaching Staff and supporting administrative staff who are owners or members of provisioned class teams for academic courses, including Course Coordinators and Teaching Assistants.

What should I do now?

• Please review all provisioned academic class teams for AY2019/20 to AY2022/23 where you are an owner or member, and back up any materials you wish to retain by Friday, 24 July 2026, before the teams are archived.

• Please refer to the following resources:

  • List of identified Class Teams (NUS Staff login required; link valid until 30 Nov 2026)

  • Class Teams Backup Guide

What should I do in future?

1. It is good practice to back up your provisioned class teams at the end of each Term, if necessary.

2. Moving forward, you may wish to remind your co-facilitators, guests and students about this retention policy so they can back up any materials they need at the end of each term.

3. Look out for email announcements and reminders sent at least 1 month before the yearly archival and deletion process.

FAQs

Q: Who needs to take action?
A: Both team owners and members may need to take action.

Team owners should ensure that any required content is backed up.

Members can download files and other content that they already have access to. However, some items, such as Assignments, Grades, Class Notebook content, and Insights, may require team owner permissions.

If you do not have sufficient access, please contact:

1. Your team owner; or

2. IT Care, if the owner has left the team. Please indicate the team name and your role in the course so that your permissions can be assessed.

Q: What is the difference between archived and deleted teams?

A: When a team is archived, all activity ceases. The team's conversations and files become read-only but can still be searched. Team owners can restore an archived team if necessary.

When a team is deleted, the team and its content (channels, files, and chats) are removed. Deleted teams can only be recovered by NUS IT within 30 days. After that, the team data can no longer be restored.

Q: Which teams are affected, and how can I tell if my team is provisioned?

A: The affected teams are class teams provisioned by NUS and/or provisioned by course coordinators/instructors in Canvas. Please refer to the list of identified teams for Class Teams Deletion Exercise 2026 (NUS Staff login required; link expires on 30 Nov 2026).

Note: Teams created from Canvas are not due yet for archival yet, as it has been less than 4 years since the Canvas-Teams integration was implemented.

Q: Are manually created “class” team types affected?

A: No. If you created a team manually in the Teams app and selected the “Class” template, it will not be affected.

Q: What if the team has no owner (or the owner has left NUS)?

A: IT Admin would need to assign a new team owner for specific team management actions. Please contact IT Care and indicate the team name and your role in the course so that your permissions can be assessed.

Q: Can I still back up an archived team?

A: Yes. You can still back up content from an archived team without restoring it, since content remains accessible in read-only mode. Please refer to the guide for suggested steps.

Q: After deletion in end October, can the team be recovered?

A: Recovery is only possible within 30 days of deletion (via NUS IT). After 30 days, the team data can no longer be restored. Please check your teams before the archival date in end July.

Q: What content should I back up?

A: Common items include channel files, assignments, grades, meeting recordings, OneNote/Class Notebook, Planner, and important resources saved in tabs/apps. Chat/message export is generally not available as a self-service function for end users. Please refer to the backup guide.

Q: Is this a one-time or ongoing exercise? 

A: This initial exercise will involve class teams created for AY2022/23 and earlier. Subsequently, the deletion exercise will be carried out annually at the end of each academic year.