Account Lifecycle Process: Google and Microsoft 365

What is happening?

  • As part of the Google and Microsoft 365 (M365) Account Lifecycle process, UDIT now removes accounts belonging to users that no longer have an association with the University.
  • Accounts are deleted after a specified period of inactivity. Collaborators must manually transfer any files they want to keep from these inactive accounts prior to account deletion. 
  • Failure to appropriately manage files that are owned by an inactive account will result in the loss of access to those files.
As previously announced in June 2024, UD deleted all Google and M365 accounts that had not been accessed since 2021. This includes thousands of old accounts for individuals who left the University as far back as 2009. Data in these accounts was also deleted.

UDIT strongly recommends that important, shared data be stored in Google Shared drives or Microsoft Teams/SharePoint sites. When people leave UD, files they have stored in shared entities such as Shared Drives, Teams, or SharePoint sites are not at risk for deletion. Also, others can be granted access to the shared entity, which negates the need to move files.

What accounts will be impacted?

Accounts owned by individuals who have left the University without retiring or graduating and/or who have not accessed their account in 2 years, will be impacted by the Account Lifecycle process.

How will the Account Lifecycle Process work?

Any accounts that belong to individuals no longer associated with the University will be deleted after 2 years on a rolling basis. 

To assist people with identifying accounts that are at-risk for deletion, a label of “Deleting” has been added to the account name. 

Note: Emeritus/Retiree accounts currently maintain a lifetime 'active' status in Google and are not affected by this process.
 

Why are we implementing an Account Lifecycle Process?

Recent storage changes by both Google and Microsoft require us to be more diligent about our storage usage. To ensure that there is sufficient storage for active University educational, research, and business purposes UDIT is required to more intently manage the institution’s storage footprint, including accounts that are not active with the University.

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