The Backup interface has been rebuilt to match the rest of Automate. Your policies, your data and your schedules are unchanged. This is a change to the interface, not to how Backup works.
What has changed
The functionality is the same. The create and edit policy screens has been rebuilt.
Before
After
A backup policy defines the data types to back up, how often, how long to keep them, and which file types to include or exclude. Go to Backup > Policies.
Once created, a policy has to be assigned before it protects anything. See Backup policies.
Creating a policy
- Select Create new policy.
- Choose the policy type: User backup or Shared Drive backup.
- Enter a name and description. Use something you will recognise later, such as "Marketing team backup" rather than "Backup 1".
- Turn Backup enabled on. You can leave it off to assign the policy now and start it later.
- Choose the item types: Mail, Drive, Calendar, Contacts and Chats.
- Set the retention period, backup frequency and file types.
- Select Save.
Note: backup frequency is not configurable for shared drives.
Retention period
Retention controls how long data is kept once a user leaves or the policy is removed.
A new policy shows the retention set in Storage configuration, so you only need to change it if this policy needs something different.
- Indefinite retention: data is never purged from the storage bucket.
- Retain for: a number of days, after which data is purged automatically. You can set a different value per data type.
Important: changing any retention value marks this policy's retention as Custom. A Custom policy is no longer linked to the default, so later changes in Storage configuration will not reach it. Use Reset to default to link it back.
Backup frequency
Set how often backups run for each item type. There is a recommended option, which is the most optimised frequency, and the default is every four hours. You can choose something else, but consider the storage cost.
Limiting how far back the first backup goes
You can limit how far back a first backup goes for Drive, My Drive and shared drives, so it captures a defined period rather than everything ever created. This helps on domains with long Drive histories, where a first backup would otherwise take a long time and consume a lot of storage.
Set the history limit when you create or edit a policy. It is also shown in Storage configuration.
Note: the limit applies to the first backup only. Ongoing backups capture everything that changes, whatever limit you set.
Including and excluding file types
You can include or exclude specific file types from a backup. It is configured at organisation level, in Storage configuration, and per policy. A policy takes the organisation level setting by default, and a toggle switches the configuration on and off.
The core file types available are JPEG, PDF, JSON, KM2, MP3, Google Sheet, Google Doc, Google Slide, Excel, Word, PowerPoint and .txt.
Editing a policy
- Go to Backup > Policies.
- Select the policy row, or choose Edit policy from the actions menu.
- The details panel opens on the right, showing the current settings and assignments.
- Select Edit, make your changes, and Save.
You can change the name and description, turn backup on or off, change item types, and adjust retention, frequency and file type exclusions.
Note: adding a new data type triggers a bulk backup of that type for everyone assigned. Existing types carry on incrementally.
Checking what a policy affects
Before editing, it is worth seeing who is on it. Open the policy and select the Assignments tab for the full list of organisational units, Smart Teams and shared drives using it.
Common questions
Why does my retention say Custom?
Because a retention value was changed on the policy. A Custom policy does not follow Storage configuration any more. Use Reset to default if you want it linked again.
I changed retention in Storage configuration and one policy did not update
That policy is marked Custom. Reset it to default, or set the value on the policy directly.
I cannot save my changes
If the warning mentions scopes or domain-wide delegation, see Troubleshooting Backup Policy Errors.