Holds

Use holds to prevent the deletion of data associated with specific data custodians, either individual accounts or all accounts in an organizational unit.

Holds are different from retention rules because they never expire. If a user has any data placed on hold, their account can’t be deleted by a Google Workspace admin until the hold is removed. Additionally, you can't transfer the user's data if it is subject to a hold.

Data placed on hold can be purged only after a Vault user deletes the hold, a custodian is removed from the hold, or a user no longer has a Vault license.

How to review holds:

Note: To access this information, you must have the Manage Audits privilege.

Sign in to vault.google.com.
In the left navigation, click Reports.
Click the tab for the type of holds you want to review:
- Domain Holds—See a list of holds that apply to an organizational unit.
- User Holds—See a list of user accounts with data on hold.
- Group Holds—See a list of groups with data on hold.

Note: A name in red with a line through it means that the user's Vault license was removed. Contact your Google Workspace administrator to reassign this user a Vault license.

Google Vault Holds

How it Works in Vault:

Indefinite Preservation: Unlike retention rules, which have a defined end date, legal holds in Vault preserve data indefinitely until the hold itself is explicitly removed.
Override Retention: Legal holds take absolute precedence over any retention rules. If a piece of data is subject to both a retention rule that would purge it and a legal hold, the legal hold will ensure the data remains.
Scope: You can apply legal holds to:
- Specific User Accounts: For individuals whose data is relevant to a matter.
- Organizational Units (OUs): To cover all users within a specific department or group.
- Google Groups: To preserve messages from specific collaborative groups.
Data Covered: Legal holds apply to all supported Google Workspace services (Gmail, Drive, Chat, Meet, Groups, Voice, Sites) for the specified custodians.
"In-Place" Preservation: Vault preserves the data "in place," meaning it remains in the Google Workspace services but is protected from deletion by users or standard retention policies. This avoids the need to move large volumes of data.
Management: Legal holds are typically managed within a "Matter" in Google Vault, associating the hold with a specific case or investigation.

Precedence of Holds and Retention Rules

Holds override retention rules. If a retention rule is set to purge data at the end of the retention period, data on hold isn't purged until the hold is removed.
Holds are additive. One hold does not replace another hold.
For example, you create 2 Gmail holds:
1. Hold A applies to user jwong@example.com and matches messages with the phrase "project X".
2. Hold B applies to the same user and matches messages with the term budget.
With these 2 holds in place, Vault preserves messages that contain either project X or budget for jwong@example.com. If you remove Hold A, messages that match Hold B are still preserved, but others can be purged.

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