Item Description
Description Displays the policy description, as entered on the Details tab in the New Policy or Policy Details dialog box.
Default Indicates whether the policy is the default system policy. This is set on the Details tab in the New Policy or Policy Details dialog box.
Priority Shows the priority set for each policy. This is set on the Details tab for a policy.
Active Indicates whether the policy has been applied to any documents.
Documents This column displays the number of documents to which the policy is applied.
View Click this button to view the settings for the selected policy. If this button is clicked, the settings displayed are read-only and cannot be changed.
Add Click to add a new Retention Policy. The New Policy dialog box displays.
Modify Click to modify the selected policy. The Policy Details dialog box displays.
Delete Click to delete the selected policy. A message box displays to confirm you want to delete the policy.
If the selected policy is applied to documents, the policy cannot be deleted.
Copy Click to copy the selected policy. Use this to duplicate the policy’s settings or use the settings as the starting point for a new policy.
Close Click to close the Retention dialog box.
Table 6: Options in the Retention Dialog Box
4.4 Sample Policies
There are three sample policies that are created by default when the Retention feature is enabled:
• Purge 3 Years
• Purge 7 Years
• Purge 12 years
These policies will delete (purge) documents to which they are applied, after the specified number of years. You can use the policies to apply to documents or document types, or you can edit them to suit your own needs. See sections 4.5.1 to 4.5.4 starting on page 27 for a description of the settings in Retention Policies.
• To view the details of a sample policy, select it in the Retention dialog box and click View.
• To modify a sample policy, select it and click Modify. See 4.6 Modifying a Policy on page 37 for more information.
You can also delete the sample policies if you want to create your own.
• To delete a policy, highlight it and click Delete. Click Yes to confirm you want to delete.
4.5 Creating a Retention Policy
A policy holds all the settings for a specific implementation of your organisation’s Document Retention strategy. Individual policies can be created for different situations, for example, for different document types, various storage locations or different retention periods. The settings available to you depend on the level of your Retention license (see 2.3 Retention License Levels on page 6 for more information).
To create a policy:
1. Click Document Retention on the Administer tab. The Retention dialog box displays.
2. Click Add. The New Policy dialog box displays:
The settings available in this dialog box depend on your type of Retention license. The settings on each tab are described in the following sections.
The minimum settings that need to be defined for a valid simple purge policy are the Policy Name, Policy Description and Default Purge Period.
Once you have created a policy, you then need to ensure that the policy will be applied to the required documents. This can be achieved through associating the policy with a document type or a drawer. See 4.8 Selecting a Retention Policy for a Document Type on page 40 and 4.9 Selecting a Retention Policy for a Drawer on page 42 for how to do this.
Users with the correct permissions can also apply policies directly to a folder or document in Document Manager. See 6.4 Applying Policies to Documents on page 59 for more information.
Additionally, policies can be applied if a document index field matches a specific value (or values) defined for a policy. See 4.5.2 Start Conditions Tab (Moderate and Complex Only) on page 32 for how to define start conditions.
You can find out if a policy has been applied to a document type or a drawer by viewing the Document Type and Drawers dialog boxes. A column indicates if a Retention Policy has been applied to a document type or drawer in the list. For document types, the column is called
‘Doctype Policy’; for drawers, it is called ‘Drawer Policy.’ You may need to scroll to the right to display these columns. To view these dialog boxes, click the Document Types or Drawers button on the Administer tab in the Administration Module.
4.5.1 Details Tab
The Details tab in the New Policy or Policy Details dialog box enables you to configure general settings for Retention Policies. Table 7 describes the options on the Details tab and the license required to access each setting:
Setting Description License
Required
Policy Name Enter a name for the Retention Policy. Ensure it is meaningful and easily recognisable. Any Policy
Description Enter a meaningful description for the policy. Any
Archive Storage Location
From the drop-down list, select the storage location to which archived documents will be moved. The storage location must have already been configured in the Document Manager Administration Module.
An archive means the document files are physically moved to a new location. This must be set if a Default Archive Period is specified.
Moderate or Complex NOTE: You cannot set a policy to only archive documents. A purge must also
be set to follow the archive.
Make document read only when archived
Select this checkbox to set documents as read-only when they are moved to the archive location.
Moderate or Complex
Setting Description License
Required
Purge External Reference Documents
Select this to purge references to external documents when the Purge Date for this Policy is reached.
If this checkbox is clear, references to external documents will not be purged by this Policy.
External reference documents cannot be archived or exported following a purge.
Any
Purge Media Path
When purging documents, you can use this setting to export the documents and associated index information (in XML files) to the selected location or removable media. One XML file is created per exported document.
• Enter the path to a folder, share or media to which the purged documents and XML files will be written.
Moderate or Complex
Purge Image Format
If you have entered a path in Purge Media Path to export the purged documents and index information, you can choose the format for the documents using this option.
• Select the format for purged documents from the drop-down list:
• Multipage Tiff: Choose this to save the exported documents as TIF images.
• PDF/A: Select this to save as the Portable Document Format standard specifically designed for long-term archiving (PDF/A).
Moderate or Complex
Default Archive Period
This option enables you to set the period of time before an archive is performed for documents that have been assigned this policy. When a Start Date is set for a document, the Archive Date will be calculated for the document using this period.
The Start Date is set as the time a document is created (as shown in the system field
‘Date Created’) or the time a condition is met for Moderate and Complex policies (set on the Start Conditions tab in the Create/Modify Policy dialog boxes – see 4.5.2 Start Conditions Tab (Moderate and Complex Only) on page 32 for more information).
Once this period elapses, applicable documents will be moved to the Archive Storage Location selected above.
If your organisation has a Complex license, this archive period can be overridden by archive settings for individual documents.
• Enter or use the arrows to select the default period of time before an archive can commence:
• Years: If required, select the years for the default archive period.
• Months: Select the months for the archive period.
• Weeks: Select the weeks for the archive period.
• Days: Select the days for the archive period.
Moderate or Complex
NOTE: You cannot set a policy to only archive documents. A purge must also be set to follow the archive.
Setting Description License
Required
Minimum Archive Period
If a user has the ‘Extend archive dates’ and ‘Shorten archive dates’ permissions, they can change the Archive Date for individual documents.
This setting enables you to specify the earliest day from the Start Date to which they can change the Archive Date. The Start Date is the time a document is created or when a condition set on the Start Conditions tab is met (Moderate and Complex licenses only).
• Enter, or use the arrows to select, the minimum number of years, months, weeks, or days from the Start Date before the archive can commence.
Complex
Maximum Archive Period
This setting enables you to specify the latest date to which a user can change the Archive Date for a document, calculated from the Start Date.
• Enter the maximum number of years, months, weeks, or days from the Start Date before the archive can commence.
Complex
Default Purge Period
This option enables you to set the period of time before a purge is performed for documents that have been assigned this policy. When a Start Date is set for a document, the Purge Date will be calculated for the document using this period.
The Start Date is set when a document is created or when a condition is met (as defined on the Start Conditions tab for Moderate and Complex policies – see 4.5.2 Start Conditions Tab (Moderate and Complex Only) on page 32). Once this period has elapsed, applicable documents will be deleted.
If your organisation has a Complex license, this purge period can be overridden by purge settings for individual documents.
• Enter or use the arrows to select the default period of time before a purge can commence:
• Years: Select the years before the default purge begins.
• Months: Select the months for the purge period.
• Weeks: Select the weeks for the purge period.
• Days: Select the days for the purge period.
Moderate or Complex
Minimum Purge Period
If a user has the ‘Extend purge date’ and ‘Shorten purge date’ permissions, they can change the Purge Date for individual documents.
This setting enables you to specify the earliest time from the Start Date to which users can change the Purge Date. The Start Date is the time a document is created or when a condition set on the Start Conditions tab is met (Moderate and Complex licenses only).
• Enter the minimum number of years, months, weeks, or days from the Start Date before the purge can commence.
Complex
Maximum Purge Period
This setting enables you to specify the latest date to which a user can change the Purge Date for a document, calculated from the Start Date.
• Enter the maximum number of years, months, weeks, or days from the Start Date before the purge can commence.
Complex
Setting Description License
Required
Auto Move Period
The Retention feature enables documents to be moved to a new drawer and if required, updates the document index fields. Documents are not physically moved by this option – the Archive Storage Location specifies to where document files are moved and the Default Archive Period determines the Archive Date.
This setting enables you to configure the length of time from the Policy Start Date before documents with the Policy applied to them are moved. The destination drawer for the documents is selected in the Auto Move Mappings dialog box (see 4.9.1 Mapping Index Fields for Auto-Move Documents (Moderate and Complex Licenses Only) on page 44).
If a Policy with an Auto Move Period configured has been applied to a document within a drawer, a destination drawer must be selected in the Auto Move Mappings dialog box for that drawer. Otherwise, the Retention Service will return an error message when attempting to move. If the destination drawer excludes certain document types and a document being automatically moved is one of the excluded types, it will not be moved.
If, following an auto move, the Policy applied to a document is changed and it also has an auto move configured, the second move will not take place; the auto move can only be performed once. However, you can manually remove the Policy and apply a new one that has an auto move set.
• Enter or use the arrows to select the period of time before applicable documents are automatically moved to the new drawer specified in Auto Move Mappings:
• Years: Select the years before documents are automatically moved.
• Months: Select the months for the auto move period.
• Weeks: Select the weeks for the auto move period.
• Days: Select the days for the auto move period.
Moderate or Complex
IMPORTANT: The destination drawer for an automatic move may itself have a Retention Policy assigned. Take care when selecting a destination drawer;
otherwise you may encounter unexpected results. It is recommended that you test the Auto Move feature before implementing in a live data environment.
Make this policy the system global default
Select this checkbox to make the policy the default policy for the database.
When Retention is enabled, the system policy will be applied to all documents in all drawers except when documents are excluded by policies applied to a specific drawer, document type, folder or document.
Any
Setting Description License
Required
Policy Priority
Use the slider to set the priority for the policy to be processed by the Retention Service.
For Basic Licenses, higher-priority policies have their associated actions performed before lower-priority policies. See 6.2 Priority for Applying Retention Policies on page 57 for how policies are prioritised when applied to documents.
For Moderate and Complex Licenses, higher-priority policies will be applied to applicable documents before lower-priority policies and their associated actions will be performed first.
Retention actions for policies are performed in priority order for each drawer; drawers are processed in the order that they were created.
The highest priority (Max) is 1 and the lowest priority (Min) is 100. If two or more policies have the same priority, actions are performed for the policies in the order the policies were created.
Any
Table 7: Retention Policy Details Tab
4.5.2 Start Conditions Tab (Moderate and Complex Only)
Start Conditions are criteria that must be met by values in folder or document indexes before a Retention Policy is applied to a document or a Policy is activated, if already applied. If the conditions are met by a document with no Policy applied, the Policy will be applied when the Retention Service updates and the Retention ‘Start Date’ is set for the document. When the
conditions are met by a document with the Policy applied, the ‘Start Date’ is set for the document.
When first opened, the Start Conditions tab in the New Policy dialog box shows the system and common index fields to which conditions can be assigned:
The common fields displayed are those that have been configured for your database. You can display the index fields for a drawer by selecting the required drawer from the Drawer drop-down list.
A combination of conditions and values can be selected for different index fields and drawers;
however, if you select multiple conditions, all must be met before the Policy is applied to a document or the Start Date is set. If you select a custom date field in Use this date field and define a condition, both must be completed before the Start Date is set. When users enter values in the index fields selected on this tab, the values do not have to be case-sensitive to match the conditions.
Table 8 describes the Start Conditions tab for a Retention Policy:
Setting Description
Drawer
Select a drawer from this drop-down list to display its index fields in the grid underneath. This enables you to define conditions for index fields that are already in use in your system.
If you are defining conditions for multiple drawers, click Save Condition to save your changes for a drawer before moving to the next drawer. An asterisk (*) next to a drawer name indicates that a condition has been set up for the drawer.
Field This column displays the names of the index fields.
Condition In this column, click on the field and select the down arrow to choose a condition to apply to the Value entered for the index field. Conditions include ‘Contains’, ‘Equal to’, ‘Greater than’ and so on.
Value Enter the value for the index field to which the condition should apply (and which must be met by documents for the Policy to be applied or Start Date set).
Use this date field...
Select the date or field to be used for the Policy Start Date (from which Retention dates are calculated for documents) from this drop-down list:
• Document Create Date: Select this to use the date the document was created as the Start Date for the Retention Policy.
• Policy Applied Date: Select this to use the date the Policy is applied to a document as the Start Date,
• <Custom Field>: If you have a date field configured as a common field or for a specific drawer, it will be displayed in this drop-down list. This enables you to select a custom date field that will set the Retention Start Date to the date entered for a document in the custom field. If the field is left blank for a document, the Start Date will not be set for that document.
To display the custom date fields for a specific drawer, select that drawer first in the Drawer drop-down list.
Delete
Condition Click this button to clear the conditions set for system/common fields or for a specific drawer.
Save Condition Click to save conditions set for system/common fields or for a specific drawer. You must save conditions set for each drawer in turn if setting up conditions for multiple drawers.
Table 8: Retention Policy Start Conditions Tab
4.5.3 Change Conditions Tab (Moderate and Complex Only)
Change Conditions can be defined on this tab in order to change the Policy applied to a document.
When values that match the defined conditions are entered in the index fields associated with a document, the policy applied to that document is changed to the policy selected on this tab.
When first opened, the Change Conditions tab shows the system and common index fields to which conditions can be assigned:
You can display the index fields defined for a drawer by selecting the required drawer from the Drawer drop-down list.
Table 9 describes the Change Conditions tab:
Setting Description
Drawer
Select a drawer from this drop-down list to display its index fields in the grid underneath. This enables you to define conditions for index fields that are already in use in your system.
If defining conditions for multiple drawers, click Save Condition to save your changes for a drawer before moving to the next drawer. An asterisk (*) next to a drawer name indicates that a condition has been set up for the drawer.
Field This column displays the names of the index fields.
Condition In this column, click on the field and select the down arrow to choose a condition to apply to the Value entered for the index field. Conditions include ‘Contains’, ‘Equal to’, ‘Greater than’ and so on.
Condition In this column, click on the field and select the down arrow to choose a condition to apply to the Value entered for the index field. Conditions include ‘Contains’, ‘Equal to’, ‘Greater than’ and so on.