◆ Acrobat · protect

Staged Retention Automation

We have a mix of legacy paper and born-digital records that require different retention. Diagnose whether the best pat…

1ready prompt
1real task
3roles

When to use it

real situations

AI prompts

1 way to ask · copy any one
CDecide — “help me choose”We have a mix of legacy paper and born-digital records that require different retention.…+
We have a mix of legacy paper and born-digital records that require different retention. Diagnose whether the best path is metadata-driven retention, a parallel retention registry, or department-level profiles, and recommend the most robust approach that can be piloted across one collection this quarter without disrupting discovery.
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed.

How to do it

the tool · the steps · what to avoid
  1. 1

    Log in to the Adobe Admin Console as an administrator.

  2. 2

    Navigate to the Users section in the Admin Console.

  3. 3

    Filter or search for inactive users in the user list.

  4. 4

    Select the inactive users whose content you want to delete.

  5. 5

    Access the user management options and select the action to manage or delete user content.

  6. 6

    Configure a deletion policy or manually initiate deletion of the selected user's content.

  7. 7

    Specify the desired retention duration (e.g., 30 days) after which inactive user content will be automatically deleted.

    CautionEnsure the retention period complies with your organization's data retention and compliance policies.

  8. 8

    Confirm and apply the deletion settings to enable automated deletion.

You can review and adjust the retention period for inactive users at any time in the Storage section of the Admin Console.

This runs in the Acrobat app - there is no separate API for this task.

Glossary

words on this page
Retention PolicyA set of rules that decides how long documents are kept and how they are handled.ExampleOur company's retention policy states that all invoices must be kept for seven years.
AdminA person who has special rights to manage settings and rules for an account or group.ExampleThe Admin can change user permissions and reset passwords for everyone on the team.
Terminal StateThe final stage of a document, after which no more changes are expected.ExampleOnce approved and archived, the contract reached its terminal state, meaning no further edits were allowed.

The real tasks

the one, listed here
Our department must apply retention rules automatically but IT is slow; I need a staged plan to avoid legal risk and preserve access.

Who does this

3 roles
IT AdministratorCompliance ManagerEnterprise Storage Administrator

FAQ

about this task
  1. First, an account or group-level admin needs to log in.
  2. Then, the admin sets the retention period, which can be from 1 to 5475 days (15 years).
  3. These policies are applied when a document reaches its final state.
  4. The policies can be protected with a password or a certificate.

A reusable policy set in Acrobat is a collection of security rules that you can use again and again for different documents. This matters for security because it helps you apply consistent protection without having to set up the same rules every time. It saves time and reduces mistakes, making sure all important documents follow the same security standards, like using passwords or certificates for access.

If your company needs to follow HIPAA rules, Acrobat's Enterprise Policy can help by letting you set specific retention periods for sensitive documents. For example, you can define a policy to keep patient records for the exact number of years required by HIPAA. Once set by an admin, this policy automatically applies to documents, ensuring they are kept for the correct time and then handled properly, helping your company meet compliance standards like HIPAA, PCI DSS 3.0, SOC 2 Type II, and ISO 27001.

It is important for an admin to coordinate with IT when setting up retention automation in Acrobat because IT teams manage the overall system and network. They can ensure that the retention policies work smoothly with existing infrastructure, storage solutions, and other security measures. This teamwork helps prevent technical problems and makes sure the policies are effective and reliable across the entire organization.

Designing a retention policy means the initial planning stage where you decide what rules are needed, like how long different types of documents should be kept and why. Defining a retention policy is the next step, where you actually enter those specific rules into the Acrobat system, such as setting the exact number of days for retention. Design is the 'what and why,' while defining is the 'how to set it up.'

Sources

where this comes from
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