Cleaning Up the Clutter: A Practical Guide to SharePoint Version Trimming
- Ryan Bowler
- Apr 9
- 3 min read
Think back to the days of paper documents. Every change meant a new printout, leading to overflowing filing cabinets. SharePoint versioning can be similar. While it's a powerful tool for users to track changes, an unmanaged version history can quickly consume storage space and slow down performance.
In the digital world, version history needs careful attention. Implementing a solid version trimming strategy is key to maintaining a healthy, efficient, and cost-effective SharePoint environment.
What is SharePoint Version Trimming?
SharePoint's built-in versioning is fantastic for users working in a team. It lets you track edits and revert to older versions of documents. By default, SharePoint keeps up to 500 previous versions.
Version trimming is the process of deleting those older versions to optimize your SharePoint. SharePoint Online will automatically trim older versions after the default 500 versions of a file. However, while one form of automatic version trimming is in place, further manual version trimming may still be necessary depending on organizational needs.
Results from version trimming:
Saves Storage Space, reducing cost
Older versions which might no longer be useful consume valuable storage on your tenant. Less storage consumption will translate to lower expenses.
Improves Performance
Less data to load up means a faster SharePoint for your users.
Understanding Version Trimming Options
SharePoint provides three main trimming options for managing versions of documents. These modes control how versions are deleted:
Manual Expiration Trim Mode: This option allows you to set a specific expiration date. Any version created before that date is deleted. This can be run on demand via scripting.
Important Notes:
Versions created within the last 30 days are never deleted, regardless of the expiration date. This means your chosen date for deletion cannot be less than 30 days ago.
Versions created before January 1, 2023, are always deleted, even if they fall within the specified date range.
Manual Count Limit Trim Mode: On a tenant or library level, you can specify a maximum number of versions to keep. When that limit is exceeded, SharePoint deletes the oldest versions to stay within the specified count. The deletion happens in a scheduled job that starts processing based on the version count limit.
Automatic Trim Mode: SharePoint applies an algorithm that automatically determines which versions to delete based on the version's age and its version storage algorithm. This mode handles version management with minimal manual input.
Before You Trim: The "What-If" Report
Any committed version trimming will permanently delete that version. Before you commit, it's crucial to preview the impact. SharePoint provides you with the ability to run a "What-If" analysis to see which versions would be deleted with different trim modes. This helps you fine-tune your trimming strategy and avoid accidental data loss.
Think of it as a dry run. You can generate a Version Storage Usage report and run a 'What-If' analysis by setting different trimming modes to preview the changes and analyze the user and storage savings impact. This is essential if you want to view how the automatic trim mode is going to impact your data.
Important Considerations:
Retention Policies and eDiscovery Holds: If your documents are subject to retention policies or eDiscovery holds, version trimming will fail. Make sure you understand how these policies interact with version trimming.
Deleted Versions Are Gone: Versions deleted by trimming cannot be recovered from the recycle bin.
Job Completion Time: Trimming jobs run in the background and can take a while to complete, depending on the volume of versions to be deleted.
Best Practices for Version Trimming
Plan First: Carefully consider your organization's needs and retention requirements.
Test Your Settings: Use the SharePoint "What-If" analysis to preview the impact of your trimming strategy on your data.
Monitor Progress: Review the status of trimming jobs to make sure they are completing successfully.
Cancellation Strategy: Familiarize with the process of stopping any in-progress trim job to prevent further deletions.
Disaster Recovery: Consider whether you have backups available in case a version needs to be recovered.
Communicate with Users: Let your users know about the version trimming process and its benefits.
SharePoint version trimming is a powerful tool for keeping your SharePoint environment running smoothly. By understanding the different trimming options, planning carefully, and using the right tools, you can optimize your storage space & reduce costs, improve performance, and all while ensuring that user’s important versions are retained.