How to change Exchange Online retention policy for Microsoft 365 mailboxes

Exchange Online mailbox retention policies define how long mailbox items are retained and what actions are taken as they age. These policies control when items are moved to the archive mailbox, when they are deleted from primary or archive mailboxes, and how retention behavior is applied across default folders, deleted items, and other mailbox content.

By applying retention tags to mailbox folders and item types using an Exchange Online retention policy, administrators can enforce consistent data lifecycle rules across users. This article explains how to change Exchange Online retention policies using native tools such as the Exchange Admin Center (EAC) and Exchange Online PowerShell, and how you can do it more efficiently with just a few clicks in ManageEngine M365 Manager Plus.

Method 1: How to change the retention period using the Exchange admin center

Prerequisites

You need the Exchange Administrator role for the account you use to sign in to EAC.

Steps

1. Log in to the Exchange Admin Center and navigate to Recipients > Mailboxes.
2. Select the mailbox for which you want to change the retention period.
3. In the mailbox details pane, click the Mailbox tab.
4. Under Retention policy, click Manage mailbox policies.
5. Select the desired policy from the drop-down menu and click Save.

Limitation to consider

You will have to repeat this set of steps for every mailbox you wish to configure a retention policy. If you wish to configure Exchange Online retention policies for multiple mailboxes at the same time, you will have to use complex Exchange Online PowerShell scripts or you can try out the user-friendly interface of M365 Manager Plus, which would only take a few clicks— even to configure retention policies for hundreds of users simultaneously.

Method 2: How to change the retention period using Exchange Online PowerShell

Prerequisites

Before using Exchange Online PowerShell, verify that:

1. The Exchange Administrator role is applied to the account you use to sign in to Exchange Online PowerShell.
2. You are connected to the Exchange Online PowerShell module.
   1. To check if the Exchange Online PowerShell module is installed, use this script:
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      Get-Module -ListAvailable ExchangeOnlineManagement

   2. If it does not return a value, you will have to install the module. To install the Exchange Online PowerShell module, execute this script:
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      Install-Module ExchangeOnlineManagement -Scope CurrentUser

   3. To connect to Exchange Online PowerShell, run this script:
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      Connect-ExchangeOnline

Using Set-Mailbox to change Exchange Online retention policy

The Set-Mailbox cmdlet can be used to assign a specific Exchange Online retention policy to a mailbox.

Use this syntax to apply an existing Exchange Online retention policy to a mailbox:

Set-Mailbox -Identity "User@domain.com" -RetentionPolicy "New-Retention-Policy" 

Customizing retention of specific folders with Set-RetentionPolicyTag

You can modify the age limit for specific folders (like Deleted Items) within a policy using the Set-RetentionPolicyTag cmdlet.

Use this syntax to change the retention age to 30 days for a specific tag:

Set-RetentionPolicyTag -Identity "Deleted Items Tag" -AgeLimitForRetention 30

Supported parameters

Method 3: How to manage Exchange Online retention policies in M365 Manager Plus

1. Log in to M365 Manager Plus and click the Management tab.
2. Navigate to Exchange Online > Mailbox Management.
3. Under Bulk Mailbox Modifications, select Mailbox Retention Policy.
4. Choose the Retention policy you wish to apply for your mailboxes.
5. You can also add in the following details.
   1. Add a URL with the retention policy's details to keep your users informed.
   2. Configure how long to hold on to items in the Recoverable Items folder using the Retain deleted items for (in days) field.
   3. Check the Configure Retention Hold checkbox and click Enable to prevent mailbox content from being deleted. You can configure the Retention hold duration (GMT) in the field below the checkbox to configure how long the retention hold stays.
   4. Click Apply to update the retention settings for all selected mailboxes at once.
   

Track and manage Exchange Online retention effortlessly

M365 Manager Plus’ capabilities help you view, manage, and audit retention policies, litigation holds, eDiscovery holds, and all associated settings for the mailboxes in your Microsoft 365 environment. It streamlines policy assignment, offers in-depth reporting, and provides real-time monitoring, all through an intuitive web console, without the need for complex Microsoft Graph PowerShell scripting.

Important tips

Frequently asked questions