You think your client files are neatly covered by your retention requirements. Everything is in SharePoint, with the correct retention periods and labels. Yet a document can quietly slip through the cracks and fall outside that framework without anyone noticing. This happens more often when you sync files to OneDrive. Richard Schouten, an accounting specialist at Docubird, explains how this works. In this blog post, he explains why a synced document undermines your retention requirements and how to maintain control over what you retain and when you dispose of it.
Retention periods are tied to labels
In Microsoft 365, you can manage retention requirements using labels. A label can determine how long a document is retained and when it can be deleted. These labels also control the sharing of sensitive documents. It all revolves around documents stored in SharePoint that have the correct label assigned to them. As long as that’s the case, your retention requirements are handled in the background, without you having to give it a second thought.
A newly synced document arrives without a label
If someone adds a new document to the file via a synchronized File Explorer folder, it is imported without a label. That is the same reason why such documents lack metadata. Without a label, the document falls outside your retention schedule. It’s there, but it doesn’t count. The deadlines you’ve carefully set simply ignore it.
The Risk You Don't See
In the folder, a document like this looks perfectly normal. There’s nothing to suggest that it doesn’t comply with the rules. It’s only during an audit, a complaint, or a transfer that you realize you can’t prove how long you kept it or when you should have disposed of it. For an accountant, that’s a problem, because you have to be able to account for your record-keeping. The fact that you can’t tell just by looking at the document is precisely what makes it difficult.
Keep storage and cleanup in one place
You can prevent this by not scattering file documents across synchronized copies, but by keeping them in one place where labels and due dates are automatically updated. Docubird stores your files in SharePoint, using the familiar File Explorer experience, so that every document follows the same system. This way, you can be sure that storage and cleanup are handled correctly, without you having to keep track of it yourself.
Want to know if your retention policy is actually correct? Check which documents are stored separately on laptops or in OneDrive. Anything that exists outside of SharePoint is likely not covered by your policy.