A retention class is a named retention value that, when used as the retention setting for an object, specifies how long the object must remain in the repository. This value can be:
•A duration after object creation. For example, a retention class named HlthReg-107 could have a duration of 21 years. All objects that have that class as their retention setting could not be deleted for 21 years after they’re created.
•One of these special values:
oDeletion Allowed (0)
oDeletion Prohibited (-1)
oInitial Unspecified (-2)
Retention class duration values use this format:
A+yearsy+monthsM+daysd
In this format, A represents the time at which the object was created. For example, this value specifies a retention period of one year, two months, and three days:
A+1y+2M+3d
The duration specification can omit portions with zero values. For example, this value specifies a six-month retention period:
A+6M
You can use retention classes to consistently manage data that must conform to a specific retention rule. For example, if local law requires that medical records be kept for a specific number of years, you can use a retention class to enforce that requirement.
Tenant administrators create retention classes for namespaces. When creating a class, the administrator specifies the class name, the retention setting, and whether HCP can automatically delete objects in the class when the retention period expires.
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Note: Automatic deletion must be enabled for the namespace for objects under retention to be automatically deleted. For more information on automatic deletion, see Retention. |
Each namespace has its own set of retention classes. You cannot apply a retention class defined in one namespace to an object in a different namespace.
A namespace can be configured to allow administrative users to increase or decrease class retention times and delete classes. Otherwise, the retention time for a class can only be increased, and classes cannot be deleted. In all cases, any change to a retention class affects the retention period of all objects in that class.
If a retention class is deleted, the objects assigned to that class have a retention setting of Deletion Prohibited (-1) and cannot be deleted. For information on the retention settings displayed through HTTP for deleted retention classes, see Viewing retention settings. For information on the retention settings displayed in the retention.txt metafile for deleted retention classes, see Viewing retention settings.
If a new retention class is created with the same name as a deleted retention class, existing objects in the deleted class get the retention setting of the new class.
You can assign a retention class to an existing object using any namespace access protocol. With HTTP, you can assign a retention class to an object when you store the object in the namespace, thereby overriding the default retention setting. For the rules for assigning retention classes, see Specifying retention settings.
For information on retrieving a list of retention classes defined for a namespace, see Listing retention classes. For information on viewing the retention class list in the Namespace Browser, see Viewing retention classes.
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