Panopto Cloud Storage Retention

Overview

Panopto is the University's academic media service, providing streaming and storage for course lectures and other critical media. While the cloud service provides storage to support the University's academic mission, it is not intended to serve as indefinite storage. To ensure the responsible stewardship of University resources and the sustainable management of storage capacity, media content is subject to the University's retention and lifecycle management policies, including archiving videos that have not been viewed for over a year and permanently removing content that is no longer used.

Benefits

The University licenses a generous cloud storage capacity to support Pepperdine's instructional and operational needs. However, both the archive and retention periods are necessary for effective stewardship of University data and resources. These automated processes:

Promote responsible stewardship.
Ensure system reliability and sustainability.
Reduce clutter and improve search results.

By periodically reviewing your video content, you help the University retain only the materials that continue to support teaching, learning, research, administration, or other University academic needs.

Archive Storage (13 Months Unviewed)

Effective Date: July 2023.

Criteria: Any videos not viewed in the past 13 months will be automatically archived.

Description: During the Summer 2023 term, Pepperdine University implemented retention rules to auto-archive older Panopto videos. Archiving moves a video from an actively available state to a cold-storage state. Any video content that has not been viewed in the past 13 months is automatically archived. Archived videos can be easily retrieved by any viewer or video owner, but retrieval may take up to 72 hours to complete. Learn How to Restore Archived Content.

To locate archived Panopto video content:

Sign in at panopto.pepperdine.edu.
Navigate to your My Folder.
Go to the location where your videos are stored, whether your main folder or a subfolder.
In a folder with archived videos, find and select the Archived icon (represented by an archive document storage box icon) in the upper-right corner of the folder view. This will display the archived videos.
Review the archived content and delete any unwanted videos.
If a video should be retained, then "Restore from Archive." This process can take up to 72 hours. Once restored, be sure to play the video. If you do not play the restored video, the content will be archived again in the next processing cycle. You do not need to play the entire video, but you must play some of it so there is a record of the video being watched to reset the 13-month clock.

Pro Tip: Professors should routinely review all course videos before each new term. If any videos have been archived, then request restoration and play the video to keep it active for your class. The restoration or "thaw" period cannot be expedited, so planning ahead is crucial!

Permanent Removal (5 Years Unviewed)

Effective Date: May 3, 2027.

Criteria: Any older videos not viewed in the past 5 years (1,825 days) will be permanently deleted.

Description: Beginning Monday, May 3, 2027, archived videos that have not been viewed for five (5) years will be permanently deleted. If the content has never been viewed since its creation, the system will use its creation date instead. This policy ensures high-value content remains available while effectively managing University storage resources.

Moving forward, Pepperdine University will maintain a five-year retention plan for Panopto Cloud Storage (1,825 days) from the date of last view. This means files not viewed for more than five years will be deleted. As long as videos remain active and used, they will not be deleted.

This retention limit applies to all media uploaded to, or created within, the Pepperdine Panopto environment, including backup Zoom meeting recordings. It does not affect local copies or media stored on personal devices. While Panopto provides robust archival capabilities, users should continue to adhere to academic policies and information technology policies regarding the nature of the content being stored.

**Table of Panopto Video Archival and Deletion**
Time Since Last View	Time Until Archive	Time Until Permanent Deletion
0 days	13 months (390 days)	1,825 days
365 days	25 days	1,460 days
13 months (390 days)	0 days (archived)	1,435 days
1,825 days	N/A	0 days (deleted)

What You Need to Do

Review Your Folders: Sign in at panopto.pepperdine.edu. Regularly check your "My Folder" and shared course folders to organize your media and identify legacy content. Delete content you no longer need.
Verify View Stats: Use Panopto's analytics to see when your videos were last viewed. This can help you analyze which content may no longer be needed.
Understand the Cycle: Panopto content will be retained based on the "Last Viewed Date." If you have critical media that is rarely viewed, ensure you have a local backup copy on a computer or other device.
Archived vs. Deleted Content: Beginning in Summer 2023, content that had not been viewed for 13 consecutive months became subject to the University's automated archiving process. The auto-archiving policy will stay in effect and will operate in parallel to this five-year permanent deletion process.

Resources

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