Microsoft 365 Archive: File-level archiving General Availability

Microsoft 365 Archive now supports file-level archiving for SharePoint files, enabling cold storage with discoverability. Rolling out worldwide in July 2026, it is enabled by default for tenants with Microsoft 365 Archive. Admins can control scope, and archived files can be reactivated by users with read permissions. What and Why We’re announcing the General Availability of file-level archiving in Microsoft 365 Archive. This new capability enables organizations to archive individual SharePoint files into a cold storage tier while keeping them discoverable. This feature complements the existing site-level archive experience and helps optimize storage costs while maintaining compliance and accessibility. This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 477371. Rollout Schedule General Availability (Worldwide): Rollout begins in early July 2026 and is expected to complete by late July 2026. Impact on Your Organization Who is affected All Microsoft 365 commercial and education tenants with SharePoint Online and Microsoft 365 Archive enabled Users with edit or read permissions on SharePoint files Platforms/Services SharePoint Online (web experience) Microsoft 365 Archive What will happen A new Archive action will appear in SharePoint on the web for users with edit permissions, allowing them to archive eligible files. Files are archived into the Microsoft 365 Archive cold storage tier and can be reactivated by users with read permissions. Reactivation may take up to 24 hours, except for files archived within the past 7 days, which can be reactivated instantly. Existing retention labels, sensitivity labels, eDiscovery, permissions, and audit logging continue to apply without change, including after files are archived. At General Availability, file-level archiving is enabled by default for all SharePoint sites in tenants where Microsoft 365 Archive is enabled, unless administrators have previously reduced or scoped the set of enabled sites. File-level archive consumption is billed using the existing pay-as-you-go pricing model for Microsoft 365 Archive. This feature may introduce changes to storage usage and billing depending on archival activity. This change does not remove or replace existing site-level archiving capabilities. Action Required / Recommendations No immediate action is required. However, we recommend administrators take the following steps: Confirm configuration: Ensure that Microsoft 365 Archive is […]

The post Microsoft 365 Archive: File-level archiving General Availability appeared first on M365 Admin.