How to manage meeting recording storage and retention

Managing meeting recording storage and retention in Zoom involves configuring settings for cloud recording storage capacity and setting retention policies. As an administrator, you can manage cloud recording storage, delete recordings, and configure settings to automatically delete recordings after a specified period. This helps optimize storage usage and comply with data retention policies.

Prerequisites

• Account owner or admin privileges in Zoom.
• A Zoom Business or Enterprise account (for advanced retention policies).
• Familiarity with your organization’s data retention policies.

Understanding Zoom Recording Storage Options

Before configuring storage and retention, understand the available options:

1. Cloud Recording: Recordings are stored on Zoom’s cloud servers. You can manage storage capacity and set retention policies. Refer to “Cloud recording storage capacity” for details on capacity and costs.
2. Local Recording: Recordings are stored on the meeting host’s computer. Administrators have limited control over local recordings. Refer to “Finding your computer and cloud recordings” to find local recordings.
3. Third-Party Integrations: Utilize integrations with services like AWS S3 or Box for external storage. Configuration details depend on the specific integration.

Managing Cloud Recording Storage Capacity

1. Access Account Management: Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator and navigate to Account Management > Billing.
2. Review Current Storage: Under the “Current Plans” tab, locate “Cloud Recording Storage” to view your current storage limit and usage.
3. Purchase Additional Storage (if needed): If you are approaching your storage limit, click Add More to purchase additional storage. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the purchase. An email alert will be sent to the billing admin when usage is at 80% of the subscribed storage limit.
4. Monitor Usage Regularly: Regularly check your storage usage to avoid exceeding your limit.

Configuring Cloud Recording Retention Policies

1. Access Recording Management: Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator and navigate to Account Management > Recording Management.
2. Access Account Settings: In the left navigation menu, click Account Settings.
3. Enable Auto Delete: Locate the “Auto Delete Recordings” setting.
4. Set Retention Period: Enable the “Auto Delete Recordings” toggle. From the dropdown menu, select the number of days after which recordings should be automatically deleted (e.g., 30 days, 60 days, 120 days, etc.).
5. Confirm Changes: Click Save to apply the retention policy. This setting will automatically delete cloud recordings after the specified period. Be absolutely sure this is what you intend!
6. Configure Exception Policy (optional): An exception policy can be set for users or groups to use a different retention period to the account level setting.
   1. Navigate to User Management > Users or Group Management > Groups.
   2. Select the user or group that requires different auto-delete recording settings.
   3. Click the Settings tab.
   4. Locate the Auto Delete Recordings setting, and either lock (preventing users changing the setting) or change the setting for that user/group.

Manually Deleting Cloud Recordings

1. Access Recording Management: Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator and navigate to Account Management > Recording Management.
2. Locate Recordings: Use the search filters (date range, user, meeting ID) to find the recordings you want to delete. Refer to “Managing and sharing cloud recordings” for help finding recordings.
3. Select Recordings: Check the box next to each recording you want to delete.
4. Delete Recordings: Click the Delete button.
5. Confirm Deletion: A confirmation dialog box appears. Click Delete again to permanently delete the selected recordings. Deleted recordings cannot be recovered.

Managing Access and Disclaimers for Revenue Accelerator Recordings

If your organization uses Zoom Revenue Accelerator:

1. Authorize Recording Access: As an account admin, authorize access to recordings of Zoom Revenue Accelerator users. Refer to “Managing conversation meeting recording access and disclaimers” for instructions.
2. Configure Meeting/Call Access: Configure which meetings or Zoom Phone calls (if applicable) have authorized access.
3. Customize Disclaimers (optional): Customize disclaimers for meetings where regulated users are present. Refer to “Configuring archival settings for meetings and webinars”.

Integrating with On-Premises Recording Connectors (If Applicable)

If you use Zoom Meeting Connector for on-premises meetings:

1. Review System Requirements: Ensure your system meets the requirements for Recording and Hybrid Recording services. Refer to “System requirements for the Recording and Hybrid Recording services”.
2. Configure Recording Connector: Configure the Recording Connector to store recordings on your on-premises infrastructure. Refer to “Zoom Meetings & Recording Connectors (On-Premises)” for more information.

Managing Zoom Events Hub Recordings

If your organization utilizes Zoom Events, be sure to manage and configure the “Recordings and Videos” tab appropriately.

1. As an event organiser, access the Hub and navigate to the “Recordings and Videos” tab. Refer to “Managing the hub Recordings and videos tab”.
2. From this tab, manage, publish, report and view recordings and grant viewing access to recordings.

Common Issues

• Storage Limit Reached During Recording: If the storage limit is reached during a recording, the meeting continues to record until it is ended. Purchase additional storage or delete older recordings to prevent this.
• Accidental Deletion of Recordings: Deleted recordings are permanently removed and cannot be recovered through Zoom’s interface. Implement a backup solution (e.g., third-party integration) for critical recordings.
• Retention Policy Not Working: Double-check the retention policy settings to ensure they are correctly configured. Verify that the policy applies to the desired users or groups.
• Users Cannot Access Recordings: Verify that users have the appropriate permissions to view or edit recordings. Check the sharing settings for each recording.
• Recordings Not Appearing in Recording Management: It can take some time for recordings to process and appear in the Recording Management section. If recordings are still missing after a reasonable period, contact Zoom support.