Panopto Content Retention Policy | Archiving & Purging

What is this policy?

The Panopto Content Retention Policy is an automated process which aims to manage storage and and organize unwatched videos. The rollout of this policy will include two Phases.

Phase 1: If a video has not been viewed for 13 consecutive months, then it will be added to the Panopto Archive.

Phase 2: If the video has not been viewed for 36 months AND has not been restored from the Archive, it will be permanently deleted from the server.

When will this start?

Phase 1: Beginning on January 1st, 2025, Panopto videos that have not been viewed within 13 months will automatically be transferred to the Panopto Archive. Going forward, this process will take place on the 1st of each month.

Phase 2: Beginning on February 1st, 2026, videos that have been in the Panopto Archive for 13 months and unwatched for 36 consecutive months will be automatically deleted from our system. This process will also take place on the 1st of each month.

Can I still view my videos?

Archived videos cannot be viewed. However, they can be manually restored, which will bring back all functionality. The Restoration process can be initiated by any user trying to access the archived video. If your archived video is embedded within a Blackboard Ultra course, it will be available for student users to manually restore. The restoration can take up to 48 hours to complete.

How can I make sure my videos aren't deleted?

If any of your videos are archived, they have 13 months before they will be liable for deleted from our system (if they have not been viewed for 36 months). In order to find out which of your videos might be at risk of deletion, visit your Panopto Archive page to manually restore them. Simply hover over your video and click "restore from archive". 

Additionally, If the video has been posted in Blackboard and viewed by a student or yourself the video will not be deleted or affected by this policy. All you need to do is click on your video and hit play to prevent a video from being archived or deleted.

What can I do to preserve my videos for courses I don't teach regularly?

If you have a course that is taught on an irregular basis, our Panopto System Administrators can work with you to omit certain content from being affected by the Panopto Content Retention Policy. This policy will only be implemented on a case-by-case basis for individuals that teach classes with a 2 year or more gap in between delivery. You can fill out a ticket to request an omission to this policy on our Panopto Ticket Request page.

Once a ticket is submitted, Panopto admins will initiate contact with the requester and schedule a time to meet via Zoom. During the meeting, we discuss the new policy, explaining its purpose and addressing how it impacts their Panopto usage. We then go over their existing Panopto library, identifying any content that might be no longer relevant to the requester's needs. With the requester's permission, Panopto admins will archive/delete that identified content.

After determining which videos are essential for exemption, we will modify an existing folder, or create the 'exempt folder' to store these items. Whether the exemption folder will 'Retain Videos Indefinitely' or 'Archive Content but do not Delete' will be based on the total stored hours of the videos in said folder, as well as the frequency of usage. To ensure effective tracking, Panopto admins add a hyperlink to this exempt folder in a designated spreadsheet, allowing admins to keep a clear record of all exempt content for future reference.

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