Securely Backing Up Microsoft Teams: A Step-by-Step Guide

In today’s digital world, tools like Microsoft Teams are essential for seamless communication, file sharing, and project management. 

However, this convenience comes with the responsibility of safeguarding critical data. Losing important chat history or shared files due to accidental deletion, system failures, or security breaches can seriously impact your operations.

This guide will help you securely back up your Microsoft Teams data. Whether you’re an IT administrator, business owner, or end user, understanding the steps involved in data protection is crucial.

What to Back Up

Microsoft Teams serves as a hub for communication and collaboration, making it vital to back up both chat history and shared files.

Personal and channel chats often contain critical information and decisions, so including chat messages in your backup strategy is essential.

Files shared within chats and channels are stored in SharePoint Online or OneDrive for Business.

Backing up these files ensures that important documents and media remain accessible even in the event of accidental deletion or system failures.

Importance of Backing Up Both Chat Messages and Shared Files

Backing up both chat messages and shared files provides contextual insights for ongoing projects, helping team members understand decisions and the evolution of ideas.

It also ensures compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, which often mandate data retention.

Additionally, in the event of accidental deletions, hardware failures, or security breaches, having backups ensures business continuity.

Backup Options

There are several options for backing up your Microsoft Teams data, each with its pros and cons.

Third-party software solutions like Backup Everything offer convenience and comprehensive coverage.

These tools automate the backup process, ensuring regular snapshots of your Teams data.

They also allow you to choose which components to back up, provide reliable services, and offer advanced features like version control and point-in-time recovery.

However, these solutions often incur subscription fees and require seamless integration with your existing infrastructure.

Alternatively, you can leverage built-in Office 365 Backup features to protect your Teams data.

Teams chat messages are stored within Exchange Online mailboxes, where you can set up retention policies using the Exchange Admin Center.

Enabling litigation hold on mailboxes preserves chat copies indefinitely, and in case of data loss, you can use the eDiscovery Center to search and recover messages.

Securing Chat History

Microsoft Teams stores chat history in hidden folders within Exchange Online mailboxes.

Regularly backing up these folders is essential for preserving chat history.

You can set up retention policies through the Exchange Admin Center to define how long chat messages should be retained.

Enabling litigation hold ensures that even if users delete messages, you can still access them.

Channel chats are equally important and are stored in hidden folders within Office 365 Group mailboxes. Including these folders in your backup strategy helps prevent data loss.

Managing Shared Files

Files shared in Teams chats are stored in SharePoint Online or OneDrive for Business.

To ensure accessibility, create a dedicated “Microsoft Teams Chat Files” folder in OneDrive for Business and set appropriate permissions for shared documents.

Manually Export Teams Data from Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 offers Admins the ability to manually export Teams data. While this method has its limitations, which we will discuss in the pros and cons section below, it is a viable solution for some. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to perform the export:

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Access the Compliance Center

1. Log in as a Global Admin to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
2. Navigate to the Compliance Center.

Step 2: Initiate a Content Search

1. In the left menu, locate the Solutions section.
2. Click on Content Search.

Step 3: Create a New Search

1. On the Content Search page, click New Search.
2. You will be redirected to a new page where you can set up your search. Name the search and provide a short description.

Step 4: Configure Locations

1. At the Locations stage, turn on the status for Exchange mailboxes and SharePoint sites (as both contain Teams data).
2. Click Choose users, groups, or teams once the location is active.
3. In the pop-up window, select the user or users you need to back up and click Done. To select multiple users, use the mouse and Shift.
4. After configuring the Locations, click Next.

Step 5: Set Up Search Conditions (Optional)

1. If desired, add search conditions by clicking Add Condition and setting it up.
2. Click Next once done.

Step 6: Review and Submit

1. Review your search configuration.
2. If everything is correct, click Submit, then Done.

Step 7: Download Data

1. You will be redirected back to the Content Search page.
2. Double-click on the search you just created.
3. In the pop-up window, select Actions and click on Export Results from the drop-down menu.

Step 8: Configure the Export

1. Choose the output options (e.g., whether to export encrypted data, how to divide PST files).
2. Check the size of the data to be exported.

Pros and Cons

One major advantage of manually exporting Teams data from Microsoft 365 is that it is cost-effective since your business does not need to invest in additional backup tools.

However, there are several drawbacks to this approach. The data download can be extensive, including more than just Teams data, such as Yammer users, Microsoft 365 Groups, and OneDrive sites.

Additionally, only Global Admins can perform this task, which limits the availability of personnel who can execute the backup. Maintaining sufficient backup frequency can also be challenging, as experts recommend backing up data at least once per day.

The manual process is prone to errors, such as forgotten exports or misconfigurations. If the responsible employee is unavailable due to illness, holidays, or departure, it creates a gap.

Moreover, manual backups are resource-intensive, requiring significant work time, which is particularly critical since only Global Admins can execute them. Finally, all messages are consolidated into a single PST file, which may not be ideal for all use cases.

Best Practices for Data Retention in Microsoft Teams Backup

Regular backups are essential. Schedule backups daily to avoid data loss. Use automated tools whenever possible.

Ensure only authorized personnel have access. Regularly review and update your backup settings. Store backups in a secure, off-site location.

Test your backups periodically to ensure data integrity. Maintain compliance with data protection regulations. Keep detailed logs of all backup activities.

Educate your team on best practices and protocols.

Conclusion

Securing Microsoft Teams data through effective backup strategies is vital for maintaining seamless communication, safeguarding critical information, and ensuring business continuity.

By understanding what to back up, leveraging appropriate tools and features, and educating users, you can protect chat histories and shared files against accidental deletions, system failures, and security breaches.

Implementing these best practices ensures compliance with legal obligations and provides the necessary context for ongoing projects. This enables your organization to thrive in a digital world.

Prioritize data protection to preserve the integrity and availability of your essential collaboration tools.