Google: new abandoned Shared Drives process
To keep University data secure and well-managed, OIT is launching a new process to identify and address 'abandoned' Google Shared Drives. This helps us prevent important institutional knowledge from being lost and ensures we are using our digital storage resources responsibly.
Process to claim abandoned Shared Drives
- Step 1 (January 27, 2026 was the first time the process started running): Abandoned Shared Drives are identified and their potential managers (members of the drive with Content Manager or Contributor access) receive an email with instructions on how to claim it. Abandoned Shared Drives will also be renamed, "*Deletion Pending - [deletion_date] - [PM/NPM] - [original Shared Drive name]."
- The field [PM/NPM] indicates if the abandoned Shared Drive has a Potential Manager or No Potential Manager. A Shared Drive has a Potential Manager if at least one member has Content Manager or Contributor roles with an active UMN Google account.
- Step 2 (The 3-Month mark): If an abandoned Shared Drive is still unclaimed, it will
- become read-only; and
- an email notification is sent to all members of that drive including those with non-UMN email addresses and people with commenter or viewer access. The email will contain a link to a recommendation form enabling them to help identify a new manager.
- Proposed managers should be a UMN faculty or staff member who is familiar with the contents of the drive.
- Step 3 (The 6-Month mark): If the abandoned Shared Drive has not been claimed by a new manager, OIT will understand that it is no longer needed and it will be deleted along with its contents.
Note: After its first implementation in January, the automated process to identify abandoned Shared Drives will run daily and notifications to potential managers for abandoned Shared Drives will continue monthly.
Failure to claim
If the abandoned Shared Drive is not claimed
- Three months after the first notification, the files in the abandoned Shared Drive will become read only. In this way, even if members miss the email notifications, they will be able to see an additional change which is intended to inspire action to retain the Shared Drive. An email will be sent to all members of the drive to offer members who are not eligible to claim the manager role to identify a potential manager.
- Six months after the first notification, OIT will understand that the contents of the abandoned Shared Drive are no longer needed and the abandoned Shared Drive and all its contents will be deleted
Good practice
Before leaving the University, people are encouraged to review files stored in their UMN Google Workspace, including Shared Drives. If files in a Shared Drive should be retained by the University, before leaving, people should ensure that at least one other member of the Shared Drive has the manager role. See the Leaving the University self-help guide for additional guidance.
Technology Help
For technical assistance contact Technology Help.