Welcome to our Microsoft 365 Migration Series! Moving on from what licensing is best for your company, in this post we explore how you can securely store your data. As you continue on your Microsoft 365 migration, we’re here to help answer some of the most important questions to consider as you make this step toward business success!
Microsoft 365 and Office 365 products all store files in the cloud by default. Web versions of Microsoft Office products such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint can only open files from cloud-based storage, while locally installed copies can open files from local computers, networks and cloud storage.
We recommend completely moving all of your office productivity files to the cloud. By moving them to the cloud, your files are universally accessible by all users whether they’re working in the office or at home.
You can also open up access to other non-Microsoft cloud-based file storage services, such as Google drive or Drop Box, from your Office 365 tenant. As an administrator, you have complete control over this access and can enable and disable cloud storage services as needed.
Knowing where and how your data is stored is very important. Some businesses require a data protection policy, a data sharing policy, an archiving policy, and/or the ability to research where data is stored in the Microsoft 365 or Office 365 Tenant. The higher end Office 365 Enterprise and Microsoft 365 products include features to assist with this. For instance, you can use Conditional Access features in Azure Active Directory Premium Plan One to control what gets stored on the cloud and where the data can be shared. With Information Protection and Governance, you can label sensitivity on files and flag them for Data Loss Protection (DLP) controls. Additionally, you can run e-discovery searches on files to find information you need to store or freeze for litigation holds or other legal matters.
Still have questions about Office 365 or Microsoft 365 storage? Contact our Microsoft storage experts and we’ll answer your questions. In the next part of this series, we’ll be exploring the different Microsoft apps and what’s the best way to access them: on your computer or via the web!
Last Update: 3-18-2022
This week’s post is by Tim Malzahn, Principal Consultant at Malzahn Strategic
