The Advantages of Microsoft 365 Data’s Granular Restore Options
Why Microsoft 365 Data Recovery Needs to Be Exact
Microsoft 365 is the backbone of modern business, helping with email, collaboration, file storage, and daily work. The more people use platforms like Exchange Online, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams, the more likely it is that they will accidentally delete something, set it up wrong, or have an insider do something wrong.
When data is lost, companies usually don’t need to restore everything. They need to get specific emails, files, folders, or user data back quickly without causing problems for the rest of the environment more often. This is when granular restore options become very important.
What does “granular restore” mean in Microsoft 365 backups?
Granular restore means being able to get back specific data objects instead of doing a full restore of a tenant or mailbox.
This includes:
- Single emails or calendar events
- Files or folders in OneDrive for individuals
- Certain SharePoint libraries or documents
- Conversations or channel data from Selected Teams
- User accounts for each person
Granular recovery gives IT teams precise control over restores, which reduces downtime and speeds up the process of fixing things.
Faster recovery and less time spent down
Speed is one of the best things about granular restore. It can take hours to restore a full mailbox or site, and it often affects people who are already using it. Granular restore lets administrators get back only what they need, and it usually only takes a few minutes.
This ability cuts down on a lot:
- Time off for users
- The amount of work at the helpdesk
- Disruption of business
For businesses that need to get back up and running quickly, granular restore is a must-have feature.
Reducing the effects on business and operations
Full restores can overwrite newer data or temporarily block users from accessing services. Granular restore avoids these risks by only restoring the items that were affected.
This is especially useful when:
- A user accidentally deletes files that are important
- One mailbox is broken into
- Some files are damaged or overwritten
It is necessary to get compliance-related data.
Precision restores protect productivity while quickly fixing the problem.
Better recovery from ransomware and other cyber incidents
More and more, modern ransomware attacks are going after cloud data, like Microsoft 365. Even after an attack is stopped, it can be hard to safely restore data.
Granular restore lets businesses:
- Get back clean copies of certain files
- Don’t bring back data that is infected or encrypted
- Restore versions of the past before the attack
This method makes recovery faster and safer without having to roll back the whole environment.
More Help with Legal and Compliance Requests
Many companies have to respond to audits, legal holds, or compliance requests that need access to certain historical data. Granular restore meets these needs by letting you get back exact items without interfering with current operations.
Some benefits are:
- Faster answers to questions about laws and rules
- Less chance of data being too exposed
- Better prepared for audits
Granular access fits well with rules about data governance and retention.
Less overhead for storage and infrastructure
Granular restore works best with newer backup services that keep track of and index Microsoft 365 data. This makes recovery faster without having to copy whole datasets for each restore operation.
Organizations cut down on:
- Use of bandwidth
- Use of temporary storage
- Work on the administration
This level of efficiency is very important for companies that have a lot of Microsoft 365 users.
Better IT efficiency and user experience
From the point of view of the end user, granular restore feels seamless. Files or emails come back without a lot of service downtime. It cuts down on manual work, troubleshooting, and recovery efforts after hours for IT teams.
This means:
- Solving problems faster
- Less expensive support
- More faith in backup systems
Granular restore turns backups from a tool you use only when you have to into a safety net you use every day.
Why the built-in tools in Microsoft 365 aren’t enough
Microsoft 365 has basic features for keeping files and a recycle bin, but these aren’t real backups. They have short retention periods and use the same authentication domain as production data.
Granular restore from a backup platform that isn’t part of the system gives you:
- Longer periods of time to keep things
- Access controls that are separate
- Protection against compromise across the whole building
This separation is very important for a reliable recovery.
Putting Granular Restore in line with Business Continuity
Granular restore features help with planning for business continuity. They help businesses get back on their feet quickly after small problems without them turning into big outages.
When used with:
- Backups that are air-gapped
- Storage for multiple sites or locations
- Testing recovery on a regular basis
Granular restore is an important part of a strong Microsoft 365 data protection plan.
A Little Bit About Epis Technology
Epis Technology offers cloud backup, enterprise IT infrastructure, and data protection solutions that work with Microsoft 365 environments. The company focuses on Microsoft 365 backup architectures that let you restore files in small pieces, secure and air-gapped storage designs, and business continuity planning. Epis Technology helps businesses keep their operations running smoothly by making it possible to quickly, accurately, and reliably recover Microsoft 365 data.