Feature Request: Show when backup data is deleted when files fall outside of GFS retention policy

[jprice@massbay.edu]

B&R jobs do not show when a backup file has been deleted when that backup file has fallen outside of the GFS retention policy. VeeamOne has a report (GFS Backup Files) with a section "Next Restores Points to be Deleted" which shows when future backup files are to be removed in the future. There is no reporting showing when the actual backup job is actually deleting the historical data in the job log for that job.

I am requesting a report inside VeeamOne showing when active backup jobs run, the report logs the backup files being removed at the time its removed. The report should show how many files were cleaned up and how much space was returned back to online storage.

Thanks.

[RomanK]

Hello Jeff,

Thank you for the request. To better understand the use case, could you please share some additional details? For example, is this report primarily needed for audit purposes, storage capacity tracking, or just general visibility?
You mentioned “at the time its removed.” Do you expect to see the exact timestamps when backup files are deleted? Or would aggregated data or just the last removal date be sufficient?
Am I understanding correctly that the amount of reclaimed storage space is required as a summary value, or do you also need this information on a line-by-line basis?
What would be the expected time range for such a report?

This will help us better align the report with your expectations.

Thanks.

[jprice@massbay.edu]

There are multiple questions here. This is related to audits.
1. For each backup job, under reports, it shows backup job, duration and disk size. If the job has a retention policy, and there are files outside of that retention policy that get deleted, I would like to see a line in the report that say <backup job name> date of file, size of file, was deleted from <storage location> due to retention policy.
2. In VeeamOne, I would think a report with editable data parameters for a specific date or date range to show, any backup that deleted a backup file from the storage location. This would include the backup file date and file size.
If an auditor comes to me and requests, show me your backup files and their retnetion policy. I can show them. Show me a report reporting when backup jobs deleted backup data, file size, date of file.

[RomanK]

Hello Jeff,

Everything is clear for now. If we need any additional details, I’ll follow up here.
This feature request is on our radar, but there’s no ETA as usual.

Thank you for the feedback.

[jprice@massbay.edu]

Thanks RomanK. I guess I left this statement hanging without a proper finish: "show me a report reporting when backup jobs deleted backup data, file size, date of file."

Essentially, what I'm trying to say here, is the backup/backup copy jobs report data well when the backup occurs and information on the data such as the time back up occurred, the length of time backup took, the backup file size and the storage location of the backup file.

The point of a running job log is to document and publish all the important tasks that occurred during when the job ran. In this case, backup/backup/copy jobs do not report on other important job metrics such as an expired backup file exist and wa deleted at the time the job runs. The file deletion of expired backup files outside of the retention policy should be reported in the job log at the time when the backup/backup copy job occurs.

Or, does the actual file deletion of expired backup files occur in a separate job log outside of the backup/backup copy job?

[RomanK]

Hello Jeff,

In general, the actual log content is not critical here. Veeam ONE does not parse job logs directly, instead it collects data via internal API calls and various events. From our perspective, these are simply objects with a set of properties. Either those properties already exist, or we need to collect/create them. The report you are asking for is technically possible. However, potential challenges arise when generating such a report for, say, 20,000 jobs over a 365‑day period. In that case, we need to carefully consider what data should be shown and how this information is stored to ensure acceptable performance.

Thanks