Skip to main content
In this lesson we cover Azure Backup’s soft delete feature — a safety mechanism that preserves backup data in a recoverable state after a delete action. Soft delete protects against accidental or premature deletion by retaining the backup item for a configurable retention window before permanent removal.
A diagram titled "Manage Soft Delete" that shows the lifecycle of a backup item moving from "Backup item" to "Soft Deleted state" and then either purged to permanent deletion or moved to "Stop Backup with Retain Data" and resumed. Side notes indicate a 14-day retention period and the ability to undelete soft-deleted backups.
What soft delete protects
  • Prevents immediate, permanent deletion of recovery points for backup items.
  • Keeps recovery points restorable during the configured retention window.
  • Is implemented at the Recovery Services vault level and applies to all backup items in that vault (virtual machines and supported workloads).
Lifecycle summary
  • Active backups: Backups run and recovery points are created normally.
  • Stop protection / Delete: The backup item moves into a soft-deleted (retained) state instead of being removed.
  • Soft-deleted period: No new recovery points are created, but existing recovery points remain restorable.
  • Undelete: You can recover the soft-deleted item within the retention window to resume protection.
  • Purge: Permanently remove the soft-deleted data (irreversible).
Soft delete default retention: 14 days. You can increase this in the Recovery Services vault settings (note: longer retention increases storage costs). Soft delete actions at a glance How soft delete works in practice
  • Stop Backup with “Retain data”: When you stop protection and choose to retain data, the vault preserves existing recovery points. If soft delete is enabled, that retained data enters a soft-deleted state and is kept for the configured retention window.
  • Undelete (Recover): If deletion was accidental, undelete the soft-deleted item within the retention window to resume protection and continue creating recovery points.
  • Purge: If you intentionally want to remove data permanently, perform a purge on the soft-deleted item. Purging is permanent and cannot be undone.
Soft delete complements other Recovery Services vault protections. Review your retention choices and storage cost implications before increasing the soft-delete retention period.
Purge operations are irreversible. Ensure you have necessary approvals and have exported any required backups before purging soft-deleted items.
Configure soft delete from the Azure portal
  1. Open the Azure portal and navigate to your Recovery Services vault.
  2. Select Properties.
  3. Under Security settings, choose Security and soft delete settings (or similarly named option).
  4. Enable soft delete for the relevant workload types (cloud workloads, hybrid workloads) and set the retention period.
  5. Save the settings.
The portal provides options to enable/disable soft delete and to set the retention window for deleted backups. Increasing retention prolongs protection but incurs additional storage costs.
A screenshot of the Microsoft Azure portal showing the "rsv-01 | Properties" Recovery Services vault and the "Security and soft delete settings" pane, with soft delete enabled for cloud and hybrid workloads and a 14-day retention set. The left sidebar lists vault settings such as Backup Configuration, Encryption Settings, Immutable vault, and other management options.
Best practices
  • Enable soft delete on critical Recovery Services vaults to protect against accidental deletions.
  • Align soft-delete retention with your organizational retention policy and compliance requirements.
  • Monitor vault storage usage and estimate cost impact before extending retention beyond the default.
  • Document approval procedures for purge operations to prevent unintended permanent data loss.
Links and references

Watch Video