How to Auto-Archive Inactive Discussions

In this article:

• Overview
• How to configure auto-archiving
• What archiving does
• Things to keep in mind
• FAQs
• Who can do this

Overview

Over time a busy community collects discussions that have gone quiet. Auto-archiving keeps your Discussions space tidy by automatically archiving any discussion that has had no activity for a period you choose. Archiving is not deletion — the discussion and its comments are kept — it simply moves the conversation out of the active list. The setting is on by default, archiving after 180 days of inactivity.

How to configure auto-archiving

1. Go to Settings → Features.
2. Scroll to the Discussions section (Discussions must already be enabled).
3. Switch Auto-archive inactive discussions on or off.
4. With it on, set the number of days in Archive after … days of inactivity (minimum 1; the default is 180).
5. Click Save to apply the change.

What archiving does

A scheduled job runs automatically and archives any discussion that is still active but whose last activity is older than the number of days you set. Archived discussions are retained in full — nothing is deleted. An archived discussion also drops off the featured banner and the pinned list, since those spotlight active conversations.

Things to keep in mind

• Auto-archiving is on by default, set to 180 days.
• "Inactivity" is measured from the discussion's last activity, so a discussion that receives a new comment resets its clock and stays active.
• The threshold must be at least 1 day.
• Archiving preserves the discussion and its comments; it is a tidy-up, not a delete. An Admin can bring an archived discussion back by managing it from Manage Discussions.
• The sweep runs on a schedule rather than the instant a discussion crosses the threshold, so a discussion may be archived shortly after — not exactly on — its inactivity date.

FAQs

Does auto-archiving delete discussions?
No. It archives them — the discussion and all its comments are retained. Archiving only moves the conversation out of the active list.

What counts as "activity"?
A discussion's most recent activity, such as a new comment. Any fresh activity resets the inactivity clock and keeps the discussion active.

Can an archived discussion be reopened?
Yes. Archived discussions are kept, and an Owner or Admin can manage them (including changing their status) from Settings → Features → Manage Discussions.

How soon after the threshold is a discussion archived?
Archiving happens when the scheduled sweep next runs, so it may occur shortly after the inactivity threshold is reached rather than at the exact moment.

Who can do this

Only Owners and Admins can reach Settings → Features and configure auto-archiving. Other roles cannot open Settings. The archiving itself is performed automatically by a scheduled system job for every tenant that has the setting switched on.

Updated on: 16/07/2026