In short
A Google Vault alternative is a separate email archive that keeps its own immutable copy of mail outside Google Workspace. Vault applies retention rules and holds to live data and needs Vault licences, and Google warns that deleting a user or licence can purge data. A journaling archive keeps leavers' mail without live licences.
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What Google Vault does
Google Vault is Google Workspace's information governance and eDiscovery tool. Google says that with Vault you can retain, hold, search and export users' Google Workspace data. In practice that means:
- Retention rules that keep data for a set period, applied directly to the data systems of supported Google services
- Holds that preserve data indefinitely for legal or other obligations, placed on accounts, organisational units or groups, and for Gmail limited to matching messages if you wish
- Search across mail and other supported services by authorised users
- Export of search results for review elsewhere
Google says that retained data remains available to Vault even when users delete it and empty their trash. Vault does not retain anything until you set up retention rules, so the rules have to be in place before they are needed. For an organisation that already has Vault in its edition, wants to keep everything inside Google, and has a disciplined offboarding process, Vault can be the right answer. We would rather say so than sell you something you do not need.
Where Vault stops
Google's own Vault overview sets out the limits clearly:
- "Vault isn't a data archive." Its retention works on live data. Google says that when retention rules expire, data deleted by users or admins that is not on hold is subject to standard deletion processes.
- Licences are part of the record. For Vault to search and retain a user's data, the user must have a Google Workspace licence that includes Vault, and so must admins. Google says that from 1 November 2025, admins must have a Vault licence to keep using Vault.
- Deleting a user or licence can purge data. Google warns: "If you delete a user or a required license, their data might be irreversibly purged and no longer available to Vault."
- It lives in the same tenant. Vault's retention rules apply directly to the data in Google's services rather than to a separate copy, and Vault access and privileges are granted by your Google Workspace super admin.
Vault is included in some Google Workspace editions and available as an add-on for others; Google's Vault overview lists which. Google offers Archived User licences as its own way to keep a former employee's data in the tenant. We mention them for completeness: we do not sell Google Workspace, Vault or Archived User licences, and we do not quote Google prices.
Vault vs a separate journaling archive
This table compares Google Vault with a separate journaling archive such as NinjaOne Archiver. It describes what each is designed to do, not a verdict on either.
| Google Vault | Separate journaling archive (NinjaOne Archiver) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Retention, hold, search and export over live Google Workspace data | A separate copy of each message, captured by journaling and stored immutably |
| Where the data sits | Inside your Google Workspace tenant | In NinjaOne's cloud, outside the tenant |
| How mail is captured | No separate capture; rules apply to data in Gmail | Gmail routing sends a journal copy of each message as it is processed |
| Protection from deletion | Retained or held data stays available to Vault while rules or holds apply, even if users delete it | Immutable WORM storage with audit trails |
| Leavers | User or required licence must stay in place; deleting it can purge data | Mail captured before the account goes stays in the archive; mailboxes can be deactivated |
| Licensing | Vault licence for users and admins (in some editions, add-on for others) | Per-user NinjaOne licence that also includes backup |
| Review roles | Vault privileges granted by a Google Workspace super admin | Compliance and Review Officer, Data Protection Officer and Reviewer roles; IT admins cannot access compliance features |
| Backup and restore | Not a backup tool; export only | Backup and point-in-time restore of Gmail, Drive, Calendar and Contacts in the same licence |
| Other platforms | Google Workspace only | Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 in one console |
NinjaOne's own Google Workspace page puts it fairly: tools such as Google Vault can help with retention and discovery, but they are not full backup solutions. Equally, a separate archive does not replace good tenant administration.
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When a separate archive makes sense
A separate journaling archive is worth considering when one or more of these applies:
- You need a record that is independent of the tenant, for example if your firm is in scope of the FCA's SYSC 10A rules, which call for a durable medium that does not allow the original to be altered or deleted (see FCA email retention), or because your policy separates who runs IT from who holds records
- Leavers are a risk. You want former employees' mail kept for its full retention period without keeping licences on unused accounts or relying on the offboarding order being right every time
- Your edition does not include Vault, and you would rather put the spend into an archive that also backs up your data
- You run more than one platform, such as Google Workspace in one part of the business and Microsoft 365 in another, and want one archive and one search across both
- You want backup too. NinjaOne Archiver comes with SaaS backup in the same per-user licence
- You are bringing older mail in, such as a previous archive exported to PST or zipped EML files, the formats NinjaOne's ingestion accepts; we confirm the route for your account when we scope it (see archive migration)
Some organisations keep Vault for in-place holds and use a separate archive as the long-term record. The two do not conflict, though running both means two sets of retention settings to keep consistent.
Searching and holding mail in the archive
In NinjaOne Archiver, eDiscovery is carried out by people with compliance roles, not by IT administrators. Reviewers can search by account, date range, sender, recipients and keywords with AND and OR, search inside attachments, save searches, and set alerts and tags on the results. Data Protection Officers can review flagged items, and only they can delete eDiscovery searches. Legal hold, under Compliance > Legal Hold, freezes retention for held data until the hold is removed.
That makes the archive practical for subject access requests, employment disputes and audits, including searches across leavers' mail. Read more on email eDiscovery and legal hold, and see choosing email archiving software for a full buyer's checklist.
Weighing up the options?
We can compare them against your own requirements and give you a straight answer.
Making the move from Vault-only
Adding a separate archive alongside Vault is straightforward to plan:
- Write down what Vault does for you today: retention rules, holds, who searches, and which leavers it is relied on for
- Decide what the archive should keep and for how long, using your email retention policy
- Connect your Google Workspace tenant to NinjaOne and set up journaling with Gmail routing rules
- Create matching retention policies and review roles in the archive
- Decide whether to keep existing Vault holds in place while matters are open
- Update your offboarding process so leavers' archive mailboxes are deactivated, not lost
Journaling captures new mail from the day it is turned on, and the initial backup brings in mail already in the mailboxes. Mail that has already been deleted from Google Workspace and is no longer held cannot be recovered by adding an archive later, which is a reason to plan early.
How Forever Systems helps
We can review how you use Vault today, tell you plainly whether a separate archive adds enough to be worth it, and if it does, supply and set up NinjaOne Archiver alongside your existing Google Workspace subscription. We confirm the bundle, the storage fit and where your archive will be held before set-up.
Pricing depends on the bundle, the number of users and the term, so ask us for a quote. Contact us to compare Vault with a separate archive for your organisation, or go back to Google Workspace email archiving.
How Forever Systems helps with email archiving
We are an independent UK IT and cyber security provider. We supply NinjaOne SaaS Backup with Archiver for organisations on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, and help you get the archive set up, the policies right and the people who need it confident using it.
- Scoping: we look at your mailboxes, leavers, legacy archives and record-keeping obligations, and what your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace plan already includes, before suggesting anything new
- Set-up: we can configure journaling for Exchange Online or Google Workspace, connect the archive and check that mail is arriving
- Retention and legal hold: we help you turn your email retention policy into archive rules, and show your compliance or HR lead how to search, hold and export
- Leavers and legacy archives: we can help you plan how former employees' mail and older archives are brought across, with the approach confirmed at quote
- Backup alongside the archive: the same NinjaOne per-user licence also covers backup of your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace data, so recovery and record-keeping are planned together
We work with businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations. If you also need wider protection, see our independent cloud security guides.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google Vault an archive?
Google says "Vault isn't a data archive." Vault applies retention rules and holds to live Google Workspace data and lets authorised users search and export it. When retention rules expire, deleted data that is not on hold follows Google's standard deletion processes.
What happens to Vault data when a user is deleted?
Google warns that if you delete a user or a required licence, their data might be irreversibly purged and no longer available to Vault. Check holds and retention before deleting any account, or keep the mail in a separate archive first.
Do you need a licence to use Google Vault?
Yes. Google says users and admins need a Google Workspace licence that includes Vault, and from 1 November 2025 admins must have a Vault licence. Vault is included in some editions and an add-on for others. We do not sell Vault licences.
Can I use Google Vault and a separate archive together?
Yes. Some organisations keep Vault for in-place holds and use a separate journaling archive as the long-term record. Keep retention settings consistent between the two.
Does a separate archive keep leavers' mail without a Google licence?
With NinjaOne Archiver, mail captured before the account is removed stays in the archive, and the archive mailbox can be deactivated rather than deleted. NinjaOne allows a share of deactivated seats that do not use a licence; we confirm how leavers count when we quote.
Does a separate archive replace Google Vault?
It can, if what you need is a long-term, searchable record of email with retention, eDiscovery and legal hold. Vault also covers other Google services in place, so some organisations keep both. We look at how you use Vault before recommending either.
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