Microsoft previews adjustable data retention for Fabric Warehouses
Microsoft has launched configurable data retention for Fabric Warehouses in preview. Administrators can set periods from 1 to 120 days using an ALTER DATABASE T-SQL command for each warehouse. This builds on the previous fixed 30-day limit by preserving Delta transaction log versions for time travel queries, clones and snapshots. Garbage collection removes excess data in the background. Changes apply in whole days only, and reducing retention is permanent with no recovery option. The feature lacks table-level control and pauses if capacity is suspended; it excludes Lakehouse SQL endpoints. This aims to improve data governance as Fabric powers more Power BI analytics.
Fabric Warehouses previously locked users into a 30-day data history window. This forced rushed cleanups or unchecked storage growth, leaving Power BI reports vulnerable to unrecoverable errors during refreshes from messy sources. Custom retention up to 120 days now matches business audit cycles, letting analysts verify dashboard numbers against past states without full backups. It quietly shifts inherited query nightmares toward governed Fabric flows, where DAX measures can trust source history over Excel guesswork.
Analysis
Warehouse retention sounds advanced but it's your escape from four-hour Power Query refreshes on dodgy inherited reports. Fabric's growing reliable enough for beginners to ditch Excel copies without data vanishing mid-debug. Create a Fabric trial workspace today, spin up a Warehouse with ALTER DATABASE SET RETENTION = 30 DAYS, and rebuild one monthly dashboard from it to prove instant refreshes to your boss.
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