Windows Server 2008 R2 now offers the ability to assign properties to files that reside on a file server and classify them based on location and content.

"The File Classification Infrastructure includes the ability to define classification properties, automatically classify files based on location and content, apply file management tasks such as file expiration and custom commands based on classification and produce reports that show the distribution of a classification property on the file server. "

This is good news for using and managing information that is captured in legacy file shares.

Potential business benefits:

• Applying Records Management on file shares
• Better litigation preparedness for e-discovery
• Building Thought Leadership from information that was previously not easily accessible
• Enabling holistic Information Management

Below is a short video example on how this feature can be used to find and tag documents containing a Social Security Number (SSN). The scenario is around Pension Enrollement including legacy documentation, scanned in part, residing on a file server.

If you are not yet running Server 2008 R2, please download an evaluation copy here

Resources:

·         See here how to create properties and classify files.

·         Windows Server 2008 R2 File Classification Infrastructure – Managing data based on business value