Novbay
Data Retention Policy
How long Novbay keeps each kind of data, and what happens when you cancel, downgrade, or delete.
Last updated: October 27, 2026 (draft, effective October 2026)
Version 1.0 · Effective October 2026
Run records are often something your team needs to look back on months or years later. So our default is simple: we keep your workspace for as long as it exists, and we don't delete your records unless you ask us to. This page explains how long each kind of information is kept, and what happens when you cancel, downgrade, or delete.
1. How long we keep each kind of data
| Data | How long we keep it |
|---|---|
| Procedures, revisions, and change requests | While your workspace exists, until a Lead, Admin, or Owner deletes them |
| Run records (sign-offs, notes, readings, photos) | While your workspace exists. We never delete them on our own. |
| Workspace settings, team members, and roles | While your workspace exists |
| Children's accounts (under 13) | Until the parent, guardian, or advisor who added them, or the workspace Owner, asks us to delete them, or the workspace is deleted |
| Pending invites | Until they're accepted or revoked, or the workspace is deleted |
| "Someone is editing" markers | A few minutes. They clear themselves when editing stops. |
| Your account (email, name, sign-in records) | Until you delete your account |
| Billing records (plan, Stripe IDs, invoices, payments) | As long as tax and accounting law requires, generally up to 7 years after the transaction. Stripe keeps its own copies under its policies. |
| Support emails | Up to 2 years after the conversation ends, unless you ask us to delete them sooner |
| Email delivery records (Resend) | A short time, under Resend's retention settings |
| Technical logs (Cloudflare and Supabase) | A few days, then they're automatically removed |
| Your device's working copy | Until you sign out or clear your browser's site data |
Signed-out demo. If you try Novbay without signing in, anything you make is saved only in that browser. We never receive it. Clearing your browser's site data deletes it.
2. If you cancel or downgrade
- Nothing is deleted. When a paid plan ends, your workspace moves to the Free plan at the end of the billing period you've paid for.
- Over the limit? You keep everything. If you have more procedures, people, or storage than the Free plan allows, everything you already have stays readable and runnable, and you can still download PDFs. You just can't add new procedures, people, or photos until you're back under the limit or upgrade again.
- Runs in progress are never cut off. Reaching a limit never stops someone mid-run.
- Billing records stay for the time shown in the table above.
3. If you delete something inside your workspace
- Draft procedures can be deleted by Leads, Admins, and Owners. They're removed from the live database at the next sync.
- Published procedures need you to type the procedure code to confirm. Deleting one doesn't change run records that already used it, because each record keeps its own copy of the revision it ran.
- Deleted items disappear from your teammates' devices the next time they sync.
4. If you delete your workspace
Only the workspace Owner can delete a workspace.
- You confirm by typing the workspace name.
- Billing stops. Any paid subscription is canceled, so you won't be charged again.
- A 30-day grace period starts. During this time the workspace is locked, and you can restore it by emailing us or using the restore option in Settings.
- After 30 days, it's permanently deleted. All procedures, run records, photos, settings, members, and invites are removed from our live database. This can't be undone.
Export first. Once a workspace is permanently deleted, we can't get it back. Download your team's data before you start (see Your Data Rights).
5. If you delete your account
- Your sign-in, email address, and profile are removed, and you're taken off every workspace you belong to.
- Records you signed stay with your team. A run record is your team's history. Your name and sign-off time stay on records you signed so the record stays complete and accurate. Those records are deleted when the workspace is deleted.
- If you're the Owner of a workspace that has other people in it, hand the Owner role to someone else (or delete the workspace) before you delete your account. That way your team isn't left without an Owner.
6. Backups
Today: we don't keep separate backups of the database yet. Once data is deleted from our live database, it's gone. That's one more reason to keep your own exports of records that matter.
Soon: we're moving to our database provider's paid plan. Once we do, daily backups will be kept for 7 days. Deleted data will drop out of backups within 7 days after it's removed from the live database. We'll use backups only to recover from an outage or mistake on our side, and we won't restore deleted data from a backup unless you ask us to. We'll update this section when that happens.
7. Workspaces that go quiet
We don't delete inactive workspaces today. If we ever decide to remove long-inactive Free workspaces, we'll email the Owner at least 30 days ahead so there's time to export or sign back in.
8. When we may keep data longer
We may keep specific information longer if the law requires it, to resolve a dispute or billing question, to deal with abuse or a security issue, or because of a valid legal request. We keep only what's needed, and only for as long as it's needed.
9. Changes to this policy
If we change how long we keep anything, we'll update the version number and date above. If a change shortens how long we keep your records, we'll tell workspace Owners at least 30 days ahead.
Questions? Email support@novbay.com. See also: Privacy Policy · Your Data Rights · Security