Microsoft is preparing to roll out a major improvement to Microsoft 365 Backup that will allow administrators to restore individual files and folders, making the recovery process faster and more efficient.
Microsoft 365 Backup is a backup and restore service designed for SharePoint, OneDrive, and Exchange. It helps organizations protect important data from threats such as ransomware attacks, accidental deletions, and data corruption.
Until now, the system only worked at the site or drive level. This meant that if a single file was deleted or damaged, administrators often had to restore the entire site or drive. That process could take a significant amount of time, especially for large environments.
With the new update, administrators will be able to restore data in a much more precise way. They can browse or search through existing restore points for protected SharePoint sites and OneDrive accounts, then select only the specific files or folders they want to recover.
The feature will only be available to organizations that already have Microsoft 365 Backup enabled. It will also require administrators to have the SharePoint Backup Administrator role to perform restore operations. Regular users will not notice any changes because all recovery actions will still be handled by administrators in the background.
Microsoft confirmed that the granular restore feature entered public preview in early March 2026. The company expects it to become generally available worldwide between late April and early May 2026.
Before the update reaches their systems, Microsoft recommends that organizations review their Microsoft 365 Backup coverage for SharePoint and OneDrive. Companies should also ensure that backup administrators understand how the new granular restore process works and update their internal recovery procedures to include file and folder-level restore scenarios.
Microsoft explained that the new capability does not change how backup data is stored. Instead, it simply provides administrators with a more detailed way to access existing restore points and recover specific files or folders when needed.
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The company recently introduced another backup-related improvement as well. Last month, Microsoft expanded Windows Backup for Organizations, allowing enterprise users to restore personal settings and Microsoft Store apps from a previous Windows 11 device.
