CrashPlan Legal Hold

CrashPlan Legal Hold preserves and collects endpoint backups for eDiscovery matters, and suits organizations that already use CrashPlan for Endpoint. Its ongoing preservation and audit trail are useful; collection prerequisites, key restrictions, and deletion on release make matter planning essential.

Overview

A matter applies a preservation policy to a group of users, defining which files to retain and for how long. CrashPlan automatically collects regular file updates from custodians’ devices and records data access and policy changes. Preserving timestamps, permissions, and directory paths also helps retain context alongside file contents.

Custodians are not notified of a hold, and the legal hold backup set is not visible in the CrashPlan app. That keeps the hold out of their app experience, but there is no custodian acknowledgment. Custodians remain active users and continue consuming subscriptions while a matter is open, so preservation does not remove their seat cost.

Key features

Preservation and collection

Regular updates help keep preserved data current during a matter. Collection, however, requires an active hold and a target device with the CrashPlan app installed and active. Teams therefore need endpoint availability when planning retrieval; this is not a console-only collection workflow.

A stricter limitation applies to archives using an Archive key password or Custom key: files cannot be collected through the console for those custodians, even though their data remains preserved. Organizations using these key types should confirm that this restriction fits their collection process before relying on the service.

eDiscovery and audit

An open API and integration documentation let teams access preserved data from an existing eDiscovery platform. This is a practical fit for organizations that already have such a platform, while the supplied capabilities do not establish a standalone eDiscovery workflow. Logged access and policy changes provide an auditable record, and CrashPlan says it preserves file metadata useful for discovery.

CrashPlan says it is ISO 27001 certified and conducts annual SOC 2 Type 2 attestations on its product and infrastructure. These assurances may matter to organizations assessing security controls for legal data.

Retention when a matter ends

Releasing a custodian or closing a matter begins permanent deletion of the data preserved by that hold. That makes the end of a matter a consequential retention event: teams should account for the deletion behavior when setting policies and managing releases.

Pricing

CrashPlan Enterprise uses custom volume pricing with per-user licensing. Legal Hold is available on Enterprise plans for organizations with 250+ employees or when legal hold is needed; contact sales for a quote. There is no free plan, and the supplied plan terms give no trial length or renewal schedule.

Per-user licensing means open matters continue using subscriptions for each custodian. That cost should be weighed against the need for ongoing backup preservation and eDiscovery access. The supplied plan information describes no cheaper CrashPlan tier with Legal Hold, so organizations below the stated Enterprise criteria should confirm eligibility with sales.

Platforms

The listed platforms are API, Linux, macOS, web, and Windows. The CrashPlan app supports Windows, macOS, and Linux; because collection requires that app to be installed and active on the target device, desktop support is central to the collection workflow.

Who it's for

CrashPlan Legal Hold is best suited to organizations using CrashPlan for Endpoint that need to preserve changing endpoint files across groups of custodians, maintain audit records, and access data through an existing eDiscovery platform. It is a weaker fit for teams that need custodian acknowledgment, console collection regardless of archive key type, or continued preservation after a custodian is released or a matter closes.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Automatic regular updates preserve changing files during an open matter, reducing reliance on a one-time snapshot.
• Pro: Access and policy changes are logged, and preserved metadata includes timestamps, permissions, and directory paths.
• Pro: An open API supports access from an existing eDiscovery platform.
• Con: Collection depends on an active hold and an active CrashPlan app on the target device.
• Con: Console collection is unavailable for custodians with Archive key password or Custom key archives, despite continued preservation.
• Con: Releasing a custodian or closing a matter starts permanent deletion, while open matters continue consuming user subscriptions.
• Con: Custodians receive no hold notification and provide no acknowledgment.

Alternatives

Browse Legal Hold Software for more options. Consider Exterro eDiscovery for a web-based paid alternative with pricing details available through a demo request. OnitX CLM is a paid API and web option with pricing available by booking a demo.

Knovos Manage offers web and self-hosted options, with standard licensing and usage-based pricing mentioned. Litera CAM Litigation Hold is a web add-on for iManage and NetDocuments, available with CAM C3 and above licenses. Venio eDiscovery offers API, self-hosted, web, and Windows platforms, with pricing by instance, case, or enterprise and project-based or multi-year options.

Vidhaana Legal Hold Management is a web, Android, and iOS alternative with a free trial and an AI Power Plan at ₹999 a month, billed ₹999 per month, for one team with no per-user fees and unlimited document reviews. OpenAxes is a paid API option. Pagefreezer offers web and extension-based archiving, with custom quotes for website archiving and social media archiving.

Verdict

Choose CrashPlan Legal Hold if your organization already uses CrashPlan for Endpoint and needs ongoing backup preservation with auditable access to an existing eDiscovery platform. Its strongest advantage is the combination of regular file updates, policy-based matters, and audit records. Look elsewhere if your collection depends on console access for restricted key types, if you need custodian acknowledgment, or if preserved data must remain after a matter closes.