MS-900 Describe Microsoft 365 apps and services Practice Question
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. ```powershell Get-Mailbox -Identity user@contoso.com | fl RetentionPolicy, LitigationHoldEnabled RetentionPolicy : LegalHoldPolicy LitigationHoldEnabled : True ```
Refer to the exhibit. An admin runs the PowerShell command shown. What is the implication for the user's mailbox?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse litigation hold with a retention policy or assume the command removes the policy, when in fact litigation hold is a separate preservation mechanism that overrides deletion behavior without altering the applied retention policy.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The mailbox is on litigation hold
The PowerShell command `Set-Mailbox -LitigationHoldEnabled $true` places the user's mailbox on litigation hold. This preserves all mailbox content, including deleted items and original versions of modified items, for eDiscovery purposes. The hold overrides any retention policy that would otherwise delete or archive items, ensuring data is retained indefinitely until the hold is removed.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The retention policy is not effective
Why it's wrong here
The retention policy is absolutely applied and effective. The PowerShell output shows a RetentionPolicy assignment (LegalHoldPolicy) with a retention hold enabled, so the policy is active. However, the presence of litigation hold (LitigationHoldEnabled: True) temporarily suspends the policy's deletion action, making it appear ineffective when it is actually being overridden by the hold.
- ✗
The mailbox has no retention policy applied
Why it's wrong here
The mailbox definitely has a retention policy applied. The output displays the RetentionPolicy property set to LegalHoldPolicy, which confirms the assignment. Litigation hold and retention policy are independent settings; having litigation hold enabled does not remove or negate the applied retention policy, so this statement is factually incorrect.
- ✓
The mailbox is on litigation hold
Why this is correct
The mailbox is correctly identified as being on litigation hold because the LitigationHoldEnabled property returns True. A litigation hold preserves all mailbox content indefinitely, including deleted items and previous versions, and prevents any permanent deletion or expiry. This is the direct and accurate interpretation of the output.
- ✗
The mailbox will automatically delete items after 30 days
Why it's wrong here
Litigation hold prevents automatic deletion of any mailbox items, regardless of the configured retention policy. A 30-day delete action from the retention policy would be suspended, and items would not be purged automatically. The output indicates litigation hold is enabled, so auto-deletion does not occur.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Microsoft 365 Admin APIs and Graph API Basics
Key term
Retention policy
A retention policy is a set of rules that determines how long an organization keeps its data and what happens to it when the retention period expires.
Key term
User
A user is any person, system, or device that interacts with an IT service, resource, or identity system, typically authenticated through credentials and authorized to perform specific actions.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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