# Unexpected results with deleted files when using Custom and Smart Retention settings **URL:** \ **Category:** Features\ **Created:** [June 9, 2022, 12:53pm UTC](https://forum.duplicati.com/t/unexpected-results-with-deleted-files-when-using-custom-and-smart-retention-settings/14532 "2022-06-09T12:53:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 2
**Author:** ![Xavron](https://forum.duplicati.com/user_avatar/forum.duplicati.com/xavron/32/5539_2.png) [@Xavron](https://forum.duplicati.com/u/Xavron)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2022, 2:10pm UTC](https://forum.duplicati.com/t/unexpected-results-with-deleted-files-when-using-custom-and-smart-retention-settings/14532/2 "2022-06-09T14:10:10Z")
So what you’re saying is that if you use eg smart backup and delete a file locally that it then gets fully deleted from Duplicati backups within some days? That definitely doesn’t protect from accidental deletions that show up months later. That should not be an advanced user thing for sure. I would think its just an oversight. According to the following then this would indeed be an incorrect situation or bug as smart backup says it will have a limit for 12 months (_There will remain one backup for… each of the last 12 months:_) _“ **any file deleted from the source** will subsequently be deleted from the backup **when it reaches the retention policy limit.** ”_ > [@New retention policy deletes old backups in a smart way](https://forum.duplicati.com/t/new-retention-policy-deletes-old-backups-in-a-smart-way/2195/37): > > Thanks for the clarification! For those that might not follow the difference, here’s a quick summary of how --retention-policy cleanup handles “end of life” of a file / version: any file still existing in the source will always have at least the most recent version in the backup even if that most recent backup is older than retention policy limits. (Unless --allow-full-removal is enabled, in which case backup versions older than retention rules allow WILL be removed from the backup even if … --- _[View the full topic](https://forum.duplicati.com/t/unexpected-results-with-deleted-files-when-using-custom-and-smart-retention-settings/14532)._