Cutoff Instruction

A cutoff instruction defines when a record folder or record will become eligible for cutoff, and therefore when it will become inactive and its retention schedule will begin (learn more about a record's life cycle). If a record has no cutoff instruction, the retention schedule will begin immediately and the record will never become inactive. Each type of cutoff instruction provides a different way of calculating cutoff eligibility , offering you a more flexible solution to managing your records. Laserfiche offers the following types of cutoff instructions:

Note: Cutoff instructions are created in the Laserfiche Administration Console and applied in the Laserfiche Windows client application; and, only users who have been assigned the Records Management privilege can create, modify, or assign cutoff instructions.

To create cutoff instructions

  1. Open the Laserfiche Administration Console.
  2. In the console tree, expand the desired Laserfiche Server item and select the Laserfiche repository.
  3. If security has been enabled on that repository, log in as a user who has been granted the Records Management privilege.
  4. Expand the Records Management node and select the Cutoff Instructions item.
  5. From the Action drop-down in the main menu, click New Cutoff Instruction. Alternatively, click the New button in the toolbar, or right-click in the Contents Pane and select New Cutoff Instruction.
  6. Enter a Name and Description for the cutoff instruction.
    • A cutoff instruction name can have a maximum length of 200 characters.
    • A cutoff instruction description can have a maximum length of 800 characters.
  7. From the Type drop-down menu, select the desired cutoff instruction. Depending on the cutoff type selected:
    • ClosedTime

      • Select the desired cycle from the Cycle drop-down menu. Learn about creating Cycle Definitions.

    • ClosedEvent

      • Click Add and type the name of an event or select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, you can choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, select it and click Remove.
      • To rename an event, select it and click Rename, then type the new name. (This will change the event name for all instructions that use this event.)

    • ClosedTime+Event

      • Select the desired cycle from the Cycle drop-down menu. In the Events section, click Add and type the name of an event or select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, select it and click Remove.
      • To rename an event, select it and click Rename, then type the new name. (This will change the event name for all instructions that use this event.)

    • ClosedInterval

      • Type the length, in months, of the interval you want to configure in the Interval field.

    • ClosedInterval+Event

      • Type the length, in months, of the interval you want to configure in the Interval field. In the Events section, click Add and type the name of an event or select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, select it and click Remove.
      • To rename an event, select it and click Rename, then type the new name. (This will change the event name for all instructions that use this event.)

    • ClosedSuperseded

      • No further configuration is necessary.

    • ClosedDisposition Action

      • From the Document Relationship drop-down menu, select the document relationship type that will satisfy the cutoff instruction. Next, from the Linked Document Action drop-down menu, select which action performed on the linked document that will trigger the record's cutoff eligibility.

      • If you select Transfer from the Linked Document Action drop-down menu, specify the transfer location that will satisfy the cutoff instruction from the Location drop-down menu. Learn how to define a location.

  8. Click OK to close the dialog box to create the new cutoff instruction.
  1. Open the web client management page. Sign in as a user who has been granted the Records Management privilege.
  2. Select Records from the left side of the page.
  3. Select the Cutoff Instructions tab.
  4. Click the Add button.
  5. Enter a Name and Description.
    • A cutoff instruction name can have a maximum length of 200 characters.
    • A cutoff instruction description can have a maximum length of 800 characters.
  6. From the Type drop-down menu, select the desired cutoff instruction. Depending on the cutoff type selected:
    • ClosedTime

      • Select the desired cycle from the Cycle drop-down menu. Learn about creating Cycle Definitions.

    • ClosedEvent

      • To create a new event, click Create new event and enter the name and description of the event. To use an existing event, select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, you can choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, click the X to its right.

    • ClosedTime+Event

      • Select the desired cycle from the Cycle drop-down menu. To create a new event, click Create new event and enter the name and description of the event. To use an existing event, select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, you can choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, click the X to its right.

    • ClosedInterval

      • Type the length, in months, of the interval you want to configure in the Interval field.

    • ClosedInterval+Event

      • Type the length, in months, of the interval you want to configure in the Interval field. To create a new event, click Create new event and enter the name and description of the event. To use an existing event, select one from the drop-down menu. For cutoff instructions with multiple events, you can choose whether or not cutoff eligibility will require that all events have occurred or if the occurrence of any event will trigger eligibility.

      • To remove an event, click the X to its right.

    • ClosedSuperseded

      • No further configuration is necessary.

    • ClosedDisposition Action

      • From the Document relationship drop-down menu, select the document relationship type that will satisfy the cutoff instruction. Next, from the Linked action drop-down menu, select which action performed on the linked document that will trigger the record's cutoff eligibility.

      • If you select Transfer from the Linked Document Action drop-down menu, specify the transfer location that will satisfy the cutoff instruction from the Location drop-down menu. Learn how to define a location.

  7. Click OK to close the dialog box and create the new cutoff instruction.

Note: If you remove an event, any event dates that were set for the original event name will be cleared, which may result in data loss. Instead, it is recommended to rename events when applicable.

To assign cutoff instructions

Cutoff instructions are assigned to record series or records folders in either the Laserfiche web or Windows client.

Tip: Assign cutoff instructions at the record series or record folder level and apply the changes to child entries. Note that cutoff instructions that are explicitly assigned will override inherited properties.

  1. Select a record series, folder, or document that you want to assign a cutoff instruction to. In the Windows client, select View Record Properties from the Record drop-down menu, or, right-click the entry and select Record Properties. In the web client, select the Records tab in the details pane. If no cutoff instruction or retention schedule has been assigned yet, select Edit Properties.
  2. Under Cutoff Instruction, select the name of the cutoff instruction you want to assign to the selected record series, record folder, or record from the Name drop-down.
  3. Optional: If you are modifying a record series, you can select Apply changes to child record series and record folders to update any child record series, record folders, or records that this record series contains.

    Note: This option will only propagate the current set of changes to the child record series and folders; it will not update the child record series and folders to exactly match this record series. For example, if you had previously changed the record folder's cutoff instructions, and you are now designating the record series as vital and select this option to propagate that setting, the child record series and folders will be designated as vital, but the prior change to the record folder's cutoff instruction will not be overwritten.

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