Removing records.
WHAT SOFT DELETING IS
Marking a record as deleted rather than removing it.
WHY USE IT
Accidental deletion can be reversed History is preserved Related records are not orphaned
WHAT TO BE CAREFUL WITH
Queries that must exclude deleted records Unique constraints, which still apply to deleted rows Tables growing indefinitely
THE UNIQUE CONSTRAINT POINT
A soft-deleted record still occupies its unique value.
Someone cannot reuse an address or reference until it is genuinely removed.
WHAT TO PLAN
Permanent removal after a retention period.
WHY
Retaining everything forever creates obligations and cost.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
How long each kind of record is kept What is deleted and what is anonymised
WHAT ANONYMISING MEANS
Removing identifying details while retaining the record for reporting.
WHAT TO IMPLEMENT
A scheduled task applying your retention rules.
WHAT TO DOCUMENT
The retention policy.
WHAT TO CHECK
That deleted records are genuinely excluded everywhere.
