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Metadata allows your managed users to define and store custom data associated with their files in Box. As an admin, you can create templates for your managed users and enable them to keep track of file attributes such as owners, project names or release dates. Metadata makes it much easier to organize, understand and search through all of your Box files. You can reference Box’s end-user metadata documentation for more benefits and use cases.
Note:Some features described on this page are only available as part of certain Box packages and add-ons. Please see the Box pricing page or contact User Services for more information. To upgrade your account, please contact your Box account team.
To enable your managed users to start using metadata in Box, create templates that they can choose from and apply to files.

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Creating Metadata Templates

  1. Go to Admin Console > Content.
  2. Select the Metadata tab.
  3. Select Create New.
  4. Select Name Your Template and enter a name.
  5. Create a name for your first attribute by selecting Name Your Attribute .
  6. Select the Format down arrow and select the type of data your managed users can enter into the attribute you are creating.
NoteIf you select one of the Dropdown options from this menu, you will be given the opportunity to determine options for your managed users to choose from. Simply type an option into the Options field and click Add Option to add additional fields.
  1. Use the Description field to incorporate additional information about the attribute.
  2. Select New Attribute to add additional attributes.
  3. Use the Status drop down to indicate whether this template is Visible to your managed users or Hidden for the time being.
  4. Select Save.
You must have at least one attribute in the template in order to save your template.
NoteThere are some limits to the number of templates, attributes, and items you can create when working with metadata templates. Review this article for more information on the limits as well as how to structure metadata for your enterprise.

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Editing Metadata Templates

  1. Go to Admin Console > Content.
  2. Select the Metadata tab. A list of metadata templates displays.
  3. Select the template you wish to edit.
  4. Make any desired changes.
  5. Select Save.
While editing a saved template, you can still add attributes by clicking Add Attribute. You can also hide existing attributes by clicking Hide, or delete existing attributes by clicking Delete. Within an attribute you cannot make changes to the Format field unless the format is a dropdown list. If you selected Dropdown for your format, you can add or delete options. Note: if you delete an existing attribute, any items with this attribute will no longer have this attribute. The associated attribute values will be deleted and cannot be undone.
NoteIf a metadata template or attribute is associated to an active retention policy, you cannot delete the template, attribute, or dropdown option until you have retired the retention policy.

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Deleting Metadata Templates

You can delete metadata templates using the Metadata Template Deletion API. This is not yet available in the Admin Console. Once you have deleted a given metadata template, the metadata template instances that are associated with your files will also be deleted. This action cannot be undone.
NoteIf a metadata template or attribute is associated to an active retention policy, you cannot delete the template, attribute, or dropdown option until you have retired the retention policy.

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Hiding Metadata Templates

If you have any templates that you want to hide from users, whether this is a template you are still developing or if this is a template you want available only via API, you can hide these from managed users today.
  1. Go to Admin Console > Content.
  2. Select the Metadata tab. A list of metadata templates displays.
  3. Select on the template you wish to hide.
  4. From the Status dropdown menu, select Hidden.
To revive a template, simply follow the steps above and select Visible from the Status dropdown menu.

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Admin Report Logging

The creation, update, and deletion of metadata templates and metadata values are available in the Box User Activity Report. If the metadata template is changed or deleted, only one event is logged noting the template change/deletion. There is no separate event logged for all template values associated with items that are impacted.