Guide
Review
Reviews created within the Reviews module cannot be referenced, reused, or managed through Access Reviews. Likewise, reviews created within Access Reviews are exclusive to that feature and cannot be accessed, converted, or utilized within the Reviews module.
As a result, any review activity must be created and managed within the specific feature where it is intended to be used. Data, configurations, and review instances are not shared between the two modules.
Reviews let you set up periodic governance reviews of the Microsoft 365 workspaces in your tenant. Workspace owners verify who has access, remove people who no longer need it, and confirm that sharing permissions are appropriate - directly from the Rencore Teams App.
As an admin, you create review schedules, configure what reviewers see and can do, and monitor progress through the User Portal.
Before you start
To use Reviews, your organization needs:
- Premium Plan - Reviews is part of the premium plan.
- Permissions - Your role must include Review permissions (read, create, edit, delete, enable/disable, trigger). If you can see the Reviews navigation item but certain buttons are grayed out, check your role permissions with your Rencore admin.
Key concepts
Reviews work in a three-level hierarchy:
Level | What it is | Who manages it |
|---|---|---|
Review schedule | The configuration that defines what gets reviewed, how often, and by whom | Admin (User Portal) |
Cycle | A single execution of a review schedule - one review cycle covering all matching workspaces | Automatic (system created based on a schedule) |
Object review | An individual workspace review is assigned to its owner(s) | Reviewer (Rencore Teams App) |
How a review works end-to-end
- Create a review schedule - Define the trigger (manual or recurring), select the service type, choose which review steps to include, and configure automations.
- A cycle starts - Either immediately (manual trigger) or on the next scheduled date. The system identifies all matching workspaces and creates object reviews for each one.
- Reviewers are notified - Workspace owners (or specified users) receive a notification that they have reviews to complete.
- Reviewers complete their reviews - In the Rencore Teams App, reviewers walk through each configured step (owners, members, site access, file access), make changes, and submit.
- You monitor progress - Track completion rates, review decisions, and take action on expired or problematic reviews.
Manual vs. scheduled triggers
Trigger type | Behavior |
|---|---|
Manual | You start each cycle explicitly. The schedule auto-disables after the cycle finishes or is canceled. Re-enable to start a new cycle. |
Scheduled | Cycles start automatically on the configured schedule. The schedule stays enabled between cycles. |
Status vs. decision
Reviews track two separate dimensions:
Status is the lifecycle state - where the review is in the process:
- Pending, In Progress, Completed, Expired, Canceled
Decision is the workspace outcome - what happened to the workspace:
- Unreviewed (default), Reviewed, Archived, Deleted, Rejected, or a custom action name
A review can be completed with a Decision of “Reviewed” (reviewer made changes and submitted), or expired with a Decision of “Unreviewed” (nobody acted before the due date). These are independent dimensions.
Reviewer assignment
You choose how reviewers are assigned when creating a review schedule:
- Owners (default) - Workspace owners are automatically assigned as reviewers. This is the most common choice since owners know their workspaces best.
- Specified users - You manually select individual users who will review all workspaces in the scope. Useful for centralized governance teams.