Browsing Data Lifetime Settings

What it does

Configures browsing data lifetime settings for Brave. This policy allows admins to configure (per data-type) when data is deleted by the browser. This is useful for customers that work with sensitive customer data. Warning: Setting this policy can impact and permanently remove local personal data. It is recommended to test your settings before deploying to prevent accidental deletion of personal data. The available data types are 'browsing_history', 'download_history', 'cookies_and_other_site_data', 'cached_images_and_files', 'password_signin', 'autofill', 'site_settings' and 'hosted_app_data'. 'download_history' and 'hosted_app_data' are not supported on Android. The browser will automatically remove data of selected types that is older than 'time_to_live_in_hours'. The minimum value that can be set is 1 hour. The deletion of expired data will happen 15 seconds after the browser starts then every 30 minutes while the browser is running. The user will stay signed into their Google account when deleting cookies. Until Chrome 114, this policy required the SyncDisabled policy to be set to true. Starting Chrome 115, setting this policy will disable sync for the respective data types if neither `Chrome Sync` is disabled by setting the SyncDisabled policy nor BrowserSignin is disabled. See https://chromeenterprise.google/policies/?policy=BrowsingDataLifetime for more information about schema and formatting. Example value: [ { "data_types": [ "browsing_history" ], "time_to_live_in_hours": 24 }, { "data_types": [ "password_signin", "autofill" ], "time_to_live_in_hours": 12 } ]

What it writes

Hive

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE or HKEY_CURRENT_USER

Registry key

Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave

Options

Configure and deploy

Choose a state and the option values; the output below is generated from the template for exactly that.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave]
"BrowsingDataLifetime"=""

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'

function Set-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $PropertyType,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Value
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        New-Item -Path $Path -Force | Out-Null
    }

    New-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -PropertyType $PropertyType -Value $Value -Force | Out-Null
}

function Remove-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

function Clear-RegistryKeyValues {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return
    }

    foreach ($propertyName in (Get-Item -LiteralPath $Path).Property) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $propertyName -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

# Policy: Browsing Data Lifetime Settings
# Name: BrowsingDataLifetime
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: brave.admx

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave' -Name 'BrowsingDataLifetime' -PropertyType 'String' -Value ''

./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_brave/BrowsingDataLifetime

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
$reasons = [System.Collections.Generic.List[string]]::new()

function Test-RegistryValueExists {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return $false
    }

    return $null -ne (Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)
}

function Test-RegistryValueEquals {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Kind,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Expected
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return $false
    }

    $valueObject = Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    if ($null -eq $valueObject) {
        return $false
    }

    $actual = $valueObject.$Name
    switch ($Kind) {
        'String' { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
        'ExpandString' { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
        'DWord' { return [uint32]$actual -eq [uint32]$Expected }
        'QWord' {
            $actualBits = if ($actual -is [uint64]) { $actual } else { [BitConverter]::ToUInt64([BitConverter]::GetBytes([int64]$actual), 0) }
            $expectedBits = if ($Expected -is [uint64]) { $Expected } else { [BitConverter]::ToUInt64([BitConverter]::GetBytes([int64]$Expected), 0) }
            return $actualBits -eq $expectedBits
        }
        'MultiString' {
            $actualArray = @($actual)
            $expectedArray = @($Expected)
            if ($actualArray.Count -ne $expectedArray.Count) { return $false }
            for ($index = 0; $index -lt $actualArray.Count; $index++) {
                if ([string]$actualArray[$index] -cne [string]$expectedArray[$index]) { return $false }
            }
            return $true
        }
        'Binary' {
            $actualArray = [byte[]]$actual
            $expectedArray = [byte[]]$Expected
            if ($actualArray.Length -ne $expectedArray.Length) { return $false }
            for ($index = 0; $index -lt $actualArray.Length; $index++) {
                if ($actualArray[$index] -ne $expectedArray[$index]) { return $false }
            }
            return $true
        }
        default { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
    }
}

# Policy: Browsing Data Lifetime Settings
# Name: BrowsingDataLifetime
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: brave.admx

$isMatch = Test-RegistryValueEquals -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave' -Name 'BrowsingDataLifetime' -Kind 'String' -Expected ''
if (-not $isMatch) {
    $reasons.Add('Value mismatch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave\BrowsingDataLifetime') | Out-Null
}

if ($reasons.Count -eq 0) {
    Write-Output 'Compliant'
    exit 0
}

$reasons | ForEach-Object { Write-Output $_ }
exit 1

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'

function Set-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $PropertyType,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Value
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        New-Item -Path $Path -Force | Out-Null
    }

    New-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -PropertyType $PropertyType -Value $Value -Force | Out-Null
}

function Remove-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

function Clear-RegistryKeyValues {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return
    }

    foreach ($propertyName in (Get-Item -LiteralPath $Path).Property) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $propertyName -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

# Policy: Browsing Data Lifetime Settings
# Name: BrowsingDataLifetime
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: brave.admx

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave' -Name 'BrowsingDataLifetime' -PropertyType 'String' -Value ''

History 50 retained releases

1. 1.92.1342 Jul 2026
   Registry key: Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave · Value name: Not specified
   • Description … is disabled by setting the SyncDisabled policy nor BrowserSignin is disabled. See [removed: https://cloud.google.com/docs/chrome-enterprise/policies/?policy=BrowsingDataLifetime][added: https://chromeenterprise.google/policies/?policy=BrowsingDataLifetime] for more information about schema and formatting. Example value: [ { "data_types": …
     Whole description, marked

     Configures browsing data lifetime settings for Brave. This policy allows admins to configure (per data-type) when data is deleted by the browser. This is useful for customers that work with sensitive customer data. Warning: Setting this policy can impact and permanently remove local personal data. It is recommended to test your settings before deploying to prevent accidental deletion of personal data. The available data types are 'browsing_history', 'download_history', 'cookies_and_other_site_data', 'cached_images_and_files', 'password_signin', 'autofill', 'site_settings' and 'hosted_app_data'. 'download_history' and 'hosted_app_data' are not supported on Android. The browser will automatically remove data of selected types that is older than 'time_to_live_in_hours'. The minimum value that can be set is 1 hour. The deletion of expired data will happen 15 seconds after the browser starts then every 30 minutes while the browser is running. The user will stay signed into their Google account when deleting cookies. Until Chrome 114, this policy required the SyncDisabled policy to be set to true. Starting Chrome 115, setting this policy will disable sync for the respective data types if neither `Chrome Sync` is disabled by setting the SyncDisabled policy nor BrowserSignin is disabled. See [removed: https://cloud.google.com/docs/chrome-enterprise/policies/?policy=BrowsingDataLifetime][added: https://chromeenterprise.google/policies/?policy=BrowsingDataLifetime] for more information about schema and formatting. Example value: [ { "data_types": [ "browsing_history" ], "time_to_live_in_hours": 24 }, { "data_types": [ "password_signin", "autofill" ], "time_to_live_in_hours": 12 } ]

2. 1.88.13214 Mar 2026
   • Already present in the first release ChangeIntel keeps.

48 later releases left it unchanged.

Template

Internal name

BrowsingDataLifetime

Namespace

BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave

Template file

brave.admx

Release

Brave Browser 1.99.56 · file set 81128c9e2b3d3d31…

<policy class="Both" displayName="$(string.BrowsingDataLifetime)" explainText="$(string.BrowsingDataLifetime_Explain)" key="Software\Policies\BraveSoftware\Brave" name="BrowsingDataLifetime" presentation="$(presentation.BrowsingDataLifetime)" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:brave" />
      <supportedOn ref="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:SUPPORTED_WIN7" />
      <elements>
        <text id="BrowsingDataLifetime" maxLength="1000000" valueName="BrowsingDataLifetime" />
      </elements>
    </policy>

<presentation id="BrowsingDataLifetime" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions"><textBox refId="BrowsingDataLifetime"><label>Browsing Data Lifetime Settings</label></textBox></presentation>

BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:category:Cat_Brave
<category displayName="$(string.Cat_Brave)" name="Cat_Brave" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:category:brave
<category displayName="$(string.brave)" name="brave" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:Cat_Brave" />
    </category>
BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:definition:SUPPORTED_WIN7
<definition displayName="$(string.SUPPORTED_WIN7)" name="SUPPORTED_WIN7" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:category:Cat_Brave
<category displayName="$(string.Cat_Brave)" name="Cat_Brave" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
<strings><string id="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:Cat_Brave">Brave Software</string></strings>
BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:category:brave
<category displayName="$(string.brave)" name="brave" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:Cat_Brave" />
    </category>
<strings><string id="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:brave">Brave</string></strings>
BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:definition:SUPPORTED_WIN7
<definition displayName="$(string.SUPPORTED_WIN7)" name="SUPPORTED_WIN7" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
<strings><string id="BraveSoftware.Policies.Brave:SUPPORTED_WIN7">Microsoft Windows 7 or later</string></strings>