Microsoft will soon delete accounts OneDrive Business that have remained unlicensed for more than 90 days because, as mentioned in a Microsoft Learn blog postthe tech giant feels they pose a significant security threat by creating confusion and duplication in business environments.
The archiving process will begin in January 2025 and users will not have access to their accounts once they are archived. Affected accounts will incur a $0.60/GB activation fee and a $0.05/GB monthly fee for storage in the Archive. Microsoft 365Once the user pays, the activation process can take up to 24 hours, but only after following the necessary steps in the Microsoft 365 admin center.
If Microsoft archives an account, the administrator must follow the above requirements, such as:
- Creating and linking an Azure subscription to Syntex Pay-As-You-Go
- It is essential to have Global Administrator or SharePoint Administrator permission
- Enable billing for unlicensed Microsoft 365 Archive accounts (billing available starting April 2025)
Microsoft also notes that these changes do not apply to GCC, EDU, or DoD customers. However, it is possible to create an unlicensed account when you create one but give it a license. But it also advises administrators to use the SharePoint admin center to create reports on unlicensed accounts by signing in to the SharePoint admin center > going to Reports and selecting Use reports > choosing OneDrive usage and Unlicensed users, and then downloading the report as a CVS file.
The reports will show you information such as email addresses, user names, account type, and last activity date for each unlicensed One Drive account. Microsoft will make these reports available to all commercial customers worldwide starting August 16, 2024.
