Delete Groups in Outlook 365 – A Complete Guide

Overview: To manage the Outlook 365 groups, the admin has to delete the unnecessary groups and user accounts. But do not how therefore, in this article, you will find the complete steps to delete groups in Outlook 365.

Office 365 provides several functionalities to facilitate businesses’ tasks. There is also an option for Groups in Outlook 365. The groups are managed by the particular admin because there are different admin roles in Office 365.

Because of the groups, the team’s collaboration increased. All the members of the groups can work on a similar project by accessing the project-related files such as sheets, docs, and many more. But sometimes there is a requirement to delete groups and user accounts in Outlook 365 as well. Let’s explore the reasons for deleting groups in Outlook 365.

Table Of Content

• • Why Delete Office 365 Group?
  • Things to Keep in Mind Before Delete Groups in Outlook 365
  • How to Delete User Accounts in Outlook 365?
  • Delete Office 365 Group Step-By-Step
  • How to Take Backup of Outlook 365 Data?
  • Conclusion

Why Delete Office 365 Group?

Below are several reasons to delete users and groups in Outlook 365.

1. When an employee leaves the organization the admin has to take the steps to delete the user. All the related items such as emails, contacts, and calendars are deleted.
2. If the group is no longer required, then it is best to delete that. Because through the deletion of the group, the space is freed up.
3. If the group has some sensitive information that can be stolen by the attacker, then you should delete groups in Outlook 365.
4. To reduce the license cost, you should delete the group and user account. Because there is an amount for every user that is paid by the organization.
5. If you delete Office 365 groups that are no longer required then the performance of the Outlook 365 is improved. Because Office 365 performs efficiently with a small number of users and groups.
6. To manage a large number of users and groups is also a tough task for the admin. If the number of users and groups is reduced then the job of admin becomes easier.

Things to Keep in Mind Before Delete Groups in Outlook 365

You should be aware of several key points before delete an account in Outlook.

1. The deletion of a user account or a group can be done by the administrator or the group owners only. If someone only has the member rights of the group then it is not able to perform a delete operation.
2. Make sure the users or groups that you are going to delete are no longer required.
3. Perform a quick check before the deletion to save all the required documents for further use.
4. Disable the email forwarding or sharing before the deletion of the groups and users.
5. If the group and user are deleted then the data is permanently deleted which cannot be restored.

How to Delete User Accounts in Outlook 365?

To delete an account in Outlook, you need to execute the below steps sequentially.

• Step 1. Open the Office 365 Admin Center with the required credentials.
• Step 2. Now in the admin center, click on Users > Active Users.
• Step 3. From the given list of users, select the account that you want to delete from Outlook 365. Click on the 3 dots for more actions.
• Step 4. Choose the ‘Delete User’ option.
• Step 5. Select the option of Delete Team & tick the checkbox of delete.

Also Read: How to Migrate Office 365 Groups to Another Tenant?

Delete Office 365 Group Step-By-Step

• Step 1. Log in to Outlook 365 and open the Office 365 Admin Center.
• Step 2. Choose the Teams & Groups from the left side panel.
• Step 3. Click on Active teams & groups.
• Step 4. It’s time to click on additional actions and complete the groups that will be removed from Outlook 365.
• Step 5. Select the option of Delete Team.
• Step 6. Tick the checkbox of delete and the group gets deleted.

Now you know how to delete groups in Outlook 365 and user accounts too. In some situations, the groups or user accounts get deleted by mistake. When the data is deleted in Office 365, then the data can be recovered within 30 days.

This is known as the soft delete because the deleted data can be recovered or restored within 30 days by the admin. But if the deleted data is not recovered within 30 days, then it is not possible to get the data again. So, before going to delete Office 365 group, you should take a backup of the data. But the question arises how?

How to Take Backup of Outlook 365 Data?

Delete groups in Outlook 365 is explained but it can be done by mistake too. So, if you do not want to lose your crucial data, then use the Office 365 Backup tool. This tool is recommended by the experts to take backup.

By using this tool you can take a backup of all the Outlook mailboxes and also convert them to PST in one go. It is able to take the backup of the Shared mailboxes in Office 365 as well. You can also take the benefit of the advanced features of this tool.

Free Download Purchase Now

1. Able to work on the bulk data.
2. Efficiently take the backup of the in-place archive mailbox.
3. Provides a Smart Date filter available to select the relevant data only.
4. Concurrent Microsoft 365 Backup option is also available to speed up the process.
5. Maintains the folder hierarchy after taking backup.
6. Generates the complete report of all the executed steps.

Conclusion

When any user leaves the organization then their account needs to be deleted to reduce the organization’s expenses. In this write-up, all the steps to delete an account in Outlook or to delete groups in Outlook 365 are explained in detail.

It is excellent practice, nevertheless, to have a backup of the data before deleting any user accounts or groups. To take backup of the data an efficient tool is explained that is also recommended by the experts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Can we recover the data from the deleted groups?

Ans – Yes, you can recover the deleted data from the groups but within 30 days.

Q2. What Should I do before going to delete Office 365 group?

Ans – Before deleting an Outlook group make sure that all of the data is downloaded.

Q3. Can we delete the users from the Outlook?

Ans – Yes, you can delete the users from the Outlook group using the Office 365 admin center.

Q4. Why I am not able to delete groups in Outlook?

Ans – To delete a group you should be an admin or owner of the group.