Clean-up procedure for inactive external guest accounts for Teams and SharePoint

SDU automatically removes external users who have access to Teams and SharePoint. The purpose is to strengthen IT security and reduce the number of inactive guest accounts that no longer support current collaboration needs.

Automatic procedure

• Invitations to external users must be accepted and used within 30 days. Otherwise, the invitation expires automatically and the guest account is removed.
• External users who have not used their access for 120 days are considered inactive and automatically lose access.
• If an external user still needs access, the owner of the relevant Team or SharePoint site must invite the user again.

What does this mean for you as an owner?

If an external collaborator contacts you because they no longer have access, this usually means either that the invitation was not accepted within 30 days or that the user has not been active for 120 days. In both cases, you must create a new invitation if the collaboration still requires access.

Good advice

• Only give external users access when there is a current collaboration need.
• Remove guests when the collaboration ends.
• Inform external collaborators that the invitation must be accepted within 30 days.
• Be aware that no activity for 120 days leads to automatic removal of access.

If an external user still needs access, the owner of the relevant Team or SharePoint site must invite them again.

For more guidance, read the guide to external access to Teams and SharePoint