SharePoint Thumbnail Column Issue

Question

I possess a SharePoint list named "Testing," which contains several columns, including Thumbnail columns.

I have the following inquiries:

1. In the Testing list, the majority of the Thumbnail columns are displaying as broken images rather than showing the actual images. These images can be found in the Site Assets under Lists and the List ID for the Testing list, yet they continue to appear as broken. What steps can be taken to resolve this issue?
2. For certain list items, images are missing from the Site Assets under Lists and the List ID for the Testing list. How can I retrieve those items (the recycle bin is empty)

[Moderator note: personal info removed]
Thanks

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Moved from: Microsoft 365 and Office | SharePoint | Open Specifications

Answer 1

Hello everyone,

I’m not sure if this issue has been resolved for anyone else, but I’m currently experiencing the same problem with the Thumbnail column in SharePoint.

I work across two separate Microsoft 365 tenants, and this issue is occurring in both environments. These are solutions that were previously working without any problems.

Issue Summary

• The problem appears to have started around January 2026 and is still occurring as of mid-February 2026.

When I upload an image to a Thumbnail column:

The image appears broken immediately after upload.

• I cannot view it in SharePoint.
• I cannot use it in Power Apps.

This happens:

• On any site
• In any list
• Across both tenants
• As long as the column type is Thumbnail

However, if I wait until the next day, the previously broken image loads correctly and works as expected.

Additional Information

Microsoft 365 Health reports show no related incidents.

I’ve logged a support ticket, but the response was that no issue could be identified.

This is not currently blocking production for me because I can tolerate a 24-hour delay, but it is clearly not expected behavior.

Question

Is anyone else experiencing this behavior?

I’m trying to determine whether:

The Thumbnail column is simply not widely used, so the issue isn’t being reported much,

This is a broader but underreported issue, or

It might be isolated to a specific region or datacenter.

Any feedback or confirmation from others would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 2

Hello @Kapil Jindal

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A Community! 

Thank you for the information you have provided so far.  

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 Please note that this forum is a public platform, so we’ve adjusted your question to hide your organization’s domain name. For future posts, kindly avoid sharing any personal or organizational details to help protect your data. 

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To help restore the missing and broken Thumbnail images in the list, please try uploading the images again directly into the affected list items. Re‑uploading forces SharePoint to generate new, valid file references, which resolves situations where earlier images are no longer available or where the system is unable to render the original link.  

Once you have re‑uploaded a few images, please check whether they appear correctly in both List view and Gallery view. If the images still do not display correctly after re‑uploading, the issue may require a deeper investigation at the service level.  

In that case, the next action would be to open a support case with Microsoft’s Data Protection Team so they can review the back‑end system, check for file inconsistencies, and confirm whether any data is recoverable from protected service layers. 

Kindly ask your Admin to open a support request directly from the Microsoft 365 admin center (Admin > Support > New service request) following the “Get support – Microsoft 365 admin” guidance. 

To ensure your case is efficiently handled, please be prepared with the following details: 

1. Clear examples of the affected items 
2. Details about where the images should be stored 
3. A history of attachment settings and list behavior 
4. What troubleshooting you have already completed 

Once the Data Protection team receives your request, they will investigate the case and guide you through the steps to achieve the goal. 

Thank you very much for your valuable time and your cooperation. Let me know if you have any other concerns. 

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