Lost Global Admin access / OneDrive storage reduced from 1 TB to 100 GB

Question

Hello Microsoft Support Team,

I aman active user of the Microsoft 365 tenant with the domain:

[Moderator note: personal info removed] 

User account:

[Moderator note: personal info removed] 

Problem description:

More than 10 years ago, this tenant was created and I previously had 1 TB of OneDrive storage. About a year ago, my OneDrive storage was reduced to 100 GB.

I am not a Global Administrator and there is currently no known or accessible Global Admin account in this tenant. When trying to access the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, I receive an access denied message and no administrator contact is shown.

I therefore cannot check or assign licenses, and I am unable to restore the original OneDrive storage.

Request:

Please help to identify the existing Global Administrator for this tenant, or assist in assigning a new Global Administrator role so that license management can be restored.

I can provide proof of domain ownership or additional verification if required.

Thank you for your support.

Kind regards

[Moderator note: personal info removed] 

Answer 1

Hi @Jörg Burmann,   

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum, 

I truly appreciate you taking the time to provide detailed information about the tenant history, the change in OneDrive storage allocation, and the current limitation around administrative access.

Based on your description, I'd like to provide the following information: 

1/ Reason for the OneDrive storage reduction 

The reduction of OneDrive storage from 1 TB to 100 GB is most commonly associated with a change in license status at the tenant or user level. This can occur if a subscription has expired, been downgraded, or if a different license SKU was assigned that includes a lower OneDrive storage quota.

Because OneDrive storage is directly tied to the assigned Microsoft 365 license and tenant-level policies, restoring the original storage capacity typically requires reviewing and managing license assignments through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. 

2/ About the Global administrator role 

A Global Administrator is usually part of your organization’s IT team, such as the school or company IT department, or the person or group that originally provided you with the Microsoft 365 account you are currently using. 

You can locate and contact them by following the steps outlined in the Microsoft support article below: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support. 

Once you are able to reach out to them, you can ask them to review your license assignment and storage configuration on your behalf. 

Please note that forum moderators do not have access to user account settings and cannot assist with logging in, resetting passwords, or changing access rights. While we do not have access to internal systems or administrative tools required to resolve account-specific or backend-related issues but we’ll continue doing our best to support you within the scope of our responsibilities.    

To better assist you and to protect your personal information, please check the private message section below for a message from me.

Thank you again for your patience and cooperation. 

I'm looking forward to your response. 

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Answer 2

To recover access to your Microsoft 365 tenant and restore your OneDrive storage, you will need to follow the appropriate recovery steps, especially since you do not have access to a Global Administrator account. Here are the steps you can take:

1. Confirm Account Access: Ensure that you are using the correct account to sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin portal. If you have previously used other email accounts, try signing in with those as well.
2. Submit a Support Request: Since you cannot access the admin center, you should submit a support request through Microsoft 365 support channels. You can do this by:
   • Visiting the Microsoft 365 support page.
   • Selecting "I can't sign in or access my tenant."
   • Be prepared to verify your identity and ownership of the organization through official business documentation, domain ownership, or nonprofit registration data.
3. Contact IT Partner: If your tenant was created or is managed by a Microsoft partner, reach out to them directly for recovery assistance.
4. Identity Verification: Be ready to provide proof of domain ownership or any other necessary verification to regain access.

Unfortunately, without a Global Administrator, you will not be able to manage licenses or restore OneDrive storage until access is regained. Microsoft for Nonprofits cannot provide access directly without identity verification, so following the recovery process is essential.

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References:

• Tenant access recovery
• Troubleshoot sign-in issues and account access problems