Developer sandbox admin account missing — cannot access or delete sandbox

Question

Developer sandbox admin account missing — cannot access or delete sandbox

Stuart Arnell 0

Hi,

I’m using a Microsoft 365 Developer Program E5 sandbox (instant sandbox).

Problem:

The Developer Program dashboard shows my sandbox as Active.
However, when I try to sign in with the sandbox admin account shown in the dashboard, Microsoft sign-in reports the user/username is not found.
Password reset also indicates the user is not recognized.
In the Developer Program dashboard, I do not see an option to delete the sandbox subscription and create a new one.

Question:

What are the supported recovery options when an E5 developer sandbox appears Active in the dashboard, but the admin account cannot be found at sign-in and the dashboard has no delete/recreate option?

I can provide the tenant name and admin UPN privately if a Microsoft moderator requests it.

Thanks.

``
(this is the support path that co-pilot took me to when all other paths failed)

Stuart Arnell 0 Reputation points

2026-02-09T12:33:00.93+00:00

See screenshots that show my sandbox and id not existing. Also see that I get no option to delete and redefine my sandbox on the dashboard

[Moderator note: personal info removed]
[Moderator note: personal info removed]

1 answer

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Stuart Arnell 0 Reputation points

2026-02-09T12:33:00.93+00:00

See screenshots that show my sandbox and id not existing. Also see that I get no option to delete and redefine my sandbox on the dashboard

[Moderator note: personal info removed]
[Moderator note: personal info removed]

Answer 1

Dora-T 11,210 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Please note that our forum is a public platform, and we will modify your question to hide your personal information in the description. Kindly ensure that you hide any personal or organizational information the next time you post an error or other details to protect personal data.

Hi Stuart Arnell

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A Forum and sharing your issue.

May I ask which sign-in page you are using when attempting to log in with the admin account, and where you encounter the error “The email or username you entered does not exist”?

Based on my experience, the sandbox admin account should be able to sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center to access and manage the tenant associated with your Developer sandbox.

I look forward to your response.

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Dora-T 11,210 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-10T07:20:42.21+00:00

Hi Stuart Arnell

Is there any update from you?

If yes, please feel free to let me know.
Stuart Arnell 0 Reputation points

2026-02-10T11:02:54.9033333+00:00

Hi - thanks for the reply.

Yes - I have tried multiple. I have added a screenshot below of the Admin Center logon per your link (fails) - but I have also tried:

[Moderator note: personal info removed]

passwordreset (screenshot attached) [Moderator note: personal info removed]
learn.microsoft.com (see attached - goes thru logon.microsoftonline.com) [Moderator note: personal info removed]
Dora-T 11,210 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-10T13:06:54.4833333+00:00

Hi Stuart Arnell

Thank you for the update.

I’m sorry to hear that you’re experiencing this issue, and I apologize for the inconvenience this may be causing. Based on your screenshots and description, it appears the admin account is not being recognized, even though the sandbox still shows as active in the Developer dashboard.

As a forum moderator, I do not have access to the internal systems required to investigate individual tenant or account issues due to privacy and security constraints. Therefore, I recommend contacting Microsoft Support through Services Hub. Please note that Services Hub is intended for paid support tickets and access is subject to certain conditions. You can find more details here: Services Hub sign in FAQs | Microsoft Learn.

Thank you for your understanding.
Stuart Arnell 0 Reputation points

2026-02-10T14:49:01.7233333+00:00

Thanks - but I don't appear to have access to raise tickets through there (assuming I have selected the right combination of products through the interface).

I am using a work account - not an MS Account - that should have the license needed for the specific E5 domain. See screenshots.

[Moderator note: personal info removed]
[Moderator note: personal info removed]
There doesnt seem to be a way of getting to a support portal that allows me to raise a ticket for this (hence ending up on the Q&A portal.
Dora-T 11,210 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-11T08:35:35.1733333+00:00

Hi Stuart Arnell

Thank you for your response.

Please note that this is a user-to-user support forum. Moderators and contributors, including external Microsoft employees, do not have access to internal systems and cannot directly intervene in Microsoft product features or perform back-end investigations. Our role here is limited to providing technical guidance based on publicly available information.

For issues related to the Microsoft 365 Developer Program, further investigation can be handled through Services Hub. Please note that Services Hub is intended for paid support tickets and access is subject to certain conditions. You can find more details here: Services Hub sign in FAQs | Microsoft Learn.

Thank you for your understanding.

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Developer sandbox admin account missing — cannot access or delete sandbox

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