I am not my system administrator, and I need to sign into the system account to assign and update new users, what should I do?

Question

My system administrator recently transitioned, and they had access to all the admin rights for my system. My email accounts have been disabled, and I need to login to update all accounts associated with my business.

Answer 1

Dear @Parris McMurray,

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum. I understand that your organization is currently unable to manage users or update accounts because the previous system administrator has transitioned out, and the admin email accounts are now disabled.

At this stage, there are two supported ways to restore access:

If the former system administrator is reachable, they can sign in and assign Global Administrator rights to a new account.

If no administrator is available, you will need to contact Microsoft Support to request tenant admin recovery. Microsoft will verify your organization’s ownership (such as domain and billing details) and then assign a new Global Administrator. You can find the appropriate customer service number at Customer service phone numbers - Microsoft Support. The support team will assist you as soon as possible. For reference:  Get support | Microsoft Docs   

During the phone call, you will be required to provide the information associated with your subscription - such as your company name, billing details, phone number, and alternate email address, domain owner proof - to verify ownership of the company’s tenant. This verification will assist the Data Protection Team in granting you access to the administrator account.

Please carefully follow this instruction to ask for Microsoft Data Protection team support:   

Depending on your country or region. For some countries, when calling the support number, although there are about 30 seconds opening as something "you can visit the link...." But you can ignore this opening and wait until the option, then "1" as a business email user, "1" again for technical help.    For some countries, it will be an automated conversation like:    

• First, when you call the hotline, it asks what kind of problem you are worried about.    Answered: Account.   
• A: What kind of product are you using?   
• B: Office 365 for business.   
• A confirmation: education or company account?   
• B: For companies   
• A: Are you an administrator?   
• B: Yes.   
• A: Do you have the other admin in your organization?   
• B: No.   
• A: You need one.... Service request?   
• B: Yes   

In this situation, only Microsoft Data Protection team has tools and processes in place to verify identity and regain access to administrator accounts.     

If your organization's Office 365 Business/Education subscription is from a partner or reseller, and the global administrator is unable to open a service request on your end, contact the reseller's support provider to help open a service request on behalf of you instead.   

Please understand that forum moderators have no control over user accounts, especially when it comes to logging in to your account, resetting your password, changing your access, etc.   

Alternatively, you can try set up a new trial tenant and submit your support request: 

1. Start a free trial: Go to Compare Office 365 Enterprise Pricing and Plans | Microsoft 365.  and click Try for free to create a new tenant.
2. Complete setup: Follow the guided steps to create a new Microsoft account and tenant.
3. Access Admin Center: Sign in at https://admin.microsoft.com.
4. Open Support: In the left menu, select Support > Help & support.
5. Submit a ticket: Clearly state you are locked out of a different tenant where you are the admin. Include: Admin account email, Tenant domain name, Error messages, Issue details, Confirmation you are the administrator, domain owner proof.
6. Track your request: Submit and note the ticket number.

Important notes:  

• The trial tenant won’t give access to your original tenant’s data or settings; it’s only for contacting Microsoft support.
• Support may require identity and admin rights verification for the locked tenant.
• Resolution could take longer because you’re contacting from a different tenant.
• Please do not forget cancel the trial subscription after resolving the issue to avoid charges (Admin Center > Billing > Your products).

Please understand that our initial response does not always resolve the issue immediately. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.

I truly appreciate your patience and understanding. If you have any further questions or need further clarification, please feel free to reach out. I'm looking forward to hearing from you. 

Thank you for your cooperation.

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Answer 2

If your system administrator has transitioned and you no longer have access to the necessary admin rights, you will need to contact your organization's IT support or the new system administrator. They can assist you in regaining access or reassigning the necessary permissions to manage user accounts. If your email accounts are disabled, they will also be able to help you with that issue.

It's important to ensure that the new admin is aware of the situation so that they can take the appropriate steps to restore access and manage the accounts effectively.