One drive access

Question

As a admin I have approved Business Standard license, but still user cannot access One Drive still says Access denied.
Any suggestions please ?

Answer 1

Hi @Dakota Central Admin,  

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum. 

Thank you very much for reaching out regarding the issue where the user continues to receive “Access denied” when trying to access OneDrive, even after the Microsoft 365 Business Standard license has been approved. I appreciate your patience and the details you provided. 

Although Business Standard includes OneDrive for Business, access to OneDrive specifically depends on the SharePoint Online service inside the license. If SharePoint Online is disabled, not fully provisioned, or blocked by policies, the user may still encounter “Access denied” even with a valid license. 

Here are my recommendation, which I hope will be helpful to you. 

Please follow the steps below: 

1/ Verify license service activation (especially SharePoint Online Plan 1) 

OneDrive will not work if SharePoint Online is turned off. 
Please check: 

• Microsoft 365 admin center > Users > Active users > select the user 
• Licenses and apps > Apps > ensure SharePoint (Plan 1) and OneDrive for Business are turned ON 
• 

If SharePoint Online is disabled, OneDrive will always show Access Denied. 

2/ Ensure OneDrive site provisioning has completed 

Sometimes the license is assigned, but OneDrive has not been provisioned yet. 
Please ask the user to: 

• Sign in at https://portal.office.com 
• Click the OneDrive icon to trigger site creation 

Provisioning may take 5-15 minutes. 
If delayed, an admin can trigger provisioning via Request-SPOPersonalSite. 

3/ Review Conditional Access policies 

Even with correct licensing, Conditional Access or unmanaged‑device rules can block OneDrive/SharePoint. 

Please checks: 

A - SharePoint admin center > Policies > Access control > Unmanaged devices 

• If set to Block, users will see Access Denied by design. 

B - Entra Conditional Access policies targeting Office 365 SharePoint Online 

• Controls like Require compliant device or Require Hybrid Azure AD‑joined device may block access. 

If the issue involves sync, ensure the OneDrive sync app follows Conditional Access requirements. 

For your reference: Limited Access with Conditional Access for Unmanaged Devices 

Disclaimer: This is a non-Microsoft website. The page appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the site that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the site before you decide to download and install it.

4/ Check OneDrive permissions and site ownership 

If the OneDrive site already exists but the user lost access: 

• SharePoint admin center > More features > User Profiles > Manage User Profiles 
• Search for the user > open their OneDrive 
• Ensure the user is listed as Site Collection Administrator 
• If the OneDrive site is locked, an admin may need to unlock it. 

For your reference: Fix "Access Denied: User does not have permissions to access this resource" Error in SharePoint - S… 

Please note that this information is being provided by the moderator solely for your convenience. The referenced sites are not managed or overseen by the moderator, and therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy, security, or suitability of any software or content available there. We recommend reviewing all information carefully and ensuring you understand any associated risks before following suggestions from the provided link.  

5/ Contact Microsoft Support   

If the issue persists even after these steps, it may stem from a deeper system-level cause. In this case, I recommend submitting a support request to Microsoft through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. They’ll be able to access system-level information to investigate the issue thoroughly and provide assistance. At the very least, they can offer the most effective workaround to ensure your experience remains smooth and secure.      

We kindly ask for your understanding that, as moderators, we do not have access to the administrative tools or permissions required to investigate or modify these configurations. We also do not have the capability to initiate remote sessions for direct assistance. Our role is to guide users to the appropriate resources and support channels.     

I hope this information is helpful. Should you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to reach out.    

Thank you again for your patience and cooperation. 

---

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have any extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".  

Note: Follow the steps in our documentation to enable email notifications if you want to receive email notifications related to this topic.  

Answer 2

If a user is receiving an "Access Denied" message in OneDrive even after being assigned a Business Standard license, there are several steps you can take to troubleshoot the issue:

1. Check User Permissions: Ensure that the user has the appropriate permissions to access OneDrive. You can verify this by using the Check Permissions feature in the SharePoint admin center.
   • For SharePoint, go to Settings > Site permissions and select Check Permissions. Enter the user's name to see their current permissions.
2. Reshare the File: Sometimes, permissions may not replicate correctly. Ask the user to wait for about 30 minutes and try accessing the file again. If the issue persists, consider resharing the file.
3. Check if the OneDrive Site is Locked: The user's OneDrive site may be in a locked state. As an admin, you can unlock the site using PowerShell or run a Microsoft 365 Diagnostic to check its status.
4. Provision the OneDrive Site: If the user is trying to access a OneDrive site that is not provisioned, have them navigate to the OneDrive tile from the Microsoft 365 portal. If that doesn't work, you may need to provision the site using the appropriate PowerShell cmdlet.
5. Service Health Check: As an admin, check the Service Health page in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center for any advisories or incidents that might be affecting OneDrive access.

By following these steps, you should be able to identify and resolve the access issue for the user.

---

References:

• Access Denied or You need permission errors in SharePoint Online and OneDrive
• "403 Forbidden" error on OneDrive or SharePoint