Admin account

Question

My old IT provider set up my system and is now going AWOL.. My new provider is trying to access my account to check ist set up and we dont know where the verification code is going to. Im not sure who has admin access. Do you know how to resolve this?

Moved from Microsoft 365 and Office | Other

Answer 1

Hello @Ruth Bourne, 

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum.

I understand that your previous IT provider set up your Microsoft 365 environment and is no longer responding. Your new provider is trying to access the admin account, but the verification code is being sent to an unknown location, and you are unsure who currently has administrator access. I completely understand how critical and stressful this situation can be.

Based on your description, this may be related to one of the following:

• The Global Administrator account is controlled by the former IT provider
• Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is configured with contact details managed by the previous provider
• The Microsoft 365 tenant was registered using credentials that your organization does not currently control

As forum moderator, I do not have access to tenant-level data and cannot reset MFA or identify administrators. However, you may try the following steps:

Step 1: Attempt to Identify Any Accessible Global Administrator Account

• Go to https://admin.microsoft.com
• Attempt to sign in using any known admin credentials
• If access is successful, go to Users > Active users > Roles and check who has Global Administrator permissions

-> If at least one Global Administrator is accessible, that account can reset MFA for other admins.

If no Global Administrator account is accessible, you will need to proceed with Microsoft’s official tenant recovery process.

Option 1: Contact Microsoft Support by Phone (Recommended)

You can find the customer service number for your country or region here: Customer service numbers – Microsoft Support

When connected to the automated system, you may respond to prompts similar to the following (as applicable):

• Issue: Authenticator / MFA
• Product: Microsoft 365 (Business or Education, depending on your subscription)
• Account Type: Business or Education account
• Administrator: Yes
• Other administrators available: No
• Create a support request: Yes

This should route you to the appropriate support team for administrator access and MFA recovery scenarios.

Microsoft Support will require verification to confirm your identity and that your organization owns the affected domain before restoring access.

Option 2: Create a Temporary Tenant to Submit a Support Request (If Phone Support Is Unavailable)

If you are unable to reach support by phone, you may create a temporary Microsoft 365 trial tenant solely for the purpose of contacting support:

• Start a Microsoft 365 free trial and complete the setup to create a new tenant
• Sign in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center of the trial tenant
• Go to Support > Help & Support, and create a new support request
• Clearly explain that you are locked out of a separate existing Microsoft 365 tenant where you are the only administrator
• Provide the following details: + The email address of the blocked administrator account + The domain name of the affected tenant + Any error messages received + A brief description of the MFA issue

Please note:

• The trial tenant does not grant access to the locked tenant’s data. It is used only to reach Microsoft Support.
• Microsoft will require formal ownership verification before making any changes.
• Be sure to cancel the trial subscription once the issue is resolved to avoid potential charges.

If you still control your domain registration (for example, through your domain registrar), this will significantly help during the ownership verification process. 

Please let us know whether you are able to access any administrator account at all, and we can guide you further.

Answer 2

To resolve the issue with accessing your Microsoft 365 account, you can follow these steps:

1. Identify Admin Accounts: If you are unsure who has admin access, you may need to contact your old IT provider if possible. They should be able to provide you with information about the admin accounts set up on your system.
2. Contact Microsoft Support: If you cannot reach your old IT provider, you can contact Microsoft support for assistance. They can help you determine who the admin accounts are and how to regain access. Be prepared to provide any information they may require to verify your identity.
3. Reset Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): If the verification code is being sent to an unknown location, you may need to reset the MFA settings. This typically requires admin access, so working with Microsoft support will be crucial if you cannot access the admin account.
4. Create a Temporary Account: As a last resort, you might consider creating a temporary account (trial tenant) to submit a support ticket requesting assistance with your original tenant. This can help you communicate with the Data Protection team at Microsoft.

These steps should help you regain access to your account and check the setup with your new IT provider.

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References:

• How Do I Regain Access to My Account After Losing Access to Microsoft Authenticator? (Urgent Request). - Microsoft Q&A
• MFA admin account no longer works - Microsoft Q&A