How to retrieve excel file that has been archived

Question

We have an expenditure excel for our 3 sites and it is showing that the file has been archived and it states as per below

"The site is archived

A SharePoint Administrator archived this site.

If you need access, ask an admin to reactivate it."

the admin who created it has left the department, how do we regain access to this file?

TIA

Answer 1

Dear @Kim Farragher,

Thank you for reaching out! I understand how important it is to regain access to your expenditure Excel file.

Based on the message you’re seeing, the Excel file is stored in a SharePoint site that was archived at the tenant level. Even though the administrator who originally created the site has left the department, the file itself has not been deleted.

To restore access, a current SharePoint Administrator or Global Administrator in your organization will need to reactivate the archived site from the SharePoint Admin Center. This action does not require the original site owner. Once the site is reactivated, access to the Excel file will be restored.

If there's a need to access the site content again, the sites need to be reactivated. The activation time depends on the archive state of the site ("Recently archived" or "Archived"). For more information, see the Archive states in Microsoft 365 Archive.

After reactivation, the site moves back to the Active sites page. The site resumes its normal function, and the users have the same access rights to the site and its content as they did before the site was archived. After reactivation is complete, the storage consumed by the site will accrue to your storage quota consumption.

1. In the SharePoint admin center, go to Active sites, and sign in with an account that has admin permissions for your organization.
2. In the left column, select a site that needs to be reactivated.
3. On the command bar, select Archive.
4. On the Archive pane, select Reactivate.
5. If you're trying to reactivate a site from "Archived" state, you see a confirmation pop-up that shows an estimated price for reactivation. Select Confirm to reactivate. The site enters the "Reactivating" state. It moves to active sites once reactivation is complete.

When you reactivate a site, its permissions, lists, pages, files, folder-structure, site-level policies, and other metadata will revert to the prearchival state, except if files are deleted from archived sites. The only two exceptions are when files are deleted while the site is archived:

• Content in the recycle bin expires naturally, and that expiration continues while archived.
• Content marked to be deleted by retention policies will still be deleted as normal.

Other than these two exceptions, you can expect the site to be unchanged.

For more reference, please refer to: Reactivate a site

Find Your Microsoft 365 Admin: If you’re unsure who the Global Admin is within your organization, you can find guidance on locating them here: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support

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 hope this helps. Your understanding and co-operation are highly appreciated. Please feel free to reply below if you have any update or further concern.  

I am looking forward to your response!

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Answer 2

Because the message says “The site is archived. A SharePoint Administrator archived this site. If you need access, ask an admin to reactivate it.”, the Excel file is inside a SharePoint site that has been archived, not just the file itself.

To regain access to the file, a SharePoint admin in the organization must reactivate the site:

1. Identify the SharePoint site URL where the Excel file is stored (visible in the browser address bar when trying to access it, or ask colleagues who used the same site).
2. Ask a current SharePoint Administrator or Global Administrator in the tenant to reactivate the site in the SharePoint admin center:
   1. Go to SharePoint admin center → Active sites and sign in with an account that has admin permissions.
   2. Select the archived site in the list.
   3. On the command bar, select Archive.
   4. In the Archive pane, select Reactivate.
   5. Confirm the reactivation if prompted.
3. Wait for reactivation to complete. The site will move back to Active sites, and all previous permissions and content (including the Excel file) will be available again. Reactivation time depends on the archive state.

If the message appears only on the file (and not the whole site), and the site itself is active, then any user with at least read access to that file can:

1. Open the document library in SharePoint or OneDrive where the file is stored.
2. Select the Excel file.
3. Choose More options (… ) → Reactivate.
4. Wait (up to 24 hours) for the file to become available again; the user who started reactivation receives an email when it finishes.

If there is no remaining SharePoint admin in the department, contact the organization’s central IT or Microsoft 365 administrators; any SharePoint or Global Administrator in the tenant can perform the reactivation, not only the person who originally archived the site.

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References:

• Manage Microsoft 365 Archive
• End user experience in Microsoft 365 Archive
• How to fix "This file has been archived in OneDrive" error