Can't empty Deleted Items folder in Microsoft 365 Groups

2025-06-25
Applies to: Exchange Online

Symptoms

You want to empty the Deleted Items folder for a group in Microsoft 365 Groups. However, the Deleted Items folder is missing in Microsoft Outlook and Outlook on the web.

Cause

Outlook on the web doesn't show the built-in Microsoft 365 Groups folders, such as the Deleted Items folder, unless one or more user-created folders exist. You can't use the classic Outlook for Windows to view Microsoft 365 Groups folders.

Resolution

To empty the Deleted Items folder, use one of the following methods.

Your choice of method might depend on the size of the Deleted Items folder. For example, if a Microsoft 365 group mailbox reaches the default storage quota, and the Deleted Items folder is large, you might prefer Method 1 for a quick resolution. To determine how much of the group mailbox storage quota is occupied by the Deleted Items folder, follow these steps:

Connect to Exchange Online PowerShell.

Get folder size information for the group mailbox by using the Get-EXOMailboxFolderStatistics cmdlet:

Get-EXOMailboxFolderStatistics -Identity "<group name>" -FolderScope NonIPMRoot | Where { $_.TargetQuota -like 'User' } | FT Name,FolderType,FolderAndSubfolderSize

Method 1: Use Outlook on the web or the new Outlook for Windows

Create a Microsoft 365 group subfolder to access the Deleted Items folder. Follow these steps:

Connect to Exchange Online PowerShell.
Run the following command to check whether folder creation is enabled:
```
Get-OrganizationConfig | FL IsGroupFoldersAndRulesEnabled
```
If folder creation isn't enabled, run the following command to enable it:
```
Set-OrganizationConfig -IsGroupFoldersAndRulesEnabled $True
```
Sign in to Outlook on the web by using the owner credentials for the group, or open the new Outlook for Windows.
Locate the group under Groups.
Right-click the group, select Create new subfolder, enter any name for the folder, and then select OK.

Note

If the Create new subfolder option is unavailable, check whether you used the group owner credentials to sign in to Outlook on the web. If you aren't an owner of the group, contact an owner for support to resolve this issue. Group owners can grant permission for group members to create folders, rename folders, and delete messages.
After the built-in Deleted Items folder appears, select the folder, select Select all messages at the top of the message list, and then select Empty folder.

Method 2: Use a retention policy or retention label policy

This method offers a long-term solution for management of the Deleted Items folder.

Create rules to manage retention and deletion of messages in the Deleted Items folder. Choose one of the following options:
- Create a retention label policy, either in the Microsoft Purview compliance portal or by using the New-RetentionCompliancePolicy, New-ComplianceTag, and New-RetentionComplianceRule Exchange Online PowerShell cmdlets. You can apply this kind of policy to a specific folder or the entire mailbox.
- Create a messaging records management (MRM) retention policy, either in the Microsoft Purview compliance portal or by using the New-RetentionPolicyTag and New-RetentionPolicy Exchange Online PowerShell cmdlets. You can apply this kind of policy to a specific folder or the entire mailbox.
- Create a retention policy, either in the Microsoft Purview compliance portal or by using the New-RetentionCompliancePolicy and New-RetentionComplianceRule Exchange Online PowerShell cmdlets. You can apply this kind of policy only to the entire mailbox.
Note

Microsoft Purview can take up to one day to distribute a retention policy to a mailbox location. For more information about retention policy distribution, see How long it takes for retention policies to take effect.
After Microsoft Purview distributes the retention policy, force the Managed Folder Assistant (MFA) to apply your retention policy on the specified mailbox. To do this, run the following command:
```
Start-ManagedFolderAssistant -Identity "<group name>"
```
Note

The MFA typically processes mailboxes on a schedule. Scheduled mailbox processing can take a few days to finish. However, the Start-ManagedFolderAssistant cmdlet forces the MFA to immediately start processing the specified mailbox to expedite your retention policy.
Wait for the MFA to finish. To check whether the MFA has finished processing the mailbox, run the following commands:
```
$log=Export-MailboxDiagnosticLogs "<group name>" -ExtendedProperties
$xml=[xml]($Log.MailboxLog)
$xml.Properties.MailboxTable.Property | ?{$_.Name -like "ELC*"}
```
If the MFA successfully finished processing the mailbox, the ELCLastSuccessTimestamp property has a timestamp value that's later than when you triggered the MFA.

If you encounter any issues:
- Check the mailbox settings that affect retention. To do this, run the following command:
```
Get-Mailbox -GroupMailbox "<group name>" | FL ELCProcessingDisabled,Retention*
```
  Verify the following property values:
  - RetentionPolicy should be the name of the retention policy that you created in step 1.
  - RetentionHoldEnabled should be False.
  - ELCProcessingDisabled should be False.
- Check whether the MFA encountered any errors while processing the mailbox. To do this, run the following command to get the mailbox diagnostics log:
```
Export-MailboxDiagnosticLogs -Identity "<group name>" -ComponentName MRM
```
  Entries for the most recent errors are at the top of the log.
For more information about the MFA and how to troubleshoot retention, see Resolve email archive and deletion issues when using retention policies.