Archive an Old SharePoint Site Safely: Practical Workflow for Business Users

You have a SharePoint site that nobody uses anymore. It contains old project files, outdated policies, or data from a former team member. Leaving it active wastes storage and clutters your site list. Deleting it permanently risks losing data that might be needed later. This article explains a safe archiving workflow that preserves your data while removing the site from daily use.

The safe approach uses SharePoint’s site policy to lock the site and then change its permissions to read-only. This prevents accidental edits while keeping content accessible for reference. You will also learn how to export a copy of the site before archiving, so you have a backup outside SharePoint. By following these steps, you archive the site without losing access to its content.

Why a Safe Archive Workflow Matters

SharePoint sites accumulate content over years. When a project ends or a team disbands, the site becomes inactive. Simply deleting the site removes all data permanently from the recycle bin after 93 days. If someone later needs an old document, it is gone. Archiving keeps the data available but hidden from daily users.

The workflow described here uses two SharePoint features: site policies and permission changes. A site policy can close a site after a set number of days of inactivity. When you apply a policy manually, you can also lock the site immediately. Permission changes remove edit rights for all members, leaving only read access. This combination makes the site effectively archived without deleting it.

Before starting, verify you have SharePoint admin permissions. You need either the SharePoint admin role or the site collection owner role. If you are not the site owner, ask the site owner to perform these steps or grant you owner permissions.

Steps to Archive an Old SharePoint Site

Follow these steps in order. Each step builds on the previous one. Do not skip steps.

1. Export site content as a backup
   Go to the site you want to archive. Navigate to Site Contents. For each document library, click the library name, then select Export to Excel from the ribbon or command bar. Save the exported .iqy file. This file contains links to all documents in that library. For lists, open the list, click List settings, then select Export to Excel. Store these files in a secure location outside SharePoint, such as a network drive or your local computer. This backup gives you a record of every item and its location on the site.
2. Apply a site closing policy
   In the SharePoint admin center, go to Active sites. Find the site you want to archive. Select the site by clicking the checkbox next to its name. Click Policies in the command bar. Under Site policies, select a policy that closes the site. If no custom policy exists, choose the default closing policy. Set the closing date to today or a future date. Click Save. This action locks the site and marks it as closed. Users see a message that the site is read-only.
3. Set site permissions to read-only
   On the site, go to Site settings. Under Users and Permissions, click Site permissions. Click Advanced permissions settings. In the Permissions tab, locate the Visitors group. Click the check box next to the Visitors group name. Select Edit User Permissions from the ribbon. In the Permission Level window, select Read and uncheck any other checkboxes. Click OK. Repeat this step for the Members group if you want to prevent all users from editing. This change ensures that no one can add, edit, or delete content on the archived site.
4. Remove the site from search results
   In the SharePoint admin center, go to Search > Search schema. Under Result sources, select Local SharePoint Results. Click Edit. In the Query text box, add the following line at the end: -SPSiteUrl:”https://yourtenant.sharepoint.com/sites/yoursiteurl”. Replace the URL with your site’s URL. Click Save. This step hides the site from SharePoint search results. Users cannot find the site by searching, but they can still access it if they have the direct link.
5. Notify users about the archive
   Send an email to all site members. State that the site is now archived and read-only. Explain where they can find the backup files if they need to recover content. Provide the direct URL to the site for reference. This communication prevents confusion and support tickets.

If the Site Still Appears in Users’ SharePoint Start Page

After archiving, users might still see the site in their SharePoint start page under Recent or Followed sites. This is normal. Users can unfollow the site manually. To remove it from their start page, each user must click the site tile, then click the star icon to unfollow it. There is no admin setting to force this removal.

Users Cannot Access the Archived Site

If users report a 404 error or permission denied, check the site permissions. In the SharePoint admin center, go to Active sites and select the site. Click Permissions. Verify that the site is not set to Private with no access for anyone except owners. The Visitors group must contain at least the default SharePoint Visitors group with Read permission. If the site is completely locked, modify the site policy to allow read access for visitors.

Backup Files Cannot Be Opened

The .iqy files exported in step 1 require Excel to open. If you double-click the file and Excel does not launch, open Excel first. Go to Data > From Text/CSV and select the .iqy file. Excel will prompt you to connect to the SharePoint site. Enter your credentials. The data will load. If the site is archived and read-only, the links still work because the files remain in the library.

Active Site vs Archived Site: Key Differences

Item	Active Site	Archived Site
Permission level for members	Edit or Contribute	Read only
Search visibility	Visible in search results	Hidden from search results
Storage consumption	Counts against tenant storage	Counts against tenant storage
Ability to add new content	Yes	No
Site policy status	No closing policy applied	Closing policy applied with lock date

This workflow does not delete the site. The site remains in your tenant and consumes storage. If you need to free up storage, consider downloading all files to a local drive and then deleting the site. Use the SharePoint Migration Tool to download the entire site structure. After deletion, the site moves to the recycle bin. You have 93 days to restore it if needed.

You can now archive any old SharePoint site with confidence. Start by exporting the content as a backup, then apply the closing policy and set permissions to read-only. For an extra layer of safety, schedule a quarterly review of archived sites. Use the SharePoint admin center reports to see which sites have been inactive for more than six months. Apply the same workflow to those sites before they become a compliance risk.