M365 PowerShell

Automate Archived Microsoft Teams Reporting with PowerShell

Microsoft Teams environments tend to accumulate archived Teams over time as projects conclude, departments reorganize, or temporary collaboration spaces become inactive. While archiving preserves conversations and files, many organizations lose visibility into these dormant Teams after they are archived.

Without regular auditing, archived Teams may still contain:

Guest users with ongoing access
Large inactive memberships
Teams without active owners
Sensitive project data retained longer than expected

This Graph PowerShell automation script helps administrators generate and email a detailed archived Microsoft Teams report that includes:

Archived Team Name
Team Owners
Member Count
Guest User Count
Team Visibility
Archived Status
Creation Date

The report is exported to CSV and automatically emailed to administrators, making it ideal for governance reviews, compliance audits, and lifecycle management.

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Prerequisites

Install the Microsoft Graph PowerShell module if it is not already installed:


Install-Module Microsoft.Graph -Scope CurrentUser
Connect to Microsoft Graph with the required permissions:

Connect-MgGraph -Scopes `
"Group.Read.All",
"User.Read.All",
"Mail.Send"

Complete Script to Automate Archived Microsoft Teams Reporting

                            
# Connect to Microsoft Graph
Connect-MgGraph -Scopes `
"Group.Read.All",
"User.Read.All",
"Mail.Send"

# Output CSV path
$CsvPath = "C:\Reports\ArchivedTeamsReport.csv"

# Email settings
$Sender = "admin@contoso.com"
$Recipient = "securityteam@contoso.com"

# Get all Microsoft Teams-enabled groups
$Teams = Get-MgGroup -Filter "resourceProvisioningOptions/Any(x:x eq 'Team')" -All

$Report = @()

foreach ($Team in $Teams) {

    try {

        # Retrieve Team details
        $TeamDetails = Get-MgTeam -TeamId $Team.Id -ErrorAction Stop

        # Process only archived Teams
        if ($TeamDetails.IsArchived -eq $true) {

            Write-Host "Processing archived Team: $($Team.DisplayName)" -ForegroundColor Cyan

            # Get Owners
            $Owners = Get-MgGroupOwner -GroupId $Team.Id -All

            $OwnerNames = ($Owners | ForEach-Object {
                $_.AdditionalProperties.displayName
            }) -join ", "

            # Get Members
            $Members = Get-MgGroupMember -GroupId $Team.Id -All

            $MemberCount = $Members.Count

            # Count Guest Users
            $GuestCount = (
                $Members | Where-Object {
                    $_.AdditionalProperties.userType -eq "Guest"
                }
            ).Count

            # Create report object
            $Report += [PSCustomObject]@{
                TeamName       = $Team.DisplayName
                Visibility     = $Team.Visibility
                CreatedDate    = $Team.CreatedDateTime
                Owners         = $OwnerNames
                MemberCount    = $MemberCount
                GuestCount     = $GuestCount
                ArchivedStatus = $TeamDetails.IsArchived
            }
        }
    }

    catch {
        Write-Host "Error processing Team: $($Team.DisplayName)" -ForegroundColor Red
        Write-Host $_.Exception.Message
    }
}

# Export report
$Report | Export-Csv -Path $CsvPath -NoTypeInformation -Encoding UTF8

Write-Host "Archived Teams report exported successfully." -ForegroundColor Green

# Create HTML email table preview
$TopTeams = $Report | Select-Object -First 10

$HtmlTable = $TopTeams | ConvertTo-Html -Fragment

$EmailBody = @"
<html>
<body>

<h2>Archived Microsoft Teams Report</h2>

<p>Please find attached the archived Microsoft Teams report.</p>

<p>Below is a preview of the first 10 archived Teams:</p>

$HtmlTable

</body>
</html>
"@

# Send email with attachment
$params = @{
    message = @{
        subject = "Archived Microsoft Teams Governance Report"

        body = @{
            contentType = "HTML"
            content = $EmailBody
        }

        toRecipients = @(
            @{
                emailAddress = @{
                    address = $Recipient
                }
            }
        )

        attachments = @(
            @{
                "@odata.type" = "#microsoft.graph.fileAttachment"
                name          = "ArchivedTeamsReport.csv"
                contentBytes  = [System.Convert]::ToBase64String(
                    [System.IO.File]::ReadAllBytes($CsvPath)
                )
            }
        )
    }

    saveToSentItems = "true"
}

Send-MgUserMail -UserId $Sender -BodyParameter $params

Write-Host "Email sent successfully." -ForegroundColor Green

How the Script Works

Connects to Microsoft Graph

The script connects using:

Group.Read.All
User.Read.All
Mail.Send

These permissions allow the script to:

Retrieve Teams
Read group members and owners
Send email reports

Retrieves All Microsoft Teams

The following command retrieves only Teams-enabled Microsoft 365 groups:

Get-MgGroup -Filter "resourceProvisioningOptions/Any(x:x eq 'Team')"

Identifies Archived Teams

Each Team is checked using: Get-MgTeam. Only Teams where: IsArchived = True are processed further.

Retrieves Owners and Members

The script retrieves:

Team owners
Total members
Guest users

This helps administrators identify:

Orphaned Teams
Large inactive Teams
Archived Teams still containing external collaborators

Exports Results to CSV

The report is exported using:

Export-Csv

This makes it easy to:

Share with auditors
Import into Excel
Maintain governance records

Emails the Report Automatically

The script:

Embeds a preview table directly in the email
Attaches the full CSV report
Sends the report automatically using Graph PowerShell

This makes the solution ideal for scheduled reporting.

Why Archived Teams Should Be Reviewed Regularly

Archived Teams are often overlooked because they are no longer actively used. However, they may still contain:

Guest accounts
Sensitive files
Confidential conversations
Legacy project information

Regular reviews help organizations:

Strengthen governance
Improve compliance visibility
Reduce unnecessary external access
Maintain lifecycle management standards

Real-World Use Cases

Quarterly Governance Audits

Generate recurring archived Teams reports for security and compliance teams.

Guest User Reviews

Identify archived Teams that still contain external users.

Lifecycle Management

Review older archived Teams before deciding whether to:

Retain
Restore
Delete

Merger and Acquisition Cleanup

During tenant consolidation projects, archived Teams can be reviewed before migration or removal.

Scheduling the Script

You can automate this script using:

Windows Task Scheduler
Azure Automation
GitHub Actions
Scheduled PowerShell Jobs

This allows administrators to receive recurring archived Teams governance reports automatically.

Possible Errors and Solutions

Error	Cause	Solution
Insufficient privileges to complete the operation	The required Microsoft Graph permissions were not granted.	Reconnect using: Connect-MgGraph -Scopes ` "Group.Read.All", "User.Read.All", "Mail.Send" and ensure admin consent is granted.
Resource not found	The Team may have been deleted or partially provisioned.	Add proper try/catch handling as included in the script.
Access Denied	The account lacks permission to send emails.	Ensure the account has mailbox access and Mail.Send permission.

How This Differs from Deleted Teams

Archived Teams:

Remain accessible in read-only mode
Retain files and conversations
Can still contain guest users
Can be restored later

Deleted Teams:

Are removed permanently after retention periods expire
Become inaccessible to users

Because archived Teams remain present in the tenant, regular governance reviews are strongly recommended.

Conclusion

Archived Microsoft Teams can quietly accumulate over time, creating governance blind spots within Microsoft 365 environments. By automating archived Teams reporting with Graph PowerShell, administrators can gain visibility into inactive Teams, monitor guest access, review ownership, and maintain stronger lifecycle governance.

This automation script provides a practical way to:

Audit archived Teams
Export governance reports
Email administrators automatically
Improve compliance visibility

Regular archived Teams reviews help organizations maintain a cleaner, more secure, and better-governed Microsoft Teams environment.

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