Where is Teams chat history stored?

Microsoft Teams is a chat and collaborative workplace program that enables users to collaborate and maintain organization. From a single interface, Teams users may start chat threads, respond to particular messages, tag individuals and meetings, manage individual tasks and projects, and enable app integrations. You may assume that when you delete a message in Microsoft Teams, it automatically disappears forever; however, Microsoft Teams can store your chat history for a certain time after deletion. However, some users who use Microsoft Teams have always wanted to know what happens where their chat history is stored. This blog will show you the storage location of messages in Microsoft Teams.

Initially, your chat history will remain in the inbox, and the user determines its retention at any given time; however, once the user deletes a message in Microsoft Teams, the messages are stored for 90 days in a retention hold. This retention hold, determined by the Admin, can be increased or decreased depending on what the admin user requires. Retention policies will prevent the messages from being deleted completely if necessary. If this is the case, your chat messages are stored in your Office 365 account, a hidden file in OneDrive. Only admin users can view the storage information. Have a read-through to better understand how to view chat history-related information for Microsoft Teams in the Office admin dashboard.

  • Firstly, open Office 365. 
  • Then you need to click on the launcher. 
  • From there, click on “Admin.” 
  • Click on the drop-down next to “Report.” 
  • Now click on “Usage.” 
  • Scroll down to where it says “Microsoft Teams activity” They can “View more.” 
  • View or record the information depending on your requirements to complete the process. 

You will have managed to view the chat history report and usage/storage within the Office 365 Admin center. Microsoft Teams automatically stores all your chat-based information in this section, where you can view it as an admin user (only the logs, not the actual chats themselves). The admin user must have sufficient permission to view the chat history information. You need advanced permissions to view the chat-related history and user data logs for the chat; however, you just need regular admin permissions to view this information. Information such as the chat history, the license, and unlicensed users’ history will be available within this section. You can also view the history of channel messages and one-to-one calls that you have to add to Microsoft Teams. However, you will not be able to view the actual messages in all chat history logs from this section.

An in-depth guide on how to view the chat history usage in the Office admin center

To view the chat history storage for Microsoft Teams, you must visit the Admin center. However, there may be certain instances where users cannot fully navigate the admin UI. You can use the in-depth guide to navigate through the admin UI for Microsoft. The in-depth guide includes screenshots allowing you to navigate the admin UI without issues. Screenshots also provide a good way to visually see the process and go through the admin UI without issues. If you require further context on some of the more complex steps, we have also provided some in-depth analysis on those steps. If you use the in-depth analysis, you can navigate through the steps without issues. 

  • Firstly, open Office 365.

Sign in to your Office 365 with your regular credentials. However, you must ensure that you have the correct admin permissions enabled before proceeding with the steps shown. If you do not have the correct admin permissions, you will not be able to complete the steps and view the chat history report. 

  • Then you need to click on the launcher.
  • From there, click on “Admin.”

If you do have the admin permissions enabled, you will be able to see the option called Admin within the launcher. Simply click on it to proceed with the steps ahead. 

  • Click on the drop-down next to “Report.”

In the left-hand menu of the admin center, you will see the report section, where you can view information such as the usage and Microsoft reports

  • Now click on “Usage.”

To view the usage report of Microsoft Teams in the admin center, you must click on usage to proceed with the steps ahead. The usage section lets you view information such as the storage, files, and even chat history, as illustrated here. 

  • Scroll down to where it says “Microsoft Teams activity” They can “View more.”
  • View or record the information depending on your requirements to complete the process.

You will now have checked the chat history storage location used by Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams uses your OneDrive and SharePoint storage sections to record chat-related information. Your chat history logs will be stored in this location as well. However, it will be hidden from view. You will not be able to view the actual chat history for security-related reasons. You will need to create a content search and a retention policy using the Compliance manager to view that information. However, once the steps are complete, you can view information such as the licensed and unlicensed users and their chat-related information.

Each participant has a data copy of the one-to-one chat history, which is kept in a private folder within your inbox and contains all of the talks from the chat history. This secret folder’s functions include data retention, litigation holds, and compliance. However, only the Microsoft eDiscovery program will allow you to retrieve this folder; you must keep a retention policy active, as stated earlier.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading our content on where chat history information for Teams is stored. I have given you the location as well as the steps on where you can view chat-related history for Microsoft Teams. To view this information, you will need to have Admin permissions enabled. However, once you have admin permissions enabled, you can view your chat history logs using the steps illustrated above. You will not be able to view the actual chat; however, you can view information such as how many sent messages and the history log itself. If there are any issues you come across when following the steps, simply add a comment, and we will address them.

Saajid Gangat

Saajid Gangat has been a researcher and content writer at Business Tech Planet since 2021. Saajid is a tech-savvy writer with expertise in web and graphic design and has extensive knowledge of Microsoft 365, Adobe, Shopify, WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, and more! You can connect with Saajid on Linkedin.

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