What happens when you remove an admin?

Deleting an administrator account can be done in two ways. In Settings, go to Accounts > Family & other users, choose a user, then click Remove. In Control Panel, switch to Small Icons view then go to User Accounts > Manage another account. Select a user, click on Delete account, and then decide if you want to keep or delete the user’s files. Here’s how to delete an administrator account in Windows 10:

Table of Contents Show

How to Delete an Administrator Account in Settings
How to Delete an Administrator Account in Control Panel
Overview: Remove a former employee and secure data
In this article
Before you begin
Solution: Remove a former employee
Watch: Delete a user
Related content
Do admins get notified when you remove them?
Can an admin remove an admin?
Can one admin remove another admin in WhatsApp?
How do I remove an admin?

How to Delete an Administrator Account in Settings

Click the Windows Start button. This button is located in the lower-left corner of your screen. It is shaped like the Windows logo.
Click on Settings. This is the button that is shaped like a gear icon.
Then choose Accounts.
Select Family & other users. You can find this in the left sidebar.
Choose the admin account you want to delete.
Click on Remove.
Note: The person using the admin account must first sign off from the computer. Otherwise, his account will not be removed yet.
Finally, select Delete account and data. Clicking this will cause the user to lose all their data. So, it is advisable for the user to back up their files first.

How to Delete an Administrator Account in Control Panel

Click the magnifying glass icon in the lower-left corner.
Type Control Panel into the Windows Search Bar.
Change the view to Small icons.
Then click on User Accounts.
Next, click Manage another account.
Choose the user you would like to delete as admin.
Click on the Delete the account link.
Choose Delete Files or Keep Files. Selecting Keep Files will create a folder with the user’s files on the desktop.

Now that you know how to delete an administrator account on Windows 10, check out our guide on how to change which user is an administrator.

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Overview: Remove a former employee and secure data

Article
10/26/2022
3 minutes to read

A question we often get is, "What should I do to secure data and protect access when an employee leaves my organization?" This article series explains how to block access to Microsoft 365 so these users can't sign in to Microsoft 365, the steps you should take to secure organization data, and how to allow other employees to access email and OneDrive data.

Tip

If you need help with the steps in this topic, consider working with a Microsoft small business specialist. With Business Assist, you and your employees get around-the-clock access to small business specialists as you grow your business, from onboarding to everyday use.

Before you begin

You need to be a global administrator to complete the steps in this solution.

To complete the steps in this series, you use these Microsoft 365 capabilities and features.

Product or component	Capability or feature
Microsoft 365 admin center	Convert mailbox, forward email, revoke access, remove user
Exchange admin center	Block user, block access to email, wipe device
OneDrive and SharePoint	Give access to other users
Outlook	Import pst files, add mailbox
Active Directory	Remove users in hybrid environments

Solution: Remove a former employee

Important

Although we've numbered the steps in this solution and you don't have to complete the solution using the exact order, we do recommend doing the steps this way.

Step	Why do this
Step 1 - Prevent a former employee from logging in and block access to Microsoft 365 services	This blocks your former employee from logging in to Microsoft 365 and prevents the person from accessing Microsoft 365 services.
Step 2 - Save the contents of a former employee's mailbox	This is useful for the person who is going to take over the employee's work, or if there is litigation.
Step 3 - Wipe and block a former employee's mobile device	Removes your business data from the phone or tablet.
Step 4 - Forward a former employee's email to another employee or convert to a shared mailbox	This lets you keep the former employee's email address active. If you have customers or partners still sending email to the former employee's address, this gets them to the person taking over the work.
Step 5 - Give another employee access to OneDrive and Outlook data	If you only remove a user's license but don't delete the account, the content in the user's OneDrive will remain accessible to you even after 30 days. Before you delete the account, you should give access of their OneDrive and Outlook to another user. After you delete an employee's account, the content in their OneDrive and Outlook is retained for 30 days. During that 30 days, however, you can restore the user's account, and gain access to their content. If you restore the user's account, the OneDrive and Outlook content will remain accessible to you even after 30 days.
Step 6 - Remove and delete the Microsoft 365 license from a former employee	When you remove a license, you can assign it to someone else. Or, you can delete the license so you don't pay for it until you hire another person. When you remove or delete a license, the user's old email, contacts, and calendar are retained for 30 days, then permanently deleted. If you remove or delete a license but don't delete the account, the content in the user's OneDrive will remain accessible to you even after 30 days.
Step 7 - Delete a former employee's user account	This removes the account from your admin center. Keeps things clean.

Watch: Delete a user

Check out this video and others on our YouTube channel.

When an employee leaves the company, you'll need to remove them from Microsoft 365 for business. Before doing so, you should block them from accessing company files, preserve the documents they created, and perform several other admin tasks associated with removing a user.

From the admin center, select Users, and choose Active users.
Select the user you want to remove, and then select Delete user.
Check the box to remove their license, and check the box to remove their email aliases.
Check the box to give another user access to the former employee’s email, and choose Select a user and set email options.
To remove associated email aliases, select X next to their aliases.
Review the shared mailbox information, and select Finish.
Confirm your options are set correctly, and choose Assign and convert.
Review your results, and select Close.

After you remove a user, you have up to 30 days to restore their account.

Restore a user (article)
Add a new employee to Microsoft 365 (article)
Assign licenses to users (article)
Remove-CalendarEvents
Unassign licenses from users (article)

Feedback

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Do admins get notified when you remove them?

Yes. They will get notified when they are removed as a Facebook Page role, such as an Admin.

Can an admin remove an admin?

The admin can perform all the following functions: Make someone else an admin or moderator. Remove other admins or moderators. Manage group settings such as the group name, privacy settings, cover photos, and more.