How to View Deleted SharePoint Pages in the Preservation Hold Library
Question details
Users need to view the content of deleted SharePoint site pages retrieved from the Preservation Hold Library to demonstrate compliance.
- Product
- Microsoft SharePoint
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Regulated organizations attempting to demonstrate past page content for regulatory and compliance audits.
- Observed behavior
- Deleted site pages can be downloaded from the Preservation Hold Library, but their content appears empty, unreadable, or cannot be displayed properly.
Ensure you have Microsoft Purview eDiscovery administrator permissions and verify that your organization's SharePoint retention policies were active before the pages in question were deleted.
Verify Retained Content Using Microsoft Purview eDiscovery
Use the Microsoft Purview compliance portal to search and export retained SharePoint content, which helps bypass the issue of downloaded .aspx files appearing empty.
A retained SharePoint page may appear empty when downloaded because its associated web parts, images, or linked data structures were deleted separately or cannot render offline. Microsoft Purview Content Search or eDiscovery provides a comprehensive way to verify exactly what text and data was retained for compliance purposes.
Log in to the Microsoft Purview compliance portal using your global administrator or eDiscovery manager credentials.
In the left navigation pane, select 'Solutions' and then click on 'eDiscovery' or 'Content search'.
Start a new search, targeting the specific SharePoint site URL. Add conditions to filter by the deleted page's name, file type, or the date range of the deletion.
Run the search to locate the retained page. Use the preview feature to verify the text content, and export the results to fulfill your organizational compliance requirements.
Request Backend Investigation via Microsoft Support
If eDiscovery tools cannot retrieve the missing web part data, you will need to escalate the issue to Microsoft Support for a backend investigation.
Simplify Your Document Management with WPS Office
While Microsoft SharePoint handles complex enterprise retention policies, WPS Office provides a lightweight, highly compatible, and free alternative for creating, editing, and managing your daily office documents. It ensures you can reliably open and read your local compliance reports without complex backend dependencies.
- 1. Download the software: Visit the official WPS Office website and download the free installer for your operating system.
- 2. Install WPS Office: Run the setup file and follow the straightforward on-screen instructions to complete the installation.
- 3. Open your documents: Launch WPS Office to instantly open, edit, and save your daily reports and compliance documents with full format compatibility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do downloaded SharePoint pages from the Preservation Hold Library appear blank?
A retained site page (which is usually an .aspx file) may appear empty offline if the dynamic web parts, images, or underlying data lists it referenced were permanently deleted or simply cannot render outside of the live SharePoint environment.
Who has permission to access the Preservation Hold Library?
By default, only Site Collection Administrators have the necessary permissions to view, navigate, and access the Preservation Hold Library for a specific SharePoint site.
Can I restore a deleted page directly from the Preservation Hold Library to the live site?
The Preservation Hold Library is designed strictly for compliance retention, not for direct restoration. To restore a deleted page for normal use, you should use the SharePoint site's Recycle Bin or the Second-stage recycle bin.
Does a SharePoint retention policy automatically retain all web part data?
Retention policies retain the actual page file. However, if dynamic web parts pull data from other lists or libraries that are not covered by a retention policy, that associated content might be lost when deleted.
