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How to Export a 90-Day Message Trace Report in Exchange Online
Question details
The user needs to export a message trace report covering a 90-day period in Exchange Online.
- Product
- Exchange Online
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Searching for and exporting extended email routing and delivery data that exceeds the standard 10-day viewing limit.
- Observed behavior
- Standard message trace results only display data for up to 10 days. Longer searches require generating a specific report type that must be downloaded as a CSV file.
Ensure you have the necessary administrator permissions, such as Exchange Administrator or Global Administrator, assigned in your Microsoft 365 tenant to access the admin center and run message traces.
Generate and Download an Extended Message Trace Report
Use the modern Exchange admin center to request an Enhanced summary or Extended report for searches extending beyond the standard 10-day limit.
Exchange Online restricts inline message trace results to a 10-day window to maintain optimal system performance. For historical data stretching up to 90 days, administrators must request an asynchronous report.
These extended reports are not viewable directly in the web browser. Instead, Microsoft compiles the routing data in the background and provides a downloadable CSV file once the trace is complete.
Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center with your administrator credentials and navigate to the modern Exchange admin center (EAC).
In the left-hand navigation menu, expand the 'Mail flow' section and click on 'Message trace'.
Click the 'Start a trace' button and enter your desired search criteria, such as specific sender or recipient email addresses.
Under the 'Time range' section, select 'Custom time range' and specify your desired start and end dates covering the 90-day period.
In the 'Choose report type' section, choose either 'Enhanced summary report' or 'Extended report', provide a notification email address, and click 'Search' to submit the request.
Analyze Message Trace CSV Reports with WPS Office
After exporting your 90-day message trace report as a CSV file from Exchange Online, you need a reliable spreadsheet tool to view and filter the data. WPS Office provides a free, lightweight, and highly compatible alternative to Microsoft Office for analyzing large admin logs.
- 1. Download your CSV report: Save the completed message trace CSV file from the Exchange admin center to your local computer.
- 2. Open with WPS Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Office, open the Spreadsheet module, and go to Menu > Open to locate and load your downloaded CSV file.
- 3. Filter and analyze logs: Select the header row and apply Data Filters to easily sort through delivery statuses, message IDs, and recipient information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can I not see trace results older than 10 days in the standard view?
Exchange Online restricts instant inline search results to the last 10 days to ensure fast performance. Accessing older data requires background processing, which is why a downloadable CSV report must be generated for searches up to 90 days.
Does the 90-day message trace report include client IP addresses?
Client IP address information is only available for messages sent or received within the last 10 days. If your extended report covers a 90-day period, the IP data will be missing for any messages older than 10 days.
How long does it take to generate an Extended message trace report?
The time required to generate an extended report depends on the volume of emails and the date range selected. It can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. You can check the progress in the 'Downloadable reports' tab in the Exchange admin center.
Can I export message trace data older than 90 days?
No, Exchange Online only retains message trace data for a maximum of 90 days. If you need to keep email routing logs for a longer period, you must proactively export and archive the CSV reports on a regular basis.
