Microsoft 365 Migration

How to Fix SharePoint Migration Tool Teams Channel Fetch Errors

Elise Williams Oct 10, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user needs to resolve a fetch error preventing the SharePoint Migration Tool from accessing Microsoft Graph Teams channel data.

How to Fix SharePoint Migration Tool Teams Channel Fetch Errors

Product: SharePoint Migration Tool
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Migrating data to Microsoft 365 using the SharePoint Migration Tool when targeting Microsoft Teams channels.
Observed behavior: The SharePoint Migration Tool displays a 'Failed to fetch channel list' message accompanied by a Forbidden response, halting the migration process.

Before you start

Ensure you have your Microsoft 365 administrator credentials ready, as checking tenant-level permissions and Microsoft Graph access requires administrator privileges.

Solution 1Recommended

Verify and Grant Required Migration Account Permissions

Ensure the account performing the migration has the correct SharePoint, Teams, and Microsoft Graph access rights to prevent Forbidden responses.

The 'Failed to fetch channel list' error typically occurs when the migration account lacks the necessary Microsoft Graph API permissions to read Teams directories.

Access the Microsoft 365 Admin Center

Check Admin Roles

Navigate to 'Roles' > 'Role assignments' and verify that your migration account holds at least the SharePoint Administrator role.

Verify Teams Ownership

Go to the Teams admin center and ensure the migration account is explicitly added as an owner to the specific target Teams and channels you are attempting to migrate data into.

Restart and Re-authenticate

Close the SharePoint Migration Tool entirely, relaunch it, and sign in again to refresh the Microsoft Graph access tokens.

Verify and Grant Required Migration Account Permissions

Permission Propagation: After granting new permissions or roles in Microsoft 365, it may take up to a few hours for the changes to fully propagate across Microsoft Graph and Teams.

Solution 2

Submit a Support Request with Migration Logs

If permissions are configured correctly but the Forbidden error persists, escalate the issue to Microsoft Support with your migration logs.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the SharePoint Migration Tool show a Forbidden error when fetching Teams?

A Forbidden error typically indicates that the account used for the migration lacks the necessary permissions in Microsoft Graph or is not authorized to read the directory data of the specific Teams channel.

Where can I find the SharePoint Migration Tool error logs?

Migration logs are generally located in the hidden AppData folder of the user running the tool. You can typically find them by navigating to C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\MigrationTool\Logs on your local machine.

Do I need to be a Global Administrator to use the SharePoint Migration Tool?

While being a Global Administrator is not strictly required, you must have at least the SharePoint Administrator role in your Microsoft 365 tenant to successfully authenticate and migrate content to SharePoint Online or Microsoft Teams.

Can I edit documents migrated from SharePoint using WPS Office?

Yes, WPS Office is highly compatible with standard Microsoft Office formats such as .docx, .xlsx, and .pptx. You can easily download files from SharePoint or Teams and edit them locally using WPS Office.

Migration & Recovery