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How to Analyze SharePoint Site Usage by User Role

Tauseeq Magsi Sep 27, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user needs to filter SharePoint site usage reports by user role to exclude specific contributors, owners, or members from the overall visitor data.

How to Analyze SharePoint Site Usage by User Role

Product: SharePoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Attempting to gather accurate site visitor metrics by separating general audience traffic from administrative and contributor activities.
Observed behavior: Built-in SharePoint site usage reports lack the detailed activity records required to exclude specific users or perform advanced role-based analysis.

Before you start

Ensure you have the necessary administrative privileges to access the Microsoft Purview compliance portal and unified audit logs before attempting to extract advanced usage data.

Solution 1Recommended

Use Microsoft Purview Audit Logs and Power BI

Extract raw activity data using Microsoft Purview and apply role-based filters manually using Power BI.

Since SharePoint's default reports do not natively support role exclusions, you must retrieve detailed usage logs from Microsoft Purview. Once exported, you can use Power BI to cross-reference the data with user roles and filter accordingly.

Access Microsoft Purview

Log in to the Microsoft Purview compliance portal using an account with Global Administrator or Audit Manager permissions.

Search the Audit Log

Navigate to the 'Audit' section, set your desired date range, and filter the activities for SharePoint workload events (e.g., 'Viewed page' or 'Accessed file') for your specific site URL.

Export Results

Click the 'Export' button to download the search results as a CSV file. This file will contain detailed activity records, including user IDs and timestamps.

Process Data in Power BI

Import the CSV file into Power BI, connect it to your organization's user directory data, and apply filters to exclude users holding 'Owner' or 'Member' roles.

Use Microsoft Purview Audit Logs and Power BI

Data Availability Delay: Audit log data can sometimes take up to 24 hours to appear in Microsoft Purview after the events occur in SharePoint.

Solution 2

Extract Unified Audit Logs via PowerShell

Use PowerShell scripts to systematically pull SharePoint activity data from the unified audit log for external filtering.

Solution 3

Submit a Request to the SharePoint Feedback Community

Advocate for native role-based filtering directly within SharePoint's default site usage reports.

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While resolving SharePoint analytics limitations requires complex audit logs and Power BI, analyzing your exported CSV data doesn't have to be difficult. WPS Office offers a completely free, highly compatible suite to seamlessly handle your spreadsheets, documents, and presentations.

1. Download the Software: Visit the official WPS Office website and click the free download button for your operating system.
2. Install WPS Office: Run the downloaded installer and follow the quick setup wizard to complete the installation.
3. Analyze Your Data: Open WPS Spreadsheet to import your CSV audit logs and use advanced filters to sort your user roles instantly.

Fully compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx, .csv), Word, and PowerPoint file formats.Powerful built-in spreadsheet tools and pivot tables to easily filter and analyze your exported SharePoint audit logs.Lightweight installation that runs fast and smoothly on almost any desktop or mobile device.Free to use with a familiar user interface that requires zero learning curve.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I natively filter out site owners from SharePoint usage reports?

No, SharePoint's built-in site usage reports currently do not provide a native setting or toggle to exclude specific user roles, such as owners or members, from visitor analytics.

Do I need special permissions to access Microsoft Purview audit logs?

Yes, to search and export audit logs in Microsoft Purview, you must be assigned specific administrative roles, such as the Global Administrator or Audit Logs role in Exchange Online.

Why can't Power BI directly pull role-filtered usage data from SharePoint?

Power BI relies entirely on the data provided by SharePoint's APIs. Because standard SharePoint usage reports lack role-based detail, Power BI cannot filter it natively. You must connect Power BI to the raw unified audit logs instead.

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