Fix SharePoint Error: Item Cannot Be Modified Due to Retention Policy
Question details
Users are blocked from uploading or modifying files in SharePoint due to active compliance holds or retention policies.
- Product
- SharePoint Online
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- External or internal users attempting to upload, edit, or delete files in a SharePoint site or document library.
- Observed behavior
- SharePoint displays an error message stating that the item cannot be modified because it is subject to a hold or retention policy.
Ensure you have the necessary administrator privileges to access the Microsoft Purview compliance portal. Verify your organization's legal and compliance guidelines before altering any active retention policies or eDiscovery holds.
Review and Exclude the Site from Retention and DLP Policies
Identify and adjust the specific policy blocking modifications via the Microsoft Purview portal.
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) and retention policies are designed to protect critical organizational data. However, if a site is overly restricted, administrators must manually exclude the affected SharePoint URL from the active policy.
Navigate to the Microsoft Purview portal at https://compliance.microsoft.com and sign in with your Global Administrator or Compliance Admin credentials.
Select 'Data loss prevention' or 'Data lifecycle management' from the left-hand navigation menu to review the active policies.
Locate the specific policy affecting your SharePoint site, click on it, and select 'Edit policy'. Navigate to the 'Locations' configuration.
Add the specific URL of the affected SharePoint site to the excluded sites list within the policy configuration.
Save your policy updates. Keep in mind that changes may take up to 24 hours to sync across the SharePoint environment.
Check and Remove eDiscovery Legal Holds
Resolve the modification error if the SharePoint site has been locked down under an active eDiscovery legal hold.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why am I getting a retention policy error as an external guest user?
External users encounter this error when the SharePoint site owner or IT administrator has applied a strict compliance policy (such as a legal hold) that prevents any user from modifying or deleting files to preserve the document's historical state.
Can a standard SharePoint site owner remove a retention policy?
No. Usually, only Microsoft 365 Global Administrators or Compliance Administrators have the necessary permissions to modify or remove data loss prevention (DLP) and retention policies in the Microsoft Purview portal.
How long does it take for the error to disappear after changing the policy?
Once an administrator successfully excludes a site from a retention policy or legal hold, it typically takes between 15 minutes and 24 hours for the backend changes to fully propagate across the SharePoint server.
Can I edit a file without deleting it while the site is under a legal hold?
Depending on how the hold or retention policy is configured, some files can still be edited (which creates a preserved version in the Preservation Hold library). However, if the policy strictly blocks all modifications, an administrator must adjust the settings before you can proceed.
