Forum Discussion
Advocate IBehavior of subscriptions after access removal
We have users that no longer have access to our reports/data (report builder's reports, published in PBI service), yet their subscriptions remain active.
1. Why does the subscription remain active after a user’s access has been removed? If there is a gap period, how long does it typically take for the subscription to be deactivated?
2. Will the subscription still auto trigger emails to those users in this situation?
3. If there is a gap period after access removal, what's the solution for deactivating the subscriptions?
Hii Klaudia_00
Removing a user’s report or workspace access does not automatically deactivate the email subscription, as access permissions and subscriptions are managed separately. There is no documented grace period; emails or attachments may continue while the subscription remains enabled, although the report link will not open for that user. A workspace Admin should locate the subscription under Power BI Settings > General > Notifications and remove the recipient, disable it, or delete it.
The link below clearly explains this:
4 Replies
rohit1991Super User
Hii Klaudia_00
Removing a user’s report or workspace access does not automatically deactivate the email subscription, as access permissions and subscriptions are managed separately. There is no documented grace period; emails or attachments may continue while the subscription remains enabled, although the report link will not open for that user. A workspace Admin should locate the subscription under Power BI Settings > General > Notifications and remove the recipient, disable it, or delete it.
The link below clearly explains this:- Prince0011
Memorable Member
When a user's access to a report is removed, the behavior of existing subscriptions depends on how the subscription was created and when Power BI validates permissions.
Generally:
Why does the subscription remain active?
Removing a user's access doesn't always immediately delete or disable their subscription. The subscription object may remain until Power BI performs a validation during the next scheduled run or another background process. There isn't a documented SLA for how quickly subscriptions are cleaned up after permissions change.Will emails still be sent?
No. Before generating and sending a subscription, Power BI validates that the recipient still has permission to access the report. If the user no longer has access, the subscription should fail for that user, and they shouldn't receive the report email.How can subscriptions be deactivated immediately?
If you need immediate removal, the recommended approach is to:Remove or delete the subscription manually (if you're the owner or an administrator).
Ask the subscription owner to delete it if it's a personal subscription.
If managing at scale, use the Power BI REST APIs or administrative tools (where applicable) to audit and manage subscriptions.
If you're seeing subscriptions continue to send emails after users have lost access, that would be unexpected behavior. In that case, I'd recommend capturing the subscription ID, timestamps, and affected users, then opening a Microsoft Support ticket so the service team can investigate.
For more information, see:
Subscriptions in the Power BI service: https://learn.microsoft.com/power-bi/collaborate-share/end-user-subscribe
Power BI REST APIs: https://learn.microsoft.com/rest/api/power-bi/
Manage users and permissions in Power BI: https://learn.microsoft.com/power-bi/collaborate-share/service-roles-new-workspaces
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Best regards, Prince Singh | Data Science & Microsoft Fabric Enthusiast
v-aatheequeCommunity Support
Hi Klaudia_00
Have you had a chance to look through the responses shared earlier? If anything is still unclear, we’ll be happy to provide additional support.- v-aatheeque
Hi Klaudia_00
We wanted to follow up to check if you’ve had an opportunity to review the previous responses. If you require further assistance, please don’t hesitate to let us know.
