Restoration of backuped up sharepoint sites to original location using M365 backup using csv doesn't work

Question

Restoration of backuped up sharepoint sites to original location using M365 backup using csv doesn't work

Madhuri Prakash Kamble 1

Hi ,

I am trying to perform restoration of few deleted sites using csv to its original url option which are protected using M365 backup solution but facing issue

Error : There no site sites that match this url

Also, want to know will restoration to original url works if sites are in soft deleted state?

ThanksinAdvance

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3 answers

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Answer 1

Madhuri Prakash Kamble 1

Hi Jay,

Thanks for your response.

From your response,we can understand that if any site is in soft deleted state, we won't be able to restore to its original url using M365 Backup solution as the site url is reserved.

But when we try to restore the same single site by selecting manually, we are able to restore it to original url and only facing the issue when we are performing using CSV method.

What can be the reason?

Anonymous

2026-01-13T15:44:42.4866667+00:00
Hi @Madhuri Prakash Kamble,

Thank you for your response.

We appreciate you taking the time to validate this behavior on your end. You are absolutely correct in your observation. You are absolutely correct in your observation. The manual restore succeeds because it does not go through the validation check that is failing during the CSV-based restore process.

The difference lies in how the Microsoft 365 Backup service validates the destination before initiating a restore job.

Manual restore: When restoring a site manually, the process pulls directly from the backup history. At this stage, the system already has the Site ID stored in the backup vault, so it does not need to verify whether the site is currently active in the tenant. As a result, the restore can proceed even if the site is in a soft-deleted state.

CSV or bulk restore: In contrast, the CSV-based restore performs a pre-validation against the tenant’s active SharePoint directory before the job starts. If a site is in a soft-deleted state and resides in the recycle bin, it does not appear as an active site. Because of this, the CSV validator cannot resolve or map the site URL and fails early with the error stating that no sites match the specified URL, before any backup data is accessed.

I hope this explanation was helpful. If it addressed your question, we would appreciate it if you could mark the response as accepted. Doing so helps other community members more easily identify the correct solution when searching for similar issues.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. Wishing you a great day ahead.

Answer 2

Hi @Madhuri Prakash Kamble,

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum. Thank you for your questions. I understand how disruptive this issue may have caused.

Regarding the error encountered during the CSV-based restore, stating that there are no sites that match the specified URL, this usually means that Microsoft 365 cannot identify the target site URL as an active SharePoint site at the time the restore job runs. This commonly happens when the site is in a soft-deleted state. Soft-deleted sites are retained in the SharePoint admin center under Deleted sites, but they are not considered active, even though the URL is still reserved. Because of this, restore to original URL cannot be completed and the restore process returns this error. Other possible contributors include an incorrect URL format in the CSV file or the site being in a pending deletion state.

For your second question, restoring to the original URL does not work while the site remains soft deleted. A restore to original URL requires the destination site to already exist and be active. While a soft-deleted site still holds its original URL, it is inactive and therefore cannot be used as a restore target.

As a recommended alternative, you can first restore the deleted site directly from the SharePoint admin center by navigating to Deleted sites and restoring the site. Once the site is active again, the original URL becomes available and the CSV-based restore to the original URL can be retried successfully.

I hope you found the answer helpful, and we would greatly appreciate it if you could mark it as accepted. This helps highlight the solution for others who may be searching for similar information in the community. Your contribution not only supports fellow users in finding the right guidance more quickly, but also helps build a more resourceful and collaborative space for everyone.

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Answer 3

When restoring SharePoint sites using the Microsoft 365 Backup solution, if you encounter the error "There are no sites that match this URL," it may indicate that the specified URL does not correspond to any existing sites in the backup or that the sites are in a state that prevents restoration to that URL.

Regarding your question about restoring sites that are in a soft deleted state, it is important to note that SharePoint sites that are soft deleted can typically be restored. However, if the restoration is attempted to the original URL, it may not work if the site is still considered soft deleted. In such cases, it might be necessary to restore the site to a new URL first and then handle the data accordingly.

For best practices, ensure that the URLs you are using in your CSV file are correct and that the sites are indeed in a state that allows for restoration. If issues persist, consider checking the specific conditions of the sites you are trying to restore.