Problem description
SharePoint sites remain in an active/enabled state on Druva with the error code ESITELOCKED, even after the sites have been archived in Microsoft 365.
Cause
When a SharePoint site is archived in Microsoft 365, it becomes inaccessible via Microsoft Graph APIs.
During backup attempts on such archived sites, Microsoft responds with HTTP 423 (Locked) stating:
"Access to this site has been blocked."
Druva interprets this response as an ESITELOCKED error code.
Microsoft uses the same "locked" response for both locked and archived states, so Druva cannot distinctly identify an archived site.
Therefore, currently Archived sites are not marked disabled automatically.
Traceback / logs
When reviewing Druva backup logs for the affected SharePoint site, you will see entries similar to:
1 ERROR CODE: ESITELOCKED
2 HTTP Status: 423 Locked
3 Message: Access to this site has been blocked.
This indicates Druva attempted access, but Microsoft blocked it because the site is archived.
Why archived sites show ESITELOCKED
On archival, Microsoft blocks access to the site through Graph APIs.
Backup requests receive HTTP 423 (Locked) with the "site blocked" message.
Druva reports this as ESITELOCKED, as no API distinguishes archive vs. locked.
Why Druva cannot auto-disable these sites
Microsoft Search API Limitation
Druva’s discovery uses the Microsoft Search API, which confirms site existence but does not reveal archive status.
Hence, archived sites still appear active during enumeration.
2. Auto Re-enablement Behavior
If Druva disables a site after ESITELOCKED, the next discovery re-enables it, as the site still exists in the tenant.
This causes a disable → discover → re-enable → loop.
Current Workaround to prevent these failures.
Manually disable archived sites in the Druva console
Steps:
Go to Druva Console → SharePoint → Sites.
Identify archived sites showing ESITELOCKED.
Select all the sites which are marked as ESITELOCKED and manually disable them.