Hi team- should an admin be able to view a user's trash items in the content manager if the user deleted the file(s)? We've confirmed that an admin can see the trashed files under the owner's account (in the content manager) but not under the user who deleted them. Any ideas why this might be or is this not expected functionality?
Hi Currently, we have two options to sort and filter all items within the Trash folder. When the admin accesses the Content Manager and navigates to the Trash folder of a managed user (not owned by an external user), can they view the 'Items I Deleted'?
➡ Resource: Managing Trash
To sort and filter all items within the trash folder:
- The Items I deleted filter displays all items you have deleted, regardless of who created or owns the item.
- The Items I own filter displays all deleted items you own, regardless of who deleted the item.

The admin can also try Using Instant Login for a Managed User's Account.
Related support articles for managing contents:
Please let us know if this resolves the issue. Have a great day!
Hi Jey- Thanks for clarifying! My question more pertains to what the Admin can see from the Content Manager. Can they see trash for users who own trashed content or who trashed content? Or is your post asserting that an admin should view the trash from the user’s account using “Login as User”? Thank you!
Hello , apologies for the confusion, and thank you for your patience. Upon further review, if enabled for Admins/Co-Admins, they will only be able to see deleted items in the owner’s trash through the Content Manager in the Admin Console, but not under the user who trashed them.
Currently, this is not expected functionality. However, we have a related feature request in Box Pulse: Please implement the search filter of "User who deleted" in the Trash. Similar to the ‘Items I own’ or ‘Items I deleted’ filters, this feature would help efficiently identify users who trashed content.
This feature is on our roadmap, and we recommend upvoting the idea so our Product Team can evaluate it.
Thanks again, and have a great day ahead!
As we’ve discussed the Content Manager, I’d also like to share this go-to resource: Managing Content. It provides a list of articles that are very helpful for Box Admins when managing content, such as:
- Searching for Content Using the Admin Console
- Viewing Managed User's Files and Folders
- Moving Files with the Content Manager
- Deleting Files and Folders from the Admin Console
Feel free to reach out if you have other concerns/inquiries.
Reply
Enter your E-mail address. We'll send you an e-mail with instructions to reset your password.