Skip to main content

App Insights Report

The App Insights report shows administrators which non-Microsoft applications are accessing SharePoint content and what they are doing with it. Part of SharePoint Advanced Management, it watches third-party apps registered in Microsoft Entra and reports their file activity: accessed, downloaded, modified, and uploaded. Most tenants accumulate app integrations for years without reviewing them, and this report is how you find out what those apps actually touch.
Related
Agent Access Insights Report, Change History Report, SharePoint Agent Insights Report, Site Permissions Across Your Organization

Common Use Cases

  • Third-party app audit: reviewing which non-Microsoft apps registered in Entra are touching SharePoint content
  • Sensitive-site exposure: filtering by site sensitivity to see which apps reach Confidential-labeled sites
  • Permission right-sizing: spotting over-permissioned apps and trimming what they can do
  • Activity investigation: seeing which apps generate the most file access, download, modify, and upload requests
  • Vendor offboarding: confirming an app has stopped accessing content after a vendor relationship ends
  • Volume monitoring: ranking apps by request volume to catch unexpected spikes

Benefits

  • See the invisible integrations: surfaces years of accumulated app access nobody remembers granting
  • Sensitivity-aware: filter by site sensitivity to find the riskiest app reach
  • Evidence to act: gives you the data to trim app permissions with confidence
  • Four key events: file accessed, downloaded, modified, and uploaded in one view
  • Ranked by request volume: the busiest apps rise to the top
  • Tenant-scale download: the detailed report covers up to 1 million results

Details

  • Feature Category: Governance & Compliance

How It Works

  • Lives in the SharePoint Admin Center: from the Microsoft 365 App Launcher, go to Admin, open the SharePoint admin center, click App insights under Reports, then Add a report and pick the report range
  • One-time data collection: the first run prompts you to enable collection; reports become available 24 hours later
  • Based on audit events: file accessed, downloaded, modified, and uploaded by non-Microsoft apps registered in Entra
  • Admin only: only SharePoint administrators can create and view it; site owners and regular users have no access
  • Licensing: the tenant needs either the SharePoint Advanced Management add-on license or a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, which includes Advanced Management
  • Output: an on-screen view of the top 100 results by request volume, filterable, plus a detailed download covering up to 1 million results

Limits and Nuances

  • Fixed ranges: 1, 7, 14, or 28 days, with one report per range (4 maximum); re-runs allowed every 24 hours, and generation can take several hours
  • Filters: filter the view by app name, app permissions, and site sensitivity
  • Collection lifecycle: data collection must be enabled once, reports arrive 24 hours later, data is stored 28 days, and collection pauses after 3 months without a report
  • New-tenant lag: new tenants may wait a few days for data to appear
  • App naming: in some cases the report shows an app ID rather than a friendly app name

Common Questions About the App Insights Report

What does the App Insights report show?

Which non-Microsoft applications registered in Microsoft Entra are accessing your SharePoint content, and how – based on file accessed, downloaded, modified, and uploaded events. The view ranks apps by request volume and shows their permissions and the sensitivity of the sites they touch.

Where does the data come from?

Microsoft 365 audit events. The first time you use the report, a one-time prompt asks you to enable data collection; reports become available 24 hours later. Data is stored for 28 days, and collection pauses if no report is generated for 3 months.

What license is required to run this report?

You need either the SharePoint Advanced Management add-on license or a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, which includes Advanced Management. Licensing packages change often, so check Microsoft’s official requirements before planning around it.

How far back does it go?

28 days at most. Report ranges are fixed at 1, 7, 14, or 28 days, with one report per range and a maximum of four at a time. Re-runs are allowed every 24 hours, and generation can take several hours.

Can I filter what I see?

Yes – by app name, app permissions, and site sensitivity. Filtering by site sensitivity is the headline use: it shows you which third-party apps are reaching files on your most sensitive sites, which is exactly where an over-permissioned app hurts most.

Why review third-party app access?

Apps get granted permissions once and keep them for years, long after anyone remembers why. An over-permissioned app is the same governance risk as an overshared site – except it is software, working at machine speed. This report gives you the evidence to trim app permissions with confidence.