What Happens When AD Groups Are Unexpectedly Removed or Excluded from MFT Configuration?

In Metadefender Transfer (MFT), if Active Directory (AD) groups are removed or excluded from the configuration (e.g., by modifying the “Excluded Groups” setting), the following behavior will occur:

• Files uploaded by affected AD users are moved to the Recycle Bin.
• These files appear in the Recycle Bin without user ownership (i.e., “User” field is blank).
• Reverting the configuration (e.g., undoing the excluded group setting) does not restore file ownership.

Scenario Example

1. user2 (a member of Domain Users) uploads files to MFT.

2. An admin updates the AD configuration and excludes the Domain Users group.

3. As a result:

   • user2 becomes an unrecognized user in MFT.
   • Files uploaded by user2 are automatically moved to the Recycle Bin.
   • The files appear without any associated user.

4. The admin later reverts the exclusion, but:

   1. The files remain in the Recycle Bin.
   2. User is not restored.

Solution / Workaround

There is no automatic way to restore user ownership in affected versions.

To recover the data:

1. Manually download files from the Recycle Bin.
2. Manually re-upload them under the correct user account after restoring AD sync.

Recommendations

• Avoid modifying the "Excluded Groups" setting unless necessary, especially in production environments.
• If changes are required, ensure backups or export plans are in place (such as snapshot).

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