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Member deletion

Troubleshooting member deletion

Can’t delete a member from your Tallyfy organization? You must disable a member before you can permanently delete them. Here’s how to fix common blockers.

Quick diagnosis

  1. Check member status - Active, Disabled, or Invited?
  2. Check admin role - Default Admin or Administrator?
  3. Count admins - How many active admins in the organization?
  4. Note the exact error - What message appears?

Common error messages

”Please disable the user before deletion.”

Tallyfy requires a two-step process - disable first, then delete:

  1. Go to Settings > Organization > Members
  2. Click the member’s name
  3. Click Deactivate Member
  4. Reassign their tasks when prompted
  5. Then permanently delete them

”Cannot modify the default administrator.”

The full error reads: “Cannot modify the default administrator. Please assign another member as default administrator first.”

To fix this:

  1. Click a different administrator’s profile
  2. Select Make Default Administrator
  3. Go back to the original member
  4. Proceed with deactivation

No other admins? Promote a Standard member to Administrator first.

”Bot users cannot be disabled.”

Bot accounts (like Tallyfy Bot) can’t be removed or disabled. They don’t count toward billing - they handle automated comments and system tasks.

When removing a member through the DELETE /organizations/{org}/users/{user_id} endpoint, you’ll see “You can’t remove a bot user from this organization!” instead.

No other admin available

If you try to disable the only administrator, you’ll get the “Cannot modify the default administrator” error. Fix it by promoting any Standard member to Administrator first, then remove the original admin.

Special scenarios

Member shows as removed but still has access

  1. Clear browser cache and cookies
  2. Verify status shows “Deactivated”
  3. Check for active API tokens - revoke them manually
  4. If access persists after 30 minutes, contact support

Can’t find a deactivated member

Deactivated members are hidden by default:

  1. Go to the Members list
  2. Filter by Show: All or Show: Deactivated
  3. Search by name or email

Bulk member removal

For multiple deletions via API:

  • Always disable before deleting (two-step process for each)
  • Space out requests to avoid rate limits
  • Process in reasonable batches

System behavior details

Email and name changes

When permanently deleted, Tallyfy:

  • Appends “(Deleted)” directly to the last name (no space) - e.g. Smith becomes Smith(Deleted)
  • Changes email to {email}.deleted.{user_id} - e.g. john@company.com becomes john@company.com.deleted.12345

This prevents conflicts if you re-invite that person later.

What happens to member data

Removed immediately:

  • Login access
  • Active sessions

Kept for compliance:

  • Task completion history (name shows with “(Deleted)”)
  • Process participation records
  • Comments and attachments
  • Audit trail entries

Task reassignment

When no member is available for reassignment, tasks fall to “Tallyfy Bot” (the system user). This commonly happens with API deletions that skip reassignment.

API deletion

Two-step sequence:

1. DELETE /organizations/{org}/users/{user_id}/disable
2. Wait for 200 response
3. DELETE /organizations/{org}/users/{user_id}/delete

Single-step with reassignment:

DELETE /organizations/{org}/users/{user_id}?with_reassignment=true&to={new_user_id}

The single-step endpoint handles deactivation and removal together, and reassigns tasks to the specified member.

Edge cases

Organization with a single member

  • You can’t delete the last member
  • Contact support for organization closure

Circular admin dependencies

If Admin A backs up Admin B and vice versa, add a third admin temporarily to break the cycle.

Recovery

Accidentally deleted someone? Contact support immediately with:

  • Organization name
  • Member email
  • Deletion date

Recent deletions may be restorable. For older ones, send a new invitation.

When to contact support

  • Error messages don’t match those listed here
  • Server errors (500-series) appear during deletion
  • Deletion seems stuck for over an hour

Provide: organization name, member email, exact error message, screenshot

Prevention tips

  • Keep at least 2 administrators at all times
  • Document who the default administrator is
  • Use consistent offboarding procedures

Org Settings > Remove a member

Remove a member from your Tallyfy organization by deactivating them through Settings > Organization > Members, then reassigning their tasks to other active members.

Members > Remove member

Remove a member from a Tallyfy organization via API, with optional task reassignment to another member during removal.

Members > How to remove a member

Administrators in Tallyfy can instantly remove a member by deactivating their account under Settings > Organization > Members and then choosing to either reassign that person’s open tasks to other team members or leave them unassigned for later handling.

Org Settings > Member statuses

Tallyfy has four member statuses - Active, Invited, Deactivated, and Bot/Unbilled - each affecting login access and billing counts differently.
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