---
title: "Renaming and Restoring Deleted SMS Teams and Channels (Legacy)"
slug: "renaming-and-restoring-deleted-sms-teams-and-channels"
updated: 2026-01-20T16:33:00Z
published: 2026-01-20T16:33:00Z
canonical: "kb.connecttoteams.com/renaming-and-restoring-deleted-sms-teams-and-channels"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kb.connecttoteams.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Renaming and Restoring Deleted SMS Teams and Channels

> [!WARNING]
> Note
> 
> This article applies only to the legacy SMS Connector App. If your organization is using the Unified Connector App, you can skip this section.
> 
> To understand the differences between the two apps, see [SMS Connector App vs Unified Connector App](/v1/docs/sms-and-mms-in-microsoft-teams-end-user-guide).

The terms are defined below with reference to the Team and Channel elements highlighted in this picture.

###### **![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214154230.png)**

## **Renaming Team and Channels**

The user to which the phone number is assigned may change the Team Name in the MS Teams application. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214206209.png)

![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214253656.png)

Since it is the user making the change, it is not necessary for Global Admin to do a "Sync SMS App" in this workflow.

Note: The SMS Messages exchanged with a contact in Outlook Contacts or Microsoft Azure Active Directory (i.e, organization contacts) will appear in a channel following the name of the contact. If the channel is renamed, it will be overridden in favor of the found Outlook or Azure AD Contact when a new message arrives. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214312002.png)

## **Restoring Deleted Teams and Channels**

> It is not recommended to delete a Team dedicated to an SMS phone number and any channels dedicated to SMS conversation with contacts.

![](https://cdn.elev.io/file/uploads/W739gsaACCPbBBGg0bIHxyWXQN9NNUZ0gqg49ieX4TY/WPOfWDbLqcvlmdLvoJWUQR7ybp-b_swJqA8APW2759g/1693837501975-KYM.png)

In the event a team or channel has been deleted as illustrated above, follow the steps described here.

1. From the Microsoft Entra admin center (formerly Azure), navigate to Groups then Deleted Groups. ![](https://cdn.elev.io/file/uploads/W739gsaACCPbBBGg0bIHxyWXQN9NNUZ0gqg49ieX4TY/zj211NeBSUsf3JyYj3XF8SP33OScEMSigtb8OqK60JQ/1693837522331-onM.png)
2. Look for the deleted SMS phone number, Channels or Team then check the box and click Restore Group on top of the page and click Yes on the confirmation message.

![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214407116.png)

![](https://cdn.elev.io/file/uploads/W739gsaACCPbBBGg0bIHxyWXQN9NNUZ0gqg49ieX4TY/bt6ZhpaMsTsGBIAW9eRH4Wmoz3jFCu1mPJI3XBF_jCg/1693837610338-QIc.png)

A notification will pop up on the upper right and the SMS phone number, Channels or Team should show in Teams again. Note that it may take 4 to 24 hours for the restoration as we have to allow time for it to propagate. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214454180.png)

Restored SMS phone numbers, Channels or Team will show at the bottom of the Teams Channel lists. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/312e5ae5-e3c1-465d-8e37-f253a7ba8eee/Images/Documentation/image-1750214474273.png)

> - If you create a Channel or Teams that already exists an error message will occur saying: “Channel name already existed, please use other names."
> - The workaround is to restore the channel from the Microsoft Entra admin center deleted Teams list.