How to Deactivate (Delete) an Agent in BoldDesk
In BoldDesk, agents cannot be permanently deleted or removed. This design ensures ticket history, audit logs, and reports remain accurate and traceable. Instead, administrators can deactivate agents to remove their access while preserving all historical data.
Agent management is handled entirely within Admin Settings and applies across tickets, chats, and reports.
Prerequisite
To be able to deactivate or activate an agent, the user requires Admin permission to Manage Agents.
What Happens When You Deactivate an Agent
- The agent loses access to the BoldDesk Agent Portal and can no longer sign in or perform agent actions.
- Historical ticket data remains intact.
- Closed tickets will still show the agent as the assignee for transparency.
How to Deactivate an Agent
To deactivate an agent:
- Go to Admin Module > Users and Permissions > Agents.
- Locate the agent you want to deactivate and click on the More options icon (⋮) on the far right.
- When handling pending tickets or chats before agent deactivation, please ensure one of these actions is taken before clicking the Deactivate button to maintain ticket assignment and workflow continuity. If the agent you want to deactivate has unresolved tickets or active chats, you have three options:
- Remove the Agent as the assignee from all unresolved tickets and chats.
- Reassign those tickets and chats to another active agent.
- Remove Agent only.
For closed tickets, the deactivated agent will continue to be displayed as the ticket assignee to preserve a transparent record of ticket assignment, thereby ensuring consistency in the ticket history.
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Click Deactivate
- BoldDesk does not support permanently deleting agents or fully removing their associated email addresses. As a workaround, you can update the agent’s email address to a placeholder or dummy email. Once updated, the original email address becomes available for reuse, for example, to create a new agent, configure a support email, or create a contact.
- The agent deactivation date is not currently available through BoldDesk APIs. While agents can be activated or deactivated through the Admin module, deactivation history is only accessible within the BoldDesk portal. To view an agent’s deactivation date and related activity, navigate to Admin → Agents → Deactivated Agents → History.
How to Reactivate a Deactivated Agent
To restore access for a deactivated agent:
- Go to Admin Module → Users and Permissions → Agents.
- Locate the deactivated agent.
- Click the Activate button.
For customers using the Scale (Legacy) and Momentum (Legacy) plans, deactivating an agent from Admin → Users & Permissions → Agents does not reduce the agent count for the current billing cycle. To modify the billable agent count, changes must be made from Admin → Billing & Subscription. This behaviour does not apply to customers on the Enterprise plan, where billing follows team‑based licensing rules. For more information, explore further instructions about BoldDesk Subscription Plans – Compare Features & Pricing.
Troubleshooting
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“Deactivate” is unavailable for an agent who is the Account Owner
Cause: The agent is the current Organization/Account Owner.
Resolution: Transfer ownership (Agents → Change Owner) and retry after ~15 minutes. -
Unresolved tickets or active chats are blocking a clean handoff
Cause: The agent still owns active work items.
Resolution: Before completing deactivation, select one of the available handling options:- remove the agent as assignee,
- reassign to another active agent,
- or remove agent only (as provided in the deactivation flow).
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A reused email address is still blocked
Cause: BoldDesk retains the email address on the existing agent record.
Resolution: Update the deactivated agent email address to a placeholder/dummy email address, then reuse the original email address where needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Can I permanently delete an agent?
No. Agent records are kept for audit and reporting purposes and can only be deactivated. -
Will deactivated agents appear on closed tickets?
Yes. Their names remain visible to preserve ticket history. -
Does deactivation stop billing?
No. Deactivating an agent from Admin → Users & Permissions → Agents does not stop billing for that agent on Scale and Momentum (legacy) plans. Deactivated agents are still counted for billing unless the agent count is reduced through Admin → Billing & Subscription. This does not apply to customers on the Enterprise plan, where billing follows team‑based licensing rules. -
Can I reactivate a deactivated agent?
Yes. Use the Activate option in the agent settings. -
Why can’t I deactivate an agent who was added as an Account Owner?
- You can’t deactivate the current Organization/Account Owner. BoldDesk requires one active account owner at all times.
- How to resolve: Transfer ownership to another agent (Agents → Change Owner). After the transfer, you can deactivate the previous owner (allow ~15 minutes for the change to apply) How to Transfer the Ownership of an Account to Another Agent.
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Can BoldDesk automatically change or ignore an agent’s email address when the agent is deactivated?
No. In BoldDesk, deactivating an agent does not change or replace the agent’s email address. When an agent is deactivated, they lose access to the BoldDesk Agent Portal and cannot sign in or perform any agent actions. The agent record, including the email address, is retained for ticket history, audits, and reporting.
