---
stage: Govern
group: Compliance
info: To determine the technical writer assigned to the Stage/Group associated with this page, see https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/product/ux/technical-writing/#assignments
---

# Inactive project deletion **(FREE SELF)**

> - [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/85689) in GitLab 15.0 [with a flag](../administration/feature_flags.md) named `inactive_projects_deletion`. Disabled by default.
> - [Feature flag `inactive_projects_deletion`](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/96803) removed in GitLab 15.4.

Administrators of large GitLab instances can find that over time, projects become inactive and are no longer used.
These projects take up unnecessary disk space. With inactive project deletion, you can identify these projects, warn
the maintainers ahead of time, and then delete the projects if they remain inactive. When an inactive project is
deleted, the action generates an audit event that it was performed by the @GitLab-Admin-Bot.

For the default setting on GitLab.com, see the [GitLab.com settings page](../user/gitlab_com/index.md#inactive-project-deletion).

## Configure inactive project deletion

You can configure inactive projects deletion or turn it off using either:

- [The GitLab API](#using-the-api) (GitLab 15.0 and later).
- [The GitLab UI](#using-the-gitlab-ui) (GitLab 15.1 and later).

The following options are available:

- **Delete inactive projects** (`delete_inactive_projects`): Enable or disable inactive project deletion.
- **Delete inactive projects that exceed** (`inactive_projects_min_size_mb`): Minimum size (MB) of inactive projects to
  be considered for deletion. Projects smaller in size than this threshold aren't considered inactive.
- **Delete project after** (`inactive_projects_delete_after_months`): Minimum duration (months) after which a project is
  scheduled for deletion if it continues be inactive.
- **Send warning email** (`inactive_projects_send_warning_email_after_months`): Minimum duration (months) after which a
  deletion warning email is sent if a project continues to be inactive. The warning email is sent to users with the
  Owner and Maintainer roles of the inactive project. This duration must be less than the
  **Delete project after** (`inactive_projects_delete_after_months`) duration.

For example (using the API):

- `delete_inactive_projects` enabled.
- `inactive_projects_min_size_mb` set to `50`.
- `inactive_projects_delete_after_months` set to `12`.
- `inactive_projects_send_warning_email_after_months` set to `6`.

In this scenario, when a project's size is:

- Less than 50 MB, the project is not considered inactive.
- Greater than 50 MB and it is inactive for:
  - More than 6 months, a deletion warning is email is sent to users with the Owner and Maintainer role on the project
    with the scheduled date of deletion.
  - More than 12 months, the project is scheduled for deletion.

### Using the API

You can use the [Application settings API](../api/settings.md#change-application-settings) to configure inactive projects.

### Using the GitLab UI

> [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/85575) in GitLab 15.1.

To configure inactive projects with the GitLab UI:

1. On the top bar, select **Main menu > Admin**.
1. On the left sidebar, select **Settings > Repository**.
1. Expand **Repository maintenance**.
1. In the **Inactive project deletion** section, configure the necessary options.
1. Select **Save changes**.

## Determine when a project was last active

You can view a project's activities and determine when the project was last active in the following ways:

1. Go to the [activity page](../user/project/working_with_projects.md#view-project-activity) for the project and view
   the date of the latest event.
1. View the `last_activity_at` attribute for the project using the [Projects API](../api/projects.md).
1. List the visible events for the project using the [Events API](../api/events.md#list-a-projects-visible-events).
   View the `created_at` attribute of the latest event.