Azure DevOps: Unable to Add Users to Individual Codebases — Permission and Organization Ownership Issue

NJBass-9301 0 Reputation points
2026-11-05T19:15:33.15+00:00

Problem description

I am experiencing an issue with Azure DevOps Services where I cannot add users to an existing project or grant them access to specific codebases. The controls to add or change users are grayed out, and I suspect it relates to my current permissions or organization ownership status.

Environment

Azure DevOps Services, an existing organization with several project, affecting project membership/security and Git repository access within that project.

What I've already tried

I have attempted to add users through the web portal but the 'Add users' button is disabled or unresponsive. I verified the organization policies and my account's permissions, and I checked the organization settings to confirm the current owner. I also reviewed documentation on adding users and repository permissions.

Current status

Currently, I am unable to add users or modify organization owner settings. I seek guidance on restoring administrative permissions or changing organization ownership to resolve the issue.

Azure DevOps
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  1. Rukshan edirisinghe 2,445 Reputation points
    2026-11-06T02:03:47.62+00:00

    Hi @NJBass-9301

    A greyed-out Add users button almost always means your account isn't in the group Azure DevOps requires for that action. According to Microsoft's docs:

    • Adding users to the organization requires membership of Project Collection Administrators (PCA). Organization owners are automatically in that group.
    • A Project Administrator can add users only if the organization allows it through its invitation policy, and can't pick their license.

    So the fix depends on who still has admin rights:

    1. Check your own membership. Go to Organization settings > Permissions > Project Collection Administrators > Members. If you're not listed, ask someone who is listed to add you. Any PCA member can do that.
    2. Check the owner. Under Organization settings > Overview, note who the Owner is. Any PCA member, not only the current owner, can change the owner to you there.
    3. If the owner and all PCA members are gone (left the company or inactive), the organization is effectively orphaned. Microsoft has a separate process for this, "Assign an owner to an orphaned organization". It's linked from the ownership article below.
    4. Once you have PCA, give each person an access level (Basic or Stakeholder) under Organization settings > Users, then grant repository access under Project settings > Repositories > Security.

    Who is listed as the owner right now, and is that person still around?

    If this gets your admin access back, please consider accepting it as the answer. If nobody with PCA is reachable, let me know and I'll be happy to keep helping.

    Reference:

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