Microsoft Security | Microsoft Purview
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Microsoft Purview: Export Terms from the Legacy Glossary Experience — Functionality Not Working
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Diego Hacey
0
Reputation points
Problem description
I am trying to export glossary terms from Microsoft Purview's legacy/classic glossary experience. Despite having the data curator and full Purview admin permissions, the 'Export' button is not available, and glossary terms are not selectable when following the documented export flow. This issue has persisted since September 8, 2026.
Environment
Microsoft Purview in Azure, legacy/classic glossary experience for business glossary terms, no specific region, tenant, subscription, or resource details available in the case.
What I've already tried
I reviewed the Microsoft documentation for importing and exporting glossary terms and followed the navigation steps in the legacy glossary experience. I confirmed that I have the necessary permissions, including data curator and full Purview admin. I also checked the self-help material, which states that glossary term import/export is supported via CSV workflows and requires data curator permissions. No additional diagnostics, logs, or troubleshooting steps were performed.
Current status
The export functionality is still not available in the UI, and I am seeking guidance on how to proceed or alternative methods to export glossary terms programmatically, such as using REST API, Azure CLI, or scripts.
Microsoft Security | Microsoft Purview
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Ganesh Chelluri 190 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator2026-09-14T16:52:54.04+00:00 Hello @Diego Hacey ,
The Export terms button in the classic Microsoft Purview glossary is disabled by default. It becomes available only after one or more glossary terms are selected.
Please follow these steps:
- Open the Microsoft Purview Data Catalog.
- In the classic experience, select Glossary.
- Open the glossary containing the terms you want to export.
- Confirm that your account has the Data Curator role for the applicable collection.
- Select the checkbox beside one or more glossary terms.
- Confirm that Export terms becomes enabled.
- Select Export terms to download the selected terms as a CSV file.
The terms selected for one export do not need to use the same term template.
If the term checkboxes are still unavailable, please confirm whether your organization has already completed the one-time migration of classic glossary terms to Unified Catalog. After that migration, the classic glossary becomes read-only.
As a programmatic alternative for classic glossary terms, you can use the Microsoft Purview Data Map REST API:
- List the glossaries using GET /datamap/api/atlas/v2/glossary.
- Retrieve the terms for each glossary using GET /datamap/api/atlas/v2/glossary/{glossaryId}/terms.
- Use limit and offset to process paginated results.
- Save or transform the returned glossary-term data into CSV.
If the terms remain unselectable and migration has not been completed, please share a screenshot of the terms list and the visible browser URL with tenant-specific information removed. This will help determine whether the issue is caused by the active portal experience, glossary scope, or role assignment.Hello Diego,
The Export terms button in the classic Microsoft Purview glossary is disabled by default. It becomes available only after one or more glossary terms are selected.
Please follow these steps:
- Open the Microsoft Purview Data Catalog.
- In the classic experience, select Glossary.
- Open the glossary containing the terms you want to export.
- Confirm that your account has the Data Curator role for the applicable collection.
- Select the checkbox beside one or more glossary terms.
- Confirm that Export terms becomes enabled.
- Select Export terms to download the selected terms as a CSV file.
The terms selected for one export do not need to use the same term template.
If the term checkboxes are still unavailable, please confirm whether your organization has already completed the one-time migration of classic glossary terms to Unified Catalog. After that migration, the classic glossary becomes read-only.
As a programmatic alternative for classic glossary terms, you can use the Microsoft Purview Data Map REST API:
- List the glossaries using GET /datamap/api/atlas/v2/glossary.
- Retrieve the terms for each glossary using GET /datamap/api/atlas/v2/glossary/{glossaryId}/terms.
- Use limit and offset to process paginated results.
- Save or transform the returned glossary-term data into CSV.
If the terms remain unselectable and migration has not been completed, please share a screenshot of the terms list and the visible browser URL with tenant-specific information removed. This will help determine whether the issue is caused by the active portal experience, glossary scope, or role assignment.
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