Mastering Dataverse Bulk Delete – Simplifying Data Cleanup

As enterprise applications grow, so does the data they collect. Test records, outdated leads, or inactive cases can clutter your system, slow performance, and inflate storage costs. Microsoft Dataverse offers a powerful yet underutilized feature to address this: Bulk Delete.

In this first part of our Bulk Delete series, we explore how to use this feature effectively to maintain a clean and efficient environment.

Why Use Bulk Delete?

Instead of deleting records one-by-one or writing custom scripts, Bulk Delete lets you:

• Delete at scale: Remove thousands of records across multiple tables in one job.
• Run in the background: Keeps the UI responsive and avoids resource bottlenecks.
• Schedule and repeat jobs: Automate periodic cleanups (e.g., nightly or monthly).
• Track and log activity: Monitor success and failure rates via system jobs.
• Cascade deletions: Honor Dataverse relationship and plugin rules.

How Bulk Delete Works (Under the Hood)

When you submit a Bulk Delete job, Dataverse creates a BulkDeleteOperation system job. It executes asynchronously, meaning it won’t interfere with live operations.

You can configure Bulk Delete through:

• The Dynamics 365 UI (Settings > Data Management > Bulk Record Deletion)
• The SDK using BulkDeleteRequest
• Web API via the /BulkDelete action endpoint

Each job contains a QuerySet to define which records to delete. You can target specific tables or multiple tables at once.

Code Example: Purging Old Resolved Cases

var oldCasesQuery = new QueryExpression("incident");
oldCasesQuery.Criteria.AddCondition("statuscode", ConditionOperator.Equal, 5);
oldCasesQuery.Criteria.AddCondition("modifiedon", ConditionOperator.OlderThanXYears, 5);


var bulkDeleteRequest = new BulkDeleteRequest {
JobName = "Purge Old Resolved Cases",
QuerySet = new[] { oldCasesQuery },
StartDateTime = DateTime.UtcNow,
RecurrencePattern = String.Empty,
SendEmailNotification = false
};


BulkDeleteResponse response = (BulkDeleteResponse)service.Execute(bulkDeleteRequest);
Console.WriteLine($"Bulk Delete Job scheduled. ID: {response.JobId}");

Real-World Example: Cleaning Demo Data

You have a custom table called “Demo Data” used for testing. To prevent buildup:

This job will run unattended, keeping your demo environment clean and lean.