Yes there will be few impacts.

• Managed Tables Impact

  • The catalog hierarchy (catalogs → schemas → tables) is stored in the metastore database, not in ADLS.
  • So removing the ADLS path does NOT delete catalogs or permissions.
  • However, managed tables depend on that root path for their physical data. If you remove it:
    • Managed tables will break because their data location becomes invalid.
    • External tables remain intact since they point to their own storage.

• Access Control (AD Groups)

  • Permissions for catalogs, schemas, and tables are stored in Unity Catalog, not in ADLS.
  • So AD group access policies remain unaffected by removing the root path.

• Critical Risk

  • If any managed tables exist, you must migrate their data to a new managed location before removing the old path.
  • Otherwise, those tables will become inaccessible.