Major updates
(Updated) Introducing an enhanced Teams Calling experience
MC229945 | March 19 – Updated March 19, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Additionally, we sent a follow-up Message center post with updated details to answer questions and provide clarity. Thank you for your feedback. We are simplifying the calling experience in the Teams desktop app (Windows and Mac) by providing a streamlined view that combines contacts, voicemail, and calling history.
(Updated) Feature Update: Modern comments in Word (Mac)
MC240613 | March 19 – Updated March 19, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. We’re rolling out a new comments experience in Word with improved keyboard shortcuts as well as improved @mentions and notifications. This experience unifies how comments work across Word, Excel, and PPT.
Excel Trust Center: new option to block Excel 4.0 (XLM) macros
MC244888 | March 17 – We are introducing a new Excel Trust Center setting to further restrict the usage of Excel 4.0 (XLM) macros. As part of this rollout, a registry key is being retired, and a group setting is being renamed.
(Updated) Change in display of hierarchical sensitivity labels
MC234256 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. This feature update does not apply to EDU tenants.We are updating how the Teams channel header displays hierarchical sensitivity labels to provide improved exposure to the confidentiality status of content in a channel.
(Updated) Introducing a change in access behavior for public groups in Microsoft Forms
MC240161 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. We are introducing a change in public groups that affects Microsoft Forms users.
(Updated) Microsoft Teams Revised In-meeting Share Experience
MC235111 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. Microsoft Teams desktop users on Windows and Mac will soon have a revised share experience while in meetings.
Release of new Yammer Desktop experience and Retirement of existing Yammer Desktop App
MC244744 | March 17 – As announced at Ignite and MC226941 (November ’20) the new Yammer experience and capabilities will now be available to our current Yammer Desktop App users, either through the Communities App in Teams or the new Yammer Desktop experience in the form of a Progressive Web App (PWA). The new installable Yammer Desktop Application (PWA) will be released by the end of March 2021 to all customers and the Communities App in Teams is already available for all users to download.
(Updated) Retirement of support for external XSLT files in DataFormWebPart and its subclasses
Act by: March 15
MC242207 | March 16 – Updated March 16, 2021: We have updated this post to ensure visibility. No changes have been made to the content below. Thank you for your patience. To enhance data integrity and improve the overall reliability of the service, we are retiring support for external XSLT file references for the DataFormWebParts and its sub-classes (e.g. XsltListFormWebPart, XsltListViewWebPart). This retirement affects only classic SharePoint pages.
SharePoint classic site usage reports to be moved to a new link
MC244687 | March 16 – We are relocating classic usage and popularity reports in the SharePoint admin center classic site collection settings.
(Updated) OneDrive/SharePoint Send link to Outlook sharing option
MC237377 | March 16 – Updated March 16, 2021: Based on learning’s from our early rings and your feedback we have made the decision to not proceed as outlined below. The Send link to Outlook sharing option will not be retired at this time. Thank you for your feedback. Note: These changes do not apply to the OneDrive mobile app on iOS or Android. Previously we had rolled out this change and disabled the ability to share a link via the Outlook Share Target.
Changes to Microsoft To Do Support Experience
MC244604 | March 16 – We have made some changes to the support experience on Microsoft To Do. On the Android, iOS, Web and Windows apps while the experience remains the same, we have made a few changes to the Support module that will require the app to be updated.On MacOS we will no longer support the in-app chat experience to raise support tickets. Instead, on Mac, clicking on “Get support” from “Help” will open a webpage from where support tickets can be raised.
Additional Updates
PowerPoint Live in Teams: Slide Translation
MC245302 | March 19 – This new slide translation feature in Microsoft Teams (desktop) will enable all meeting attendees to translate presentation content, presented via PowerPoint Live in a Teams meeting, into a language of their choice while in private view.
Microsoft Teams: Supporting outgoing video in Safari
MC245301 | March 19 – Disclaimer: Only for users of macOS and Safari 14 or higher. Previously, some of the Microsoft Teams web app calling and meeting features were not supported on Safari. Users could not use their cameras. We’re excited that this new Microsoft Teams web app feature release will allow MacOS users to now be able to use their camera during meetings in Safari, enabling other meeting participants to see their video.
Power Platform data loss prevention policy available to all Dataverse for Teams environments
MC245181 | March 19 – In March 2020, we added a PowerShell solution that applies data loss prevention (DLP) policy to all Dataverse for Teams environments within a tenant. This allows admins to better control their organization’s data without hindering makers’ ability to create low-code and no-code solutions within Teams. You can find more details about the PowerShell solution and how to apply it by viewing our documentation: Applying a data loss prevention policy to all Dataverse for Teams environments.
(Updated) Increasing interactive meeting participants and chat from 300 to 1000
MC242587 | March 19 – Updated March 19, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. Currently, we allow only 300 users to be added to interactive meetings. We are going to increase the meeting participant and chat size from 300 to 1000.
(Updated) Introducing a registration page for Microsoft Teams meetings
MC237807 | March 19 – Updated March 19, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. Microsoft Teams meeting organizers will soon be able to create a custom registration page for any meeting, although the feature is designed for webinars. The feature is available for meeting organizers using Teams desktop applications (Win/Mac) and Teams on the web.
Updates available for Microsoft 365 Apps for Current Channel
MC245144 | March 19 – We’ve released updates to the following update channel for Microsoft 365 Apps: Current Channel
Forms: New features in Teams polls in meetings
MC245021 | March 18 – By integrating Teams and the Forms app, we have created a new way for meeting presenters to poll attendees. Adding a Forms poll in Teams Meetings uses the customized meeting experiences outlined in MC224434 (October 2020) and MC225995 (December 2020). With this update, Polls in Teams Meetings now support guests and provides an optimized mobile experience.
Focus mode for modern SharePoint pages
MC244912 | March 18 – We’re excited to share that this coming release will enable SharePoint page authors and viewers to focus on a greater amount of page content by hiding the site header, site navigation, and global navigation bar with one click.
Planner Mobile Push Notification Update
MC244889 | March 17 – We are updating the delivery method for mobile push notifications in the Planner mobile apps for iOS and Android. Notifications from these apps will be delivered via a direct push method, where the contents of the notifications will be sent to the mobile device over Apple and Google push notification services. End users will see no changes to their existing user experience with Planner.
Excel for the Web Usability Enhancements
MC244887 | March 17 – Delighting our customers with faster, smoother, and richer experiences in Excel for the web is an uncompromised goal across our Excel team. We recently added performance improvements to Excel for the Web scenarios (see MC239095) and today we’re announcing several features to help customers better navigate and manipulate Excel for the web files in a browser.
Announcing redirect of compliance solutions from legacy SCC portal to M365 compliance center
MC244886 | March 17 – The Microsoft 365 compliance center provides easy access to the data and tools you need to manage your organization’s compliance needs. It is the recommended portal for compliance solutions. We will soon begin redirecting users from the legacy Security & Compliance Center (SCC) portal to the Microsoft 365 compliance center for the following solutions: Audit log, Data loss prevention, Information governance, and Records management.
Adding Quick Permissions to the OneDrive/SharePoint Share Control
MC244885 | March 17 – This new feature will enable OneDrive/SharePoint share control users to more easily change permissions when sharing links.
Manage Auto-Claim Policies for products containing Microsoft Teams
MC244882 | March 17 – An auto-claim policy lets users automatically claim a license for a product the first time that they sign into an app. As an admin, you typically assign licenses to users either manually, or by using group-based licensing. By using auto-claim policies, you manage the products for which users can automatically claim licenses. You can also control which products those licenses come from.
(Updated) Introducing text predictions in Outlook for Windows
MC229381 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. Text predictions help Microsoft 365 users write more efficiently by using intelligent technology to suggest text during composition. This feature is available for Outlook on the web (MC225214, October 2020). We are now extending support for text predictions to Outlook for Windows.
(Updated) OneDrive Android – Bookmarks feature for PDF viewing
MC242827 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. We are adding a bookmark that makes it easier for users of the OneDrive mobile app for Android to return to a specific page in a PDF document and pick up where they left off.
(Updated) Migrate content from Box to Microsoft 365
MC244608 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated this post to ensure visibility. No changes have been made to the content below. Thank you for your patience. This new feature release will enable admins to take advantage of our expanded support for third-party cloud providers and migrate content from Box.com to Microsoft 365. This release allows you to transfer your Box files and folders as well as convert Box notes into Word documents.
(Updated) Microsoft Teams: Dynamic View
MC242824 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. Microsoft Teams is excited to introduce Dynamic view, a redesigned and optimized meeting stage that will optimize your experience of consuming shared content and engaging with video and audio participants.
Microsoft 365 admin center Service name update for Dynamics 365
MC244865 | March 17 – On April 19, 2021, the Microsoft 365 admin center Service name displayed for both Service Health and Message Center information for Dynamics 365 will be updated to Dynamics 365 Apps. What do I need to do to prepare for this change? There is no action required of administrators for this Microsoft 365 admin center display change. However, you will notice an update to Service names for notifications displayed under the Service column for Dynamics 365 Apps.
(Updated) Start Meet Now from Outlook desktop client (Windows)
MC233463 | March 17 – Updated March 17, 2021: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience. We’ve made it easier than ever to start a Teams meeting through the addition of the Meet Now button in Outlook.
Updates to Microsoft Defender for Office events in Office 365 Management API
MC244748 | March 17 – We have been working to meet the extensibility requirements of our customers who are using our detection information within custom tools. As part of this effort, we are enhancing the information around email detections within the Office 365 Management API.
Prevent attendees from sharing video feed in Microsoft Teams Meetings
MC244745 | March 17 – Meeting organizers and presenters will be able to prevent meeting attendees from turning their cameras on to share videos during a meeting. Currently, meeting organizers and presenters have no control over whether meeting attendees can share videos.
Viva Connections for Microsoft Teams desktop clients
MC244743 | March 17 – Viva Connections for Teams enables users to discover and search intranet content, sites, and news from across the organization in Microsoft Teams (desktop and web). Viva Connections for Teams, formerly known as the Homesite app, combines the power of your intelligent SharePoint intranet with Teams chat and collaboration tools.
Customizable website tabs in Teams Templates
MC244741 | March 17 – This new Microsoft Teams release will add an additional functionality to team templates enabling admins to specify URLs for website tabs for channels in custom team templates. This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 70794.
Announcing Teams PowerShell Module 2.0
MC244740 | March 17 – We are excited to announce Version 2.0.0 of Teams PowerShell Module. The release is available at PowerShell Gallery | Microsoft Teams 2.0.
Service Health email notifications for specific incidents and advisories
MC244739 | March 17 – As was previously announced in MC225596, the service health dashboard in Microsoft 365 admin center will soon support the ability to opt into email notifications for a specific incident or advisory. This feature will allow you to input up to two email addresses to receive status updates for a specific issue including notification when the issue is resolved.
Customization of quarantine notification
MC244733 | March 17 – We are making it possible for you to customize quarantine notifications with your organization logo, custom display name, and a custom disclaimer.
Request/Release workflow for quarantined messages
MC244732 | March 17 – With this new quarantine policy, tenant admins will be able to configure end-user access to messages quarantined by the Exchange Online Protection (EOP) anti-spam, Microsoft defender for office 365 (MDO) anti-phishing, anti-malware, and Microsoft defender for office 365 (MDO) safe attachment policies. End users will also now have a process to request message release.
Microsoft Teams: Custom policy packages
MC244607 | March 16 – Earlier this month, March 2021 (MC243733), we announced the release of policy package assignment to groups that allowed you to assign multiple out-of-the-box policies to a group of users based on roles to better manage policies in your organization. This new release of custom policy packages will enable you to build and configure your own set of policy packages tailored to users with similar roles in your organization.
SharePoint: Simplified editing of user interface elements in multilingual communication sites
MC244600 | March 16 – In 2020 we rolled out the multilingual communication site feature which allowed a site owner to enable multiple languages for page and news publishing in a SharePoint communication site. With this update, a user with appropriate edit permissions can update selected multilingual user interface (MUI) elements in all the languages enabled in a multilingual communication site in the same editing session.
De-identify personally identifiable information in Teams admin usage reports
MC244599 | March 16 – Usage reports in Teams admin center currently exposes user identifiable information like AAD Id, User name, email, etc. in various reports (like Teams user activity, device usage reports ) Currently, M365 admin center Teams usage report has the capability to de-identify personal information which is present in usage reports available in M365 admin center (see more). However, these settings don’t apply to usage reports available in a Teams admin center.
