Microsoft Threatens to Block Teams Users Who Don’t Update

Microsoft is making sure that all users of its Teams collaboration platform are using the latest version of the app. So when the next update is released, users will have 90 days to install it or they will be blocked from using Teams. Users will receive reminders to install the update 30 days after it is released.

Image source: Microsoft

According to Microsoft, the blocking is necessary to ensure the information security of users. The company warned about the change in policy regarding Teams updates back in November 2024. At that time, the following information was posted in the Microsoft 365 Message Center:

«Keeping Microsoft Teams up to date is critical to keeping your devices secure and compliant. By default, Teams is updated automatically.

Microsoft Teams is governed by a Modern Lifecycle Policy that requires the Teams desktop client to be kept up to date. […] As stated in the documentation, when the client is deprecated, the user will see:

• Repeated in-app notifications if the app is 30-90 days out of date.
• A block page if the app is more than 90 days out of date. At that point, the app will show you options to update, contact your IT administrator, or continue using Teams on the web.

As an example, if the Teams app is hypothetically at a version released on January 1, and the next update is fully available on January 15, the [first] in-app notification would show on February 14.”

Microsoft later announced specific dates for when the new policy will go into effect: April 11, 2025 for Windows PCs, May 6, 2025 for VDI environments, and May 15, 2025 for Apple computers.