The Teams window, accounts and status

Elvin has just started an internship at a logistics company in Baku. By lunchtime he has heard three requests: “Message me in Teams”, “Join the three o'clock call” and “Put the report in the channel”. All three happen in one app. In this lesson you will learn your way around the Teams window, set up your accounts and use your status to show colleagues whether you are free.

The Teams window at a glance

On the left side of Teams is the app bar — the main apps you switch between. At the top is the search box, and in the top-right corner is your profile picture, which opens your accounts and status. The large area in the middle shows whatever you have selected on the left.

Accounts: work, school and personal

Teams works with a work or school account issued by your organization and with a personal Microsoft account. The desktop app can hold several accounts at once, and you can even join another organization as a guest. You get notifications from all of them and can switch without leaving a meeting.

1. 1
   Open the account menu

   Select your profile picture in the top-right corner.

2. 2
   Add an account

   Choose Add another account, then pick an account you have used before or select Create or use another account and sign in.

3. 3
   Switch between accounts

   Select your profile picture again and choose the account you need. Each account keeps its own chats, teams and status.

Status: show whether you are free

Your status is the small coloured dot on your profile picture. Teams changes it by itself: during a meeting it becomes In a meeting, and when your computer locks or goes idle, Available turns into Away. You can also set it yourself: select your profile picture, then your current status.

• Available — you are active and have nothing on your calendar
• Busy — you are focusing but still want notifications
• Do not disturb — you are focusing or presenting and want no notifications
• Be right back — you have stepped away for a moment
• Appear away — you are working but won't reply right away
• Appear offline — you want to look as if you are not signed in

Settings and search

Most options live under Settings and more (the … next to your profile picture) › Settings: notifications, devices (camera, microphone), appearance and language. The search box at the top finds people, messages and files across Teams.