Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a secure, Cloud-based chat and group collaborative workspace that seamlessly integrates with other Office 365 applications, including Exchange, OneDrive, and SharePoint.
Using Teams, you can check who is online and start a chat, schedule a meeting with the whole team, or manage projects using Microsoft Planner—a project management platform which enables users to create and manage plans and tasks on various ad-hoc projects.
Team owners can manage work and vacation schedules for members of a team using Microsoft Shifts.
Features
- Chat one on one or in groups
- Create channels to organize your conversations
- Office integration includes built-in access to SharePoint and OneDrive
- Co-author Office documents right in the app
- Review a project's history
- Access to your Outlook calendar
- Hold online meetings
- See a team member’s current status
- Desktop
- Mobile
- Web browser
Available To
- Students
- Faculty
- Staff
Getting Started
Via the desktop client (preferred)
- Download the Teams desktop client.
- Enter your Northwestern email address.
- You will then be redirected to Online Passport.
- Sign in with your NetID and NetID password.
Via the web
- Go to https://teams.microsoft.com.
- Enter your Northwestern email address.
- You will be redirected to Online Passport.
- Sign in with your NetID and NetID password. Note: If you are already signed in to Online Passport, you will go directly to Microsoft Teams.
Requesting a New Microsoft Team
A team must be created by Northwestern IT. Teams can be private to only invited users, or public and open to anyone within your area.
To request a new team, please go to the Collaboration Services Requests page. You may select from one of two teams: Classes and Staff Members. To learn which team best suits your teaching and learning goals, visit the Types of Teams web page.
Please note: The maximum number of private channels per Team is 30.
Expiration and Automatic Renewal
From the date a team is created, all teams are configured with a one-year lifecycle. Teams that have activity throughout the year will renew automatically. If not, the team’s owner(s) are notified via email and in Teams to renew.
Teams that have not been used for one year, and not manually renewed will be expired and deleted one day after the stated expiration date. Expired teams can be recovered within 30 days from the date they were deleted by sending a request to the IT Support Center or via the restore notification email that is sent to the team’s owner(s).
When a team is deleted, all of its associated services (the mailbox, Planner, SharePoint site, team, etc.) are also deleted and are not recoverable after 30 days.
Email notifications
If there is no activity within a team for one year, an email notification for renewing the team is sent from Microsoft to the team owner(s) 30 days, 15 days, and one day before the team’s expiration date. When the team owner(s) receives the expiration notification, they can click Renew now in team settings to renew the team. How to renew a team
If there is any activity within a team then the team will renew automatically, and no email notification is sent.
Support Resources
For answers to commonly asked questions about the use of Microsoft Teams at Northwestern, visit the IT Knowledge Base.
Additionally, Microsoft offers the following help guides and webinars:
- Microsoft Teams: A Beginner's Guide to Teams in Office 365
- End User Training for Microsoft Teams (including videos)
- Microsoft Teams Help (under Featured training)
- Instructor-led training for Microsoft Teams
- Microsoft Teams Interactive Demo
- Register for introductory Teams webinars for higher education
- Use Cases for Microsoft Teams for Higher Education
- Transform Learning with Microsoft Teams
- Crafting a Collaborative Learning Environment with Class Teams
- Remote teaching and learning in Office 365 Education
Last Updated: 4 June 2020
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