Microsoft Roadmap, messagecenter en blogs updates van 27-11-2024

Updated November 26, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

In Microsoft Teams, users will be able to add their own custom emojis and reactions by uploading an image or GIF file, and their emojis and reactions will be accessible to all users in the tenant alongside the standard Teams emojis and reactions. Up to 5,000 custom emojis can be added per tenant.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 80659.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out early July 2024 (previously late June) and expect to complete by mid-July 2024 (previously early July).

Worldwide: We will begin rolling out early August 2024 (previously mid-July) and expect to complete by early September 2024 (previously late July).

GCC: We will begin rolling out late December 2024 (previously late September) and expect to complete by early January 2025 (previously early October).

GCC High: We will begin rolling out mid-January 2025 (previously early October) and expect to complete by late January 2025 (previously mid-October).

DoD: We will begin rolling out late January 2025 (previously mid-October) and expect to complete by early February 2025 (previously late January).

[How this will affect your organization:]

This new custom emojis and reactions feature will be turned on by default. Users in the tenant will be able to upload emojis that are visible to the whole tenant. You can pre-emptively turn this feature off or restrict users who can create new emojis via the Teams Admin Center controls described below.

How do I use this feature?

Custom emojis and reactions will be found in the emoji and reaction menus in the Custom category. Users with upload abilities can add new content through the plus (+) button. Users with delete abilities can right-click any custom emoji to delete. Please note that deleted emojis may take up to 24 hours to reflect for all users in the tenant. Deleted emojis may take up to 24 hours to reflect for other users.

How do I manage this feature?

This feature can be managed through the Teams Admin Center. Admins will have access to the following controls:

• Turn the feature on/off for the whole tenant via the Messaging Settings page (on by default).
• Set which users can create new emojis via the Messaging Policy groups (on for all users by default).
• Set which users can delete emojis via the Messaging Policy groups (off for all users except admins by default).

The Teams Admin Center controls will be made available in early June. We recommend adjusting your settings as needed prior to the Targeted and Worldwide Releases in late June 2024 to ensure that they are in place when the feature rolls out.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This feature is on by default. If you would like to turn the feature off, please use the provided setting in the Messaging Settings page:

Messaging Settings

This feature allows all users to create new emojis by default and only allows admins to delete emojis by default. If you would like to adjust emoji creation and deletion permissions, please make the appropriate changes through the Messaging Policy groups:

Emoji Creation Setting (enabled for all users by default)

Emoji Deletion Setting (only enabled for admins by default)

Additional feature capabilities:

View custom emojis in the emoji menu

Press the plus (+) menu to select an image to upload

Set a name for your emoji

Right-click on an emoji to delete or to see the creator

Updated October 25, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline and the phasing below. Thank you for your patience.

In 2023, we introduced Microsoft Teams apps that are compatible with Microsoft Outlook and the Microsoft 365 App (manifest version v1.13 or higher). Before this rollout, admin changes made in the Integrated apps section of the Microsoft 365 admin center would only affect these Teams apps in Outlook and the Microsoft 365 app. Similarly, changes made in the Teams admin center would exclusively affect Teams. Starting in June 2024, we will roll out Unified App Management to streamline the management of these apps across Teams, Outlook and the Microsoft 365 App, so they are consistently available across all supported clients.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 393931.

[When this will happen:]

This rollout will happen in two major phases. Unified App Management can apply only to tenants that have migrated to app centric management in Teams admin center, as communicated in MC688930 (Updated) Teams admin center: App centric management and changes to app permission policies (November 2023).

• Phase 1 | General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-December 2024 (previously July 2024) and expect to complete mid-January 2025 (previously late November 2024). This phase applies to tenants with no modified settings in either the Microsoft 365 admin center (Integrated apps) or the Teams admin center for organization-wide defaults, app deployment, app availability, or block/unblock. No merge rules apply to these tenants, but after this phase, any app management setting configured in either admin centers will apply to all relevant hosts.
• Phase 2: We will update this post with a timeline and more details. This phase is applicable to tenants with app settings that have differences between Microsoft 365 admin center (Integrated apps) and Teams admin center, and who have maintained a single app setup policy in Teams that has a modified Installed apps section.

[How this will affect your organization:]

Before this rollout, managing Teams apps that work in Outlook and the Microsoft 365 app was fragmented between the Integrated apps page in the Microsoft 365 admin center for Outlook and the Microsoft 365 app, and the Teams admin center for Teams. This sometimes resulted in different settings for the same app in the two admin centers. With Unified App Management, we will be consolidating app catalog management into a single platform. You will be able to manage apps on the Integrated apps page in the Microsoft 365 admin center or in the Teams admin center, and any changes made in either admin center will synchronize.

What you can expect

1. App catalog enhancements: Apps will start showing hosts where they are available: Teams, Outlook, or the Microsoft 365 app.
2. Organization-wide settings: App availability default settings will now apply to apps used in Teams, Outlook, and Microsoft 365 app.
3. App installs: Apps deployed from the Integrated apps page in Microsoft 365 admin center will be preinstalled in all applicable hosts for the app. Unlike app preinstallation in the Teams App setup policy, new app installs will provide access to the preinstalled apps, similar to deploying the app for Outlook and the Microsoft 365 App. [For more details on app deployment, refer to MC795355 Microsoft Teams admin center: App centric management for app installation and changes to app setup policies (May 2024)].
4. App availability: Managing app availability will apply to all applicable app hosts.
5. App block/unblock: Blocking or unblocking apps will apply to all applicable app hosts.
6. Consolidation of existing app settings: All existing app settings will be unified between Integrated apps (MAC) and Manage apps (TAC) pages. Merge rules can be found in Manage apps that work across Teams, Outlook, and Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn. These changes cannot be rolled back.
7. Consolidation report: Phase 2 and 3 tenant administrators will have access to an on-demand report prior to the merging of app settings. This report is designed to help administrators assess the impact of merge rules on their tenant and make any adjustments in advance. We will update this MC post when the report is available.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

We recommend that you review app and tenant settings in the Microsoft 365 admin center and the Teams admin center. If these are managed by different departments in your organization, we recommend conducting these reviews collaboratively.

We also recommend that you review the merge rules and consider their potential impact on apps in your organization. Make any necessary adjustments to unify them in advance, if the merge rules in this message do not align with your expectations.

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified date with no admin action required before the rollout. You may want to update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

Updated November 26, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

With bidirectional support in Teams Live Interpretation, interpreters can now switch the translation direction between two languages by clicking on the button of the language they want to interpret into at the bottom of the screen. The highlighted language button will be the language the interpreter is translating into and attendees hear.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 403103.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out early September 2024 (previously early August) and expect to complete by mid-September 2024 (previously mid-August).

General Availability (Worldwide, GCC): We will begin rolling out mid-September 2024 (previously mid-August) and expect to complete by mid-December 2024 (previously  late September).

General Availability (GCC High, DoD): We will begin rolling out early December 2024 (previously ate October) and expect to complete by mid-January 2025 (previously early December).

[How this will affect your organization:]

The new bidirectional capability allows tenants to hire fewer interpreters to do live translation in Teams meetings, reducing the operation costs for tenants.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically with no admin action required. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

Updated November 26, 2024:  We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

Coming soon to Microsoft Outlook: Work hours and location information will be available in the My Day pane in Outlook. Users will be able to update their Work Hours and Location information from My Day and also see who is coming to Office. This message applies to new Outlook for Windows desktop and Outlook for the web.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 412618.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release:  We will begin rolling out early December 2024 (previously mid-November) and expect to complete by late December 2024 (previously mid-November). 

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-December 2024 (previously early October) and expect to complete by early January 2025 (previously early December).

[How this will affect your organization:]

Before this rollout, users can review and update their work hours and location information in Outlook Settings > Calendar > Work hours and location. This settings page will remain in place after the rollout.

After this rollout, users will also be able to see and update their work hours and location information in the My Day pane in Outlook. Changes to the My Day pane will sync to any other work hours and location settings made in Outlook.

My Day pane with prompt to Set up your work location:

My Day pane with work location information, which can be updated:

This feature is on by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified date with no admin action required before the rollout. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation.

Updated November 26, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

Before this rollout, Microsoft Viva Engage users go to different locations in the application for different creation types such as a post, a community, and more.

After this rollout, a Viva Engage user will be able to create the different types of content they are licensed for with one Create new button. This new button eases the process of creation and helps users quickly discover the various creation options they are licensed to use. This feature is available in Viva Engage for Windows desktop, Viva Engage for the web, as well as the Viva Engage app in Microsoft Outlook for Windows desktop and iOS/Android and Microsoft Teams for Windows desktop and iOS/Android.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 416449.

[When this will happen:]

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out early October 2024 and expect to complete by mid-December 2024 (previously mid-November). 

[How this will affect your organization:]

The new Create new button is in the top left area of the Engage app (below the user’s own profile) and is always visible as the user visits different pages in the application. Users will be able to create only those content types they were licensed to create before the rollout.

With the Create new button, a user with all permissions and a Viva Engage premium license would be able to create a new:

• Post (discussion, question, praise, poll, article)
• Community
• Event
• Campaign

Other users will see a reduced set of creation options based on their existing license and permissions.

The Create new button in the left menu under the profile of a user who is licensed to create all content types (shown in the drop-down menu):

The Create new button for a user who is only licensed to create posts. This button has no drop-down menu.

This feature is on by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified date with no admin action required before the rollout. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation.

Learn more about the nuances of licensing and permissions for Viva Engage and for each content type:

• Set up Viva Engage | Microsoft Learn
• Posts: Write and schedule posts, articles, and announcements in Viva Engage – Microsoft Support
• Communities: Create a community in Viva Engage – Microsoft Support
• Campaigns: Set up official campaigns in Viva Engage | Microsoft Learn
• Events: Organize a Viva Engage live event | Microsoft Learn

Updated November 26, 2024: This release is currently available only to the enterprise and SMB customer segments, with other segments to follow at a later date.

Coming soon to Microsoft Teams. The New Calendar app aims to provide a single, modern, intelligent, and coherent calendar for both Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Outlook users. This new opt-in experience will be available in Teams, allowing users to toggle to the New Calendar interface. This message applies to Teams on Windows and Mac desktops.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 415415.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out mid-November 2024 and expect to complete by late November 2024.

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-January 2025 and complete by the late January 2025.

[How this will affect your organization:]

To try the New Calendar, go to Calendar app in Teams and select the New calendar toggle in the top right of the Calendar.

With the New Calendar, you can experience:

• Advanced calendar surface features: A new command bar has been introduced in Teams, which adapts to the user experience by right-aligning primary actions and tucking in all the functionalities. Users can now experience new capability to Meet Now and Join with ID and new features such as filters, month view, split view, customizable time scales, saved views, sharing options, printing capabilities, and personalized calendar settings.
• Enhanced meeting creation: Create meetings quickly from the calendar’s quick view or the new scheduling form, with improved options and a refreshed look.
• Peak view experience: Access meeting artifacts directly from the calendar, including a recap of completed meetings.
• Weather integration: View weather information for your current location in the calendar.
• Work plan integration: Specify work locations and check for teammates’ availability in the office with the integration of Microsoft Places.
• Place Finder: Use Place Finder to switch between floors and view different room capabilities when creating new events.
• Pop-out experience: Right-click the Calendar icon to pop out the calendar for more efficient multitasking.

This feature is on by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically with no admin action required. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

Improving interop between the new Microsoft Teams client and Skype for business

Currently when making or receiving a call in the new Microsoft Teams client while an existing Skype for Business (SfB) call is ongoing, the call in Skype for Business does not automatically go on hold. The reverse scenario has the same problem. 

[When this will happen:]

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-October 2024 and expect to complete by late October 2024.

General Availability (GCC): We will begin rolling out mid-October 2024 and expect to complete by late October 2024.

General Availability (GCC High):  early November 2024 and expect to complete by mid-November 2024.

General Availability (DoD): We will begin rolling out mid-November 2024 and expect to complete by late November 2024.

[How this affects your organization:]

We have addressed this issue so that when the user is on a call in SfB and answers a call in Microsoft Teams the SfB call will go on hold. Similarly, if they are on a call in Teams and answer a call in SfB the Teams call will go on hold. The user must be using the new Microsoft Teams client version 24261.1100.3128.2662 or greater.

[What you can do to prepare:]

Once this feature is available it must be enabled following the steps below.

• The group policy registry key “Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Lync\Enable21Interop”, DWORDis set to “0x01”
  
• The group policy registry key “Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Lync\EnableIPCForHoldResume”, DWORDis set to “0x01”

Updated November 26, 2024: We have updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

With this feature update, users will have the option to check-in for their planned in-office days to let others know they have arrived. To facilitate in-person connections, after check-in, users will be able to see their colleagues’ confirmations and planned in-office times. The check-in option does not appear if a user has not set their work location or has set it to ‘Remote’ or ‘Out of Office’.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 422717.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out early January 2025 (previously early November) and expect to complete by mid-January 2025 (previously early December).

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-January 2025 (previously early December) and expect to complete by late January 2025 (previously mid-December)

[How this will affect your organization:]

Employees will be able to see others confirmed to be working nearby.

This update is available by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically with no admin action required. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

Coming soon: Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management will be rolling out updates to email scoring.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 469505.

[When this will happen:]

Public Preview: We will begin rolling out late November 2024 and expect to complete by late November 2024.

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out early January 2025 and expect to complete by mid-January 2025.

[How this will affect your organization:]

Insider risk management (IRM) email scoring logic is being updated. With current logic, a single email to multiple recipients is counted multiple times, and this is creating noise by increasing the risk score. In the new logic, a single email to multiple recipients is counted once, and this new principle is applicable to the email containing multiple unallowed domains or priority content. After this rollout, all email insights in Alerts will display the new count and score.

This change will be available by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified date with no admin action required before the rollout. Review your current configuration to determine the impact for your organization. You may want to notify your admins about this change and update any relevant documentation.

Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management correlates various signals to identify potential malicious or inadvertent insider risks, such as IP theft, data leakage, and security violations. Insider Risk Management enables customers to create policies based on their own internal policies, governance, and organizational requirements. Built with privacy by design, users are pseudonymized by default, and role-based access controls and audit logs are in place to help ensure user-level privacy.

You can access the Insider Risk Management solution in the Microsoft Purview compliance portal.

Learn more: Configure policy indicators in insider risk management | Microsoft Learn

We’re updating the Microsoft Secure Score improvement action of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (MDE) to ensure a more accurate representation of security posture.

As part of this change, we will gradually retire the MDE recommendation on SCID-2020, Turn on all system-level Exploit protection settings.

We are working to refine the recommendation, ensuring it aligns more accurately with recommended policies and enhances the overall security value.

[When this will happen:]

General Availability (Worldwide, GCC, GCC High, DoD): We will begin rolling out early December 2024 and expect to complete by early January 2025.

[How this will affect your organization:]

The Turn on all system-level Exploit protection settings recommendation will be completely removed from the UI, and the score will be changed in accordance.

This update is available by default.

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically with no admin action required. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.

• Windows Server 2025 general availability 
• Hotpatch updates for Windows 11 Enterprise client devices 
• Administrator protection 
• Windows 365 Frontline shared mode preview 
• New management and security tools in Microsoft Intune 
• Microsoft 365 Copilot and Copilot+ PC improvements 
• Other improvements released in November 

• Microsoft Ignite on demand 
• Windows IT Pro Blog 
• Windows Server Community 
• Microsoft Security 
• Microsoft Intune Blog 
• Windows Insider Blog 
• Microsoft Copilot documentation 
• Windows 11 update history 
• Windows Server 2025 update history

• A Microsoft subscription that includes Windows Enterprise E3 or E5 (e.g. Microsoft 365 A3/A5 or Microsoft 365 F3); or a Windows 365 Enterprise subscription 
• Targeted devices running Windows 11 Enterprise, version 24H2 (Build 26100.2033 or later) 
• Microsoft Intune 

• Read the announcement in Hotpatch for client comes to Windows 11 Enterprise. 
• Review how to manage Windows updates with Windows Autopatch.
• Learn about the proven 2-year record of hotpatch for Windows Server.