I'm in new teams and can't switch to open files in the app rather than browser

Anonymous
2023-10-24T14:47:38+00:00

Hi there,

I have had issues with old Teams when trying to open a file in the app, it always defaults to open in the browser which makes it hard to edit, then various error messages pop up when trying to open in the default app. From reading help in the community forums, it suggested to uninstall and reinstall. I can now only install the new app which won't even give me the option to try and change my default for opening files and says to use the previous version which I can't find to download.

Please help. I really struggle to properly edit ppt and docs through the browser as some of the functionalities are very limited.

Thanks

AC

Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Teams for business | Files | Other

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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Mr. Trust_A 4,820 Reputation points
2024-10-22T14:38:21+00:00

Hello AC_89,

Microsoft is aware of the issue where the option to open files in the desktop app is missing in the new Teams. This could be due to not meeting one of the three prerequisites:

  1. You must be using the Teams desktop app for Windows or Mac.
  2. You need to have the corresponding Office desktop apps (Microsoft Office 2016 or later) installed from the Microsoft 365 portal.
  3. You must have an Office 365 E3 or E5 license.

For more details, please refer to the support article: Desktop app option is missing when editing Office files in Teams - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn

Hope this helps!

Regards,

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-12-05T15:33:45+00:00

    I do not have a solution to this issue, unfortunately, but I am experiencing the same issue. Cold comfort of company.

    As SU_18 describes, my drop-down options under "File Open Preference" only have "Teams" and "Browser" options available.

    I can add that I have used the radio button at top left to switch between "Old Teams" (Now called "Classic") and "New Teams". This issue exists in both versions, and began after the "New Teams" rollout.

    This is baffling, because within either version, I can still manually choose to open in desktop app by clicking the "Show more actions" dots to the right of the filename, if I hover over, or by right-clicking on the file, and using the Open tab. So the functionality still exists, but cannot be the default.

    One of the biggest resistances I encountered to the Teams environment was the perception that you could only open links within Teams in either the browser or the Teams app. Everyone in my organization "just wanted to open the file" (meaning in their desktop app). It took me a long time to educate my peers that they could open in their desktop apps (including setting default behavior), and now I am fighting this battle again.

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  2. Anonymous
    2023-12-04T17:53:03+00:00

    My File Open Preference drop down only has 2 options to select: Teams and Browser. There isn't an option for Desktop App. Is this something that needs to be enabled by our IT team?

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  3. Anonymous
    2023-10-31T17:49:36+00:00

    Hi Oluwatosin,

    First, when will the option to set the default link open option be available in the new Teams? I want to open in the app by default.

    Second, when using the back button in the Teams to go back to the folder view from being in an app, it requires two clicks and then goes back an extra folder level from where the file was opened.

    Third, I am now having some issues with Excel in Teams whereby trying to open some Excel files from Teams in the app gives an error that the file is corrupt, but if I download it and open it with Excel it works fine. This just started today. I have uploaded a file to Teams and then try to open it in Teams and get the error...easy to reproduce.

    Thanks,

    Dean

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-10-24T19:27:05+00:00

    Hello AC_89,

    Thanks for posting the query here in this forum.

    I’m sorry to hear that you’re having trouble opening document in the desktop.

    It is not possible to open files in the desktop app by default in the new version of Teams.

    However, you can try changing the default setting for opening files to Desktop app on the Classic Teams

    To switch back to the classic Teams, turn off the New Teams toggle at the top of Teams.

    In the upper-right-hand-corner of Teams, click three dots > Settings. Under Settings, click on the Files and links section. File open preference, change the default to Desktop app.

    I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any questions.

    Give back to the Community. Help the next person who has this issue by indicating if this reply solved your problem. Click Yes or No below. “

    Best regards, Oluwatosin.

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