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

Anonymous

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

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Mr. Trust_A 4,820

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:

You must be using the Teams desktop app for Windows or Mac.
You need to have the corresponding Office desktop apps (Microsoft Office 2016 or later) installed from the Microsoft 365 portal.
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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58 additional answers

Anonymous

2023-12-04T00:28:31+00:00
It is actually possible to change the default setting in 'New Teams'.
1. Click the three ... next to your image in the 'New Teams App'
2. Click settings - it will open the general tab
3. Click on 'Files and links'
4. under 'File open preference - Always open Word, PowerPoint, Excel Files in:
- Teams
- Desktop App
- Browser
1. Select 'Desktop App'
Moving forward you should be able to open in the desktop app.
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Anonymous

2023-11-21T10:07:53+00:00

Thank you for your responses so far Oluwatosin,

Can you confirm that the ability to open Office documents in the Desktop App by default is on the New Teams development roadmap?

We're encouraging people to move to new Teams here, but will rescind that advice given how incredibly clunky it is to work with Officer documents via Teams.

Thanks

Sam
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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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Anonymous

2023-10-25T11:26:30+00:00

Hello AC_89,

Thank you for the update.

Try installing the Classic Teams from the web client page.

Go to https://teams.microsoft.com/

At the bottom left, there is options for downloading the desktop app.

Download the desktop version.

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

Best regards, Oluwatosin.
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