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Abstract

tained (including data for existing channels, chats, and recurring meetings).</p><p id="16ce">Did you see that, your data WON’T be retained!</p><p id="96da">Of course there are different license upgrades and there are ways to move your data over, but be aware that as of that article, this wasn’t done automatically.</p><h2 id="d0be">October announcement</h2><p id="472e">On Oct 5th, 2023, while <a href="https://www.thurrott.com/cloud/microsoft-365/292084/microsoft-to-retire-classic-teams-in-march-2024">announcing the general availability</a> for the new MS Teams app for both Windows and Mac, they also said</p><p id="6c4a" type="7">We mentioned in our GA announcement that classic Teams users will be automatically updated to new Teams in the coming months. Today, we want to inform you that after March 31, 2024, any classic Teams users who have not updated to new Teams will be automatically updated to new Teams.</p><h2 id="a23b">Fastforward to 2024</h2><p id="fa50">Microsoft has now informed it’s commercial customers that March 31st 2024 is the date they will retire the original free or classic version of teams.</p><p id="0501">For over a year they have also been preventing new users from having access to the free classic version.</p><h2 id="d2a9">Will it be any good?</h2><p id="a381">I personally have been randomly using the new version of Teams in my own office and while it took a little getting used to, and certainly had bugs in the

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early stages, it certainly seems more streamlined.</p><p id="e364">Here’s a nice <a href="https://petri.com/classic-microsoft-teams-auto-update-new-teams-2024/">description</a> from the good folks over at Petri</p><p id="bccd" type="7">The new Teams app is reimagined from the ground up to deliver improved performance and enhanced reliability, security, and IT management. The result is a faster, simpler, smarter, and more flexible app that is up to two times faster while using 50% less memory,” Microsoft explained. “With the move to general availability, new features, capabilities, and enhancements to existing features are available exclusively on new Teams.</p><p id="aca0">They further said</p><p id="e0fe" type="7">The new Microsoft Teams also supports several features like breakout rooms, 7×7 video view, third-party apps, contextual search, PSTN calling, and call queues. It also offers multi-tenant organization capabilities to enhance cross-tenant communication and collaboration.</p><h2 id="459c">Conclusion</h2><p id="b6e5">This looks like a much needed, rebuild from the ground up, it’s smaller, faster and more functional.</p><p id="da2a">But…. I still don’t see any definative data on if your data from the free classic version will be migrated during the upgrade.</p><p id="7e36">Therefore, please backup all your Teams data before March 31st 2024 or get your IT department to confirm they are doing it for you.</p></article></body>

Microsoft Teams Free (Classic) is being retired.

But the replacement is better?

Photo by Sunder Muthukumaran on Unsplash

Intially annouced for 2023

Microsoft announced that as of April 12, 2023 they would be retiring the free (also known as classic) version of teams.

But nothing is ever that simple or easy with Microsoft. I still remember them proudly claiming that Windows 10 would be the last version of Windows, how did that work out MS?

In that announcement, alarmingly, they said you could still have a free version of Teams, albeit the new version, but, and here’s a direct quote from that article

You may switch to using the new free version of Teams, however, you’ll have access to a different set of features than you did with Microsoft Teams Free (classic), and your data won’t be retained (including data for existing channels, chats, and recurring meetings).

Did you see that, your data WON’T be retained!

Of course there are different license upgrades and there are ways to move your data over, but be aware that as of that article, this wasn’t done automatically.

October announcement

On Oct 5th, 2023, while announcing the general availability for the new MS Teams app for both Windows and Mac, they also said

We mentioned in our GA announcement that classic Teams users will be automatically updated to new Teams in the coming months. Today, we want to inform you that after March 31, 2024, any classic Teams users who have not updated to new Teams will be automatically updated to new Teams.

Fastforward to 2024

Microsoft has now informed it’s commercial customers that March 31st 2024 is the date they will retire the original free or classic version of teams.

For over a year they have also been preventing new users from having access to the free classic version.

Will it be any good?

I personally have been randomly using the new version of Teams in my own office and while it took a little getting used to, and certainly had bugs in the early stages, it certainly seems more streamlined.

Here’s a nice description from the good folks over at Petri

The new Teams app is reimagined from the ground up to deliver improved performance and enhanced reliability, security, and IT management. The result is a faster, simpler, smarter, and more flexible app that is up to two times faster while using 50% less memory,” Microsoft explained. “With the move to general availability, new features, capabilities, and enhancements to existing features are available exclusively on new Teams.

They further said

The new Microsoft Teams also supports several features like breakout rooms, 7×7 video view, third-party apps, contextual search, PSTN calling, and call queues. It also offers multi-tenant organization capabilities to enhance cross-tenant communication and collaboration.

Conclusion

This looks like a much needed, rebuild from the ground up, it’s smaller, faster and more functional.

But…. I still don’t see any definative data on if your data from the free classic version will be migrated during the upgrade.

Therefore, please backup all your Teams data before March 31st 2024 or get your IT department to confirm they are doing it for you.