Introducing simplified admin controls to manage external collaboration in Teams admin center

Microsoft Teams is introducing a simplified external collaboration admin experience with three modes—Open, Controlled, and Custom—available in the Teams admin center. Public preview starts mid-November 2025, with general availability by early February 2026. Existing settings remain unless changed by admins. Introduction: We’re introducing a simplified external collaboration (EC) admin experience in Microsoft Teams to help administrators manage external collaboration settings more efficiently. This update introduces two predefined collaboration modes—Open and Controlled—as well as a Custom mode for organizations with unique requirements. The new experience provides a streamlined interface in the Teams admin center (TAC) for configuring external collaboration policies across chats, calls, meetings, Teams, and channels (including shared channels). When this will happen: Public Preview: Rolling out mid-November 2025; expected completion by mid-November 2025. General Availability (Worldwide): Rolling out late January 2026; expected completion by early February 2026. How this affects your organization: Who is affected: Admins managing Microsoft Teams external collaboration settings. What will happen: A new admin experience will be available in Teams admin center (TAC). Admins can choose from three collaboration modes: Open (Mode 1): Enables chats, calls, and meetings with all external domains and Teams personal accounts using federation or external access. Allows Teams and channels collaboration with Microsoft and non-Microsoft partners using B2B collaboration and B2B direct connect. Controlled (Mode 2): Aligns with current defaults for enterprise and EDU tenants. Enables chats, calls, and meetings with all external domains using federation or external access. Blocks collaboration in shared channels. Custom: Provides full control over each external collaboration setting. Allows manual configuration of org-wide external collaboration policies across chats, calls, meetings, Teams, and channels (including shared channels). Changes in Custom mode apply only to Global org-wide policies and settings; they do not affect custom policies. Existing settings will remain unchanged unless modified by the admin. Screenshot 1 – A new external collab section and overview page that shows external collab settings at a glance:  View image in new tab Screenshot 2: Manage external collab settings using a guided simple UX:  View image in new tab What you can do to prepare: No action is required at […]

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