Microsoft Teams: Opening Microsoft Office Files from Teams

Question

When using the network shares (Buckets & Vaults), I was able to open files directly in Microsoft Office on my computer. When I open these files in Teams, the menu options seem limited. How can I open an Office file on the full version of Microsoft Office on my computer?

Answer

Microsoft Teams streamlines your Office experience by allowing you to create and/or edit Microsoft Office files (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc) from within the Microsoft Teams interface. While this is very convenient, you may prefer to work in the traditional Microsoft Office environment. The good news is, this can easily be accomplished. Another benefit is opening through Teams will enable the AutoSave feature, which means all of your changes are saved in real time (provided you have a stable Internet connection).

The below actions will utilize the Demo Team: Human Resources (HR) Team used for demonstration during the Microsoft Teams Training Workshops. The same steps apply for any Team in the YSU Microsoft Teams environment.

Open an Existing File

Create a New File

Open an Existing File

To open a Microsoft Office file from Teams, take the following steps:

  1. Navigate to the Team and corresponding channel file repository that you wish to open a file.

    Image showing a Teams channel file repository.
     
  2. Browse the file repository for the file to open. Click on the file name to open.

    Image showing browsing for an existing file to open in a teams channel file repository.
     
  3. The file will now open in the Microsoft Teams environment. To open in Microsoft Office, in this example Word, click the Editing button at the top right, and then click Open in Desktop App. The same applies for other office applications including Excel and PowerPoint. 

    Image showing the opening of a Word document in Teams, clicking editing at the top right, and selecting to Open in Desktop app.
     
  4. The system will now communicate with the Microsoft Office program on your computer. Once the file is open in the local application, you may close the file in Teams.

     
     
  5. The file should now open to the familiar view of Microsoft Office. In this example, Word. 

    Image showing the file, originally accessed in Microsoft Teams, opened in local installation of Microsoft Word. Autosave and collaborative indicators should now be visible as well.

    You can continue to work on the file. Here are a couple of items to call out as indicated in the image:

    1. The AutoSave feature should automatically be enabled. This means your changes are saving in real time back to the original file in Teams. There is no need to File>Save As or click the Save button in this environment. 

    2. The save status. As you make your changes, you should see Saving... followed by Saved to indicate that your changes have been saved. 

    3. Collaboration section. If others are accessing the document, you will see their initials or avatar in this section to indicate they are actively accessing the file.

Create a New File

You can also create new Microsoft Office files directly in the Teams environment and then open in Microsoft Office on your desktop. Follow the steps below:

  1. Navigate to the Team and corresponding channel file repository that you wish to create a file.

    Image showing navigating to a Teams channel file repository.
     
  2. Click the New button at the top and select the type of file you wish to create. In this example, a Word document will be created.

    Image showing the action of creating a Word document from within a Team channel file repository.
     
  3. Provide a name for the file and click Create. ​​​​​​​In this example, a document named Retirement Options is being created.

    Image showing how to name and create a Word document in Teams. Provide a name in the box and then click create. 
     
  4. The newly created Word document will now open in Teams. You will notice the title (In this example, Retirement Options) at the top left. To open on your desktop, click the Editing button and click Open in Desktop App.

    Image showing how to open in desktop app. The image shos the newly created file name at the top left. To open in local Microsoft Word, click the editing button at the top right, and then click Open in Desktop App.
     
  5. The system will now communicate with the Microsoft Office program on your computer. Once the file is open in the local application, you may close the file in Teams.

     
     
  6. The file should now open to the familiar view of Microsoft Office. In this example, Word. 



    You can continue to work on the newly created file. Here are a couple of items to call out as indicated in the image:

    ​​​​​​​1. The AutoSave feature should automatically be enabled. This means your changes are saving in real time back to the original file in Teams. There is no need to File>Save As or click the Save button in this environment. 

    2. The save status. As you make your changes, you should see Saving... followed by Saved to indicate that your changes have been saved. 

    3. Collaboration section. If others are accessing the document, you will see their initials or avatar in this section to indicate they are actively accessing the file.

This method is preferred over the syncing feature. If you have any questions, please reach out to IT Training Services.

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