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(Updated) Viva Engage: Community feeds improvements

Message ID
MC1187781
View in Message Center
Service
Microsoft Viva
Category
Stay Informed
Tags
New featureUser impactAdmin impact
Rollout
July 2026
Roadmap ID
513275
View in M365 Roadmap
Platform
Web

Summary

Viva Engage communities will default to viewing conversations by recent posts instead of recent activity, with unread indicators in both new and all feeds. This feature, rolling out worldwide from July 2026, includes sticky user preferences and requires no action or compliance changes.

Details

Updated May 15, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

[Introduction:]

We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

[When this will happen:]

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in July 2026 (previously May).

[How this will affect your organization:]

This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

Current experience:

  • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
  • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
  • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

New experience:

  • The feature will be ON by default.
  • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
  •  user settings

  • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
  • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
    • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
    • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

      [What you can do to prepare:]

      No action is required.

      [Compliance considerations:]

      No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

      Change History

      Show
      May 15, 2026 at 10:30 PM Updated
      Summary
      Previous
      Viva Engage will introduce a new default community feed view sorted by recent posts instead of recent activity, rolling out worldwide from May 2026. Users can still choose their preferred sorting and filtering, with settings remembered across communities. No action or compliance concerns are required.
      New
      Viva Engage communities will default to viewing conversations by recent posts instead of recent activity, with unread indicators in both new and all feeds. This feature, rolling out worldwide from July 2026, includes sticky user preferences and requires no action or compliance changes.
      Last Updated Date
      Previous
      2026-03-26T20:26:02.960Z
      New
      2026-05-15T19:40:04.137Z
      Body Content
      Previous

      Updated March 26, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

      [Introduction:]

      We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

      This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

      [When this will happen:]

      General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in May 2026 (previously February).

      [How this will affect your organization:]

      This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

      Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

      Current experience:

      • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
      • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
      • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

      New experience:

      • The feature will be ON by default.
      • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
      •  user settings

      • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
      • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
        • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
        • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

          [What you can do to prepare:]

          No action is required.

          [Compliance considerations:]

          No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

          New

          Updated May 15, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

          [Introduction:]

          We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

          This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

          [When this will happen:]

          General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in July 2026 (previously May).

          [How this will affect your organization:]

          This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

          Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

          Current experience:

          • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
          • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
          • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

          New experience:

          • The feature will be ON by default.
          • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
          •  user settings

          • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
          • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
            • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
            • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

              [What you can do to prepare:]

              No action is required.

              [Compliance considerations:]

              No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

              March 26, 2026 at 10:30 PM Updated
              Summary
              Previous
              Viva Engage communities will default to viewing conversations by recent posts instead of recent activity starting February 2026. The new view is on by default, includes unread indicators in all feeds, and preserves user feed preferences across communities. No action or compliance changes are needed.
              New
              Viva Engage will introduce a new default community feed view sorted by recent posts instead of recent activity, rolling out worldwide from May 2026. Users can still choose their preferred sorting and filtering, with settings remembered across communities. No action or compliance concerns are required.
              Last Updated Date
              Previous
              2026-01-27T17:49:31.280Z
              New
              2026-03-26T20:26:02.960Z
              Body Content
              Previous

              Updated January 27, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

              [Introduction:]

              We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

              This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

              [When this will happen:]

              General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in February 2026 (previously January).

              [How this will affect your organization:]

              This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

              Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

              Current experience:

              • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
              • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
              • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

              New experience:

              • The feature will be ON by default.
              • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
              •  user settings

              • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
              • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
                • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
                • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

                  [What you can do to prepare:]

                  No action is required.

                  [Compliance considerations:]

                  No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

                  New

                  Updated March 26, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

                  [Introduction:]

                  We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

                  This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

                  [When this will happen:]

                  General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in May 2026 (previously February).

                  [How this will affect your organization:]

                  This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

                  Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

                  Current experience:

                  • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
                  • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
                  • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

                  New experience:

                  • The feature will be ON by default.
                  • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
                  •  user settings

                  • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
                  • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
                    • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
                    • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

                      [What you can do to prepare:]

                      No action is required.

                      [Compliance considerations:]

                      No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

                      January 27, 2026 at 6:30 PM Updated
                      Title
                      Previous
                      Viva Engage: Community feeds improvements
                      New
                      (Updated) Viva Engage: Community feeds improvements
                      Summary
                      Previous
                      Viva Engage communities will default to viewing conversations by recent posts instead of recent activity starting January 2026. The new view is on by default, includes unread indicators in all feeds, and preserves user preferences across communities. No action or compliance changes are needed.
                      New
                      Viva Engage communities will default to viewing conversations by recent posts instead of recent activity starting February 2026. The new view is on by default, includes unread indicators in all feeds, and preserves user feed preferences across communities. No action or compliance changes are needed.
                      Last Updated Date
                      Previous
                      2025-11-18T20:37:12.397Z
                      New
                      2026-01-27T17:49:31.280Z
                      Tags
                      Previous
                      New feature,User impact,Admin impact
                      New
                      Updated message,New feature,User impact,Admin impact
                      Body Content
                      Previous

                      [Introduction:]

                      We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

                      This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

                      [When this will happen:]

                      General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in January 2026.

                      [How this will affect your organization:]

                      This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

                      Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

                      Current experience:

                      • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
                      • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
                      • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

                      New experience:

                      • The feature will be ON by default.
                      • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
                      •  user settings

                      • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
                      • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
                        • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
                        • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

                          [What you can do to prepare:]

                          No action is required.

                          [Compliance considerations:]

                          No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

                          New

                          Updated January 27, 2026: We have updated the timeline. Thank you for your patience. 

                          [Introduction:]

                          We’re introducing a simpler way to view conversations in Viva Engage communities, organized by recent posts rather than recent activity. This new view is designed to make it easier for users to follow discussions and will be available as an option, alongside the current system, for those who prefer sorting by recent activity and filtering to new conversations only.

                          This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 513275.

                          [When this will happen:]

                          General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out in February 2026 (previously January).

                          [How this will affect your organization:]

                          This change should align better with how people expect to browse and engage with content in their communities, while still preserving the triage flow for those who prefer it.

                          Who is affected: All Viva Engage users in your organization.

                          Current experience:

                          • Communities default to “new” and “recent activity” if there’s any new content (posts or replies).
                          • If there’s no new content, the feed falls back to “all.”
                          • Unread indicators on content only exist in the “new” feed.

                          New experience:

                          • The feature will be ON by default.
                          • Communities will default to “all” and “recent posts”:
                          •  user settings

                          • Unread indicators will exist in both the “new” and “all” feeds.
                          • A sticky user preference will be introduced:
                            • If someone changes the feed (new/all) or sort order (recent posts/recent activity), we will maintain that setting across their communities.
                            • If someone picks “new” and there’s no new content in the next community, we will fall back to “all” for that community visit, but “new” will remain the preference for that user.

                              [What you can do to prepare:]

                              No action is required.

                              [Compliance considerations:]

                              No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate

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