Context preservation in Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams will restore recent conversation and view state if users return within 30 minutes after leaving a chat, channel, or Quick View, preserving tabs, side panels, layout, and messages. This feature rolls out worldwide mid to late March 2026, is enabled by default, and requires no admin action.

Introduction

We're introducing context preservation behavior in Microsoft Teams that restores recent conversation and view state when users return after a brief period.

This message applies to Teams for Windows desktop, Teams for Mac desktop, and Teams for the web. It's associated with Roadmap ID 557184.

When this will happen:

General Availability (Worldwide): Rollout begins mid-March 2026 and is expected to complete by late March 2026

How this affects your organization:

Who is affected:

• All Microsoft Teams users

What will happen:

• When users leave a chat, channel, or Quick View and return within 30 minutes,
  • Their previously selected tab is restored
  • Any opened side panel is restored
  • The layout is restored
  • In Quick View, the previously selected message is restored
• This supports short interruptions and quick context switching, allowing users to resume work without resetting their workspace
• When users return after more than 30 minutes:
  • The conversation or view opens in the default layout 
  • Prior context is not restored
• The feature is enabled by default
• There are no new admin controls or configuration options

What you can do to prepare:

No action is required

Compliance considerations:

No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate for your organization.