Microsoft has released a new Teams client for multiple platforms, but this was only in public preview. The new Teams client is GA, so removing the old client is a smart thing to do. Microsoft will end the support of the classic Teams client on June 30th, 2024. This post will tell you how to remove the old client and enroll the new Teams client on Azure Virtual Desktop.
Prerequisites
- Azure subscription
- Owner rights (or Contributer rights) on the subscription
- Azure Virtual Desktop environment
- Microsoft 365 license with Teams
- Windows 10.0.19041 or higher (more OS types are supported in AVD)
- WebView2 version 90.0.818.66 (download it here)
- Classic Teams app installed
- Remote Desktop Client for Windows 1.2.1755 or higher
Optimizations for the new Teams client
When deploying the new Teams client, you need to have the following regkey in place on the machine. This is best used with an image VM. So the key is properly placed for every session host.
reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Teams" /v IsWVDEnvironment /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /fDeploying the new Teams client
The new Teams client has two files that need to be downloaded at the following urls: Download the .exe installer and the MSIX: MSIX x64
Now we can run the following command to install the new Teams client with the latest version on the image VM. Depending on your location, the command looks like this.
.\teamsbootstrapper.exe -p -o "c:\temp\MSTeams-x64.msix"The following image shows that the installation is succeeded.
Testing the new Teams client
The new Teams client is available in the image, now you can set the image live on the AVD hostpool to test the client in the session.
When we now sign in we can see that the new Teams client is visible in the start menu.
Starting the new Teams client will give some prompts, but these can be removed with policies in Microsoft Intune or GPO’s. Here you have the first screen of the new Teams client on my pooled AVD environment.
Removing the classic Teams client
Now that the new Teams client is working we need to remove the classic Teams client on the image VM, because the new Teams client can be installed side to side with the classic Teams client. This is ideal when you want to migrate in batches.
The following command removes the classic Teams client on the image VM. Make sure you have the MSI in place from the classic Teams installer. After the command the classic client will be removed. Now you can create the latest version of your image and use the new Teams client on your AVD environment.
msiexec /passive /x Teams_windows_x64.msi /l*v uninstall.logFinal Thoughts
Installing the new Teams client was very easy and straight forward. This client really has a better look and feel then the classic Teams client. The new Teams client upgrade is necessary to create new features for Teams and give a more stable experience on VDI platforms. The classic Teams client did have some issues when working in larger environments. Hopefully this new client will get to the same level of meeting experience as your laptop or desktop. Feel free to
Resources
The following resources are used for this blog post:
New Microsoft Teams for Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) – Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
Use Microsoft Teams on Azure Virtual Desktop – Azure | Microsoft Learn
Classic Teams for Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure – Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
