Microsoft will soon be releasing a Files app in Teams which will enable users to search their content from chats, channels, and meetings in the same place.
The new app will replace the current Files system, making it easier for users to find content and keep it organised.
The storage feature will become generally available to Microsoft 365 users from April this year. One news source suggests it will become available in preview later this month.
On its Microsoft 365 roadmap, Microsoft provided a brief description of the new application:
“[The Files app will provide] one place for all your content across chats, channels, meetings, and Microsoft 365 – manage, organize & locate the content you need quickly and easily.
“In addition, way finding is now more consistent and familiar to users.”
The new Files app will be accessible from the same place as its predecessor, on the Microsoft menu bar.
Users will be able to view documents in their OneDrive and recently opened files via the Home and My Files tabs, within the Files app.
Within the Home tab, users will be able to filter results via Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or PDF documents. Alternatively, they can choose to view All files.
New files will also be able to be created and uploaded directly into the Home tab, by clicking the New and Uploads buttons beneath the search bar.
Pinned documents and channel files will be visible within the Files’ Quick Access section.
A Shared tab will offer a shortcut to all shared content and a Downloads tab will link the user to their library of downloads.
The seemingly low-key update, which has so far received much in the way of promotion from Microsoft, will solve a major issue within the Teams file storage design.
Users now expect files to be efficiently stored and easy to retrieve, without too much user input.
Spending too long managing your files is not acceptable use of work time. Similarly, locating files should not eat away at your working day. Modern users do not want to be held back by file storage and retrieval, as it very quickly becomes a drain on time that could be spent on more important tasks.
Further Microsoft 365 Updates
Last month, Microsoft 365 released a number of new updates and capabilities, designed to improve user experience and workplace collaboration.
New features have been added to Teams Premium, Viva Engage, Microsoft Loop, and PowerPoint Live.
Teams Premium is being redesigned to make it easier to customise meetings and view meeting summaries. Updates will include AI-generated notes, timeline markers, AI-generated chapters, branded meetings, meeting templates, and advanced meeting protections.
A mass of new AI updates is on its way, featuring technology from Open AI for which Microsoft has been in the spotlight recently.
In January, Microsoft revealed its plans for a multi-billion dollar investment in Open AI. Many companies are now racing to incorporate this buzz software into their platforms. Slack recently deployed Open AI’s ChatGPT to provide instant conversation summaries, research tools, and writing assistance within Slack.
