Teams messages, calls or video calls

Creating a Chat for instant messaging, audio or video calling

You can contact individuals via Microsoft Teams to communicate by text, voice, video and share your screen. This does not require you to join a Team and can be useful for direct communication.

  1.  Select the 'New chat' icon in the header:  Illustrative image
  2. Type in the recipient's name(s) into the To: field. You can add as many people as you like to the chat, as long as they have access to Microsoft Teams via the University. You can also type in personal email addresses or the email addresses of others at external institutions.
  3. Click their identity in the search that displays after typing their name or email to confirm their invite to the chat:  Illustrative image
  4. You can then begin instant messaging the recipients you added to the 'chat'.
  5. This chat will then be listed in the 'chat homepage' at the top of recent, you can move between the different 'chats' you have started in the past by left-clicking them:  Illustrative image
  6. You can communicate by text in a chat. However, there are icons at the top allowing you to move to a video meeting, an audio meeting, and to share your screen:  Illustrative image

Pinning a Chat

If you 'chat' with lots of people but a few people more regularly, you may want to 'Pin' their chat to the top of the list for easier retrieval after other chats have been generated. 

1. Find the chat you wish to 'Pin' and right-click it

2. Select 'Pin':  Illustrative image

Once you have Pinned the chat you will see it at the top of the list in chat homepage:  Illustrative image

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