Microsoft Teams now opens Viva Connections by default – recent behavior change

Hello @RajendraPatilShweta-1597

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A Community! 

Thank you for contacting us regarding the recent change in Microsoft Teams where the desktop application opens Viva Connections by default instead of the previously used context such as Chat or Teams. 

After reviewing your description and current configuration, this behavior aligns with a Microsoft update announced through Message Center notification MC942817 and documented under Microsoft 365 Roadmap item 422815. The update introduced a new default experience for organizations that have a SharePoint Home Site configured. In these environments, Microsoft Teams now launches Viva Connections by default for users who have not explicitly set a preferred start experience. This change is part of Microsoft’s initiative to integrate the intranet experience more closely with Teams and improve employee engagement. 

Some details on the change:

• The update was rolled out globally earlier this year and applies automatically to tenants with Viva Connections enabled and a SharePoint Home Site designated. 
• No changes to your Teams app setup policies are required for this behavior to occur; it is controlled by Microsoft as part of the feature enhancement. 

For further reference, you can review the official roadmap entry for this feature at Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 422815 and the Message Center notification MC942817 in your Microsoft 365 admin portal. 

In case your organization prefers that Teams open in Chat or the last-used context rather than Viva Connections, you can override the default setting using the SharePoint Online Management Shell. The following command should be executed by a Global Administrator or SharePoint Administrator:  Set-SPOHomeSite -VivaConnectionsDefaultStart $false  

This command disables the automatic Viva Connections start experience and restores the previous behavior where Teams opens in the last-used context. 

For detailed instructions: Set-SPOHomeSite (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn 

I understand that this update is bringing you unpleasant experience, I kindly encourage you to share your feedback on this experience through the Microsoft Feedback Portal. Your input helps Microsoft prioritize improvements and address customer needs effectively. 

Please let me know if you have any other concerns. I am happy to assist with implementation or provide additional guidance. 

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