The Microsoft 365 monthly update includes updates and recently released features across Microsoft 365. The free version includes updates to SharePoint, Teams and OneDrive, whilst subscribers get all of the updates, plus Power Platform, Copilot and more.
You can take a look back at previous monthly updates here, plus take a look at our weekly roadmap roundup.
SharePoint
Retirement of featured links on SharePoint Start Page
Microsoft are retiring the Featured Links capability on the SharePoint Start Page due to low adoption. This change helps streamline SharePoint experiences and reduce complexity for admins and end users. Alternative options, such as global navigation links or Resources in Viva Connections, provide more consistent ways to highlight important content.
Find out more: Edit Viva Connections Resources | Microsoft Learn
New permissions report available in SharePoint admin center
Microsoft have announced a new Permissions report in the SharePoint admin center under Data access governance, enabling SharePoint administrators to quickly identify which sites a specific user can access—whether directly or through group membership. This feature, rolling out from mid-December 2025 to mid-January 2026, is enabled by default and supports investigations and permission reviews, especially before assigning Copilot licenses. Organizations are advised to review site permissions, notify administrators, and update internal documentation to reflect this change.
Find out more: Data access governance reports – get site permission report for given users – SharePoint in Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn
Email customization for site access review from Data Access Governance reports
SharePoint admins can now customize the emails sent from Data Access Governance reports to site owners and admins for site access reviews. This optional feature, rolling out from mid-December 2025 to mid-January 2026, aims to improve engagement and response rates without changing existing policies. Organizations should notify SharePoint administrators, update internal documentation, and review Microsoft guidance on customizing email templates.
Find out more: Initiate site access reviews for Data access governance reports – SharePoint in Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn
Chat visibility in the Copilot App
Microsoft 365 Copilot app will no longer use the “Pin Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat” setting to control chat visibility for unlicensed users. Blocked users see Chat in navigation but with restricted access, while ineligible users won’t see Chat and get a pop-up if accessing directly. Rollout starts January 2026.
Find out more: Microsoft 365 Copilot app settings for IT admins | Microsoft Learn
OneNote usage included in SharePoint site usage reports
SharePoint site analytics will soon include usage data from OneNote files, providing a more complete view of site engagement. This update means metrics like unique viewers and site visits will now reflect OneNote activity, and popular content reporting will highlight heavily used OneNote files. No admin configuration is required, but organizations should inform stakeholders and update any internal documentation to account for the expanded analytics.
Find out more: View usage data for your SharePoint site – Microsoft Support
Manage version expiration for audio and video files in SharePoint
Microsoft have announced version storage management for video and audio files in SharePoint Online, enabling admins to set and automate version expiration policies for large media files. This feature helps reduce storage use, prevent version sprawl, and maintain governance by allowing file-type-specific policies, expiration periods, and auto-trim behaviors, with PowerShell support for tenant, site, and library-level controls. Admins should review media-heavy sites, plan policies, and ensure compliance with retention and legal hold requirements, as older versions may be deleted when thresholds are exceeded.
Find out more: New-SPOSiteManageVersionPolicyJob (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn
Catalog Management in SharePoint
Microsoft have announced a new Catalog Management capability in SharePoint, designed to enhance governance and streamline administrative actions for organizations. This feature provides SharePoint and Microsoft 365 admins with a centralized, intelligent view of their content landscape by automatically grouping sites into clusters based on metadata and admin-defined attributes. It enables scalable management for lifecycle policies, access reviews, permissions auditing, and storage optimization, supporting readiness for AI-driven automation like Copilot. The feature will be available by default for tenants with SharePoint Advanced Management, with public preview starting mid-November 2025 and general availability expected by late February 2026.
Find out more: Catalog management in SharePoint Advanced Management – SharePoint in Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn
Reminder: Retirement of IDCRL authentication protocol and enforcement of OpenID Connect and OAuth protocols
Microsoft is retiring the legacy IDCRL authentication protocol in SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business by January 31, 2026, enforcing modern OpenID Connect and OAuth protocols. Legacy authentication will be blocked by default, with temporary re-enablement via PowerShell until April 30, 2026, and permanent retirement from May 1, 2026. Organizations should migrate to modern authentication promptly.
Find out more: Migrating from IDCRL authentication to modern authentication in SharePoint – Microsoft 365 Developer Blog
Content Security Policies (CSP) are coming to SharePoint
Microsoft have announced that Content Security Policy (CSP) enforcement is coming to SharePoint Online starting March 1, 2026. This change will block scripts from non-trusted sources in custom SPFx solutions, potentially impacting any solutions that load scripts from unapproved locations or use inline scripts. Organizations are advised to review and update their SPFx solutions to ensure all scripts are loaded from trusted sources, and to move inline scripts into separate files if needed. There is an option to delay enforcement by 90 days via PowerShell, and additional guidance is available in the SharePoint Online Admin Center.
Find out more: Support for Content Security Policy (CSP) in SharePoint Online | Microsoft Learn
Streamline SharePoint list creation with new list agent
Microsoft is introducing the SharePoint list agent powered by Microsoft 365 Copilot, which enables users to create SharePoint lists using natural language conversations and structured content from Copilot. The feature is rolling out in preview from December 2025 to January 2026, with general availability expected by late February 2026. Initially, admins must opt in via the Microsoft 365 admin center, but it will be enabled by default for Copilot tenants at general release. Users can generate lists from Copilot-enabled apps, save them to SharePoint or OneDrive, and admins retain the ability to disable the agent at any time.
Find out more: SharePoint Showcase: Announcements at Microsoft Ignite 2025 | Microsoft Community Hub
Teams
Apps now supported in Private Channels
Microsoft have announced that Teams now supports apps—including bots, tabs, and message extensions—in Private channels, enabling richer collaboration and more flexible app experiences for users and developers. This update, rolling out from January to March 2026, allows channel owners and members to add apps directly to Private channels, introduces new governance controls, and requires apps to be explicitly added per channel. Admins and developers should review app policies, update manifests, and ensure compliance with privacy and data handling requirements.
Find out more: Roadmap ID 518215
Pop out your core Teams functions into a new window
You can customize your work environment by opening Teams features like chat, calls, and calendar in separate windows, allowing for better multitasking and productivity. You can pop out an app into its own window by right-clicking the icon or using the app flyout.
Find out more: Open apps in new windows for easier multitasking in Microsoft Teams – Microsoft Support
Name pronunciation
You can record and share the pronunciation of your name in Microsoft Teams, enhancing inclusivity and preventing mispronunciations. This feature is part of a user’s profile in Microsoft 365, allowing users to help others learn to pronounce their names. It is off by default and can be enabled via the Teams admin center.
Find out more: User name pronunciation in Teams – Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
Express voice enrollment in Teams
Express voice enrollment in Microsoft Teams enables quick voice profile registration for enhanced meeting features. It rolls out to enterprise tenants (excluding EDU) starting February 2026, is on by default, and can be managed by admins via PowerShell. Organizations should review policies and communicate changes accordingly.
Find out more: Roadmap ID 537269.
Autocorrect in Teams compose
Autocorrect will be added to Microsoft Teams compose for Windows and Mac, automatically correcting common misspellings by default starting December 2025 (Targeted Release) and January-February 2026 (General Availability). Users can disable it in Settings. No admin action is needed; update documentation and inform helpdesk.
Find out more: Roadmap ID 534487
Message preview for channels, mentions, and reactions notifications
Microsoft is enhancing Teams notifications by introducing message previews for various alerts, enabling users to quickly gauge their importance and streamline responses across platforms. The rollout starts in mid-December 2025 for Targeted Release and mid-January 2026 for General Availability, requiring no admin action.
Flexible layout for Teams meetings with resizable divider
Microsoft have announced a new flexible layout option for Teams meetings, allowing users to adjust the space between shared content and participant videos using a resizable divider. This feature lets users prioritize either the presentation or the video gallery, swap the positions of content and participants, and works seamlessly with spotlighted speakers, pinned videos, and Speaker View. The update is enabled by default for all Teams users on Windows and Mac desktops, with rollout beginning in January 2026 for Targeted Release and February 2026 for General Availability.
Find out more: Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 528930
Enhanced Meeting Protection – Prevent Screen Capture
To prevent unauthorized screen captures during meetings, the Prevent Screen Capture feature makes the meeting window turn black if a user attempts to take a screen capture. This feature will be available on Teams desktop (Windows and Mac) and mobile applications (iOS and Android), while users on unsupported platforms will be placed in audio-only mode.
Find out more: Prevent screen captures in Microsoft Teams meetings – Microsoft Support
Restart Event feature for Town Hall with unrecoverable failures
Microsoft are introducing a Restart Event feature in Microsoft Teams Events to improve resiliency for live events. This feature lets organizers restart a live event that encounters an unrecoverable failure, minimizing disruption and ensuring continuity for Town Halls and other large meetings. Rolling out worldwide from January to February 2026. Organizers can restart events to minimize disruption, with no admin setup needed. Attendees may face brief interruptions but can rejoin seamlessly.
Find out more: Roadmap ID 523214.
Know Your Customer (KYC) required for Teams Phone porting requests
Starting January 2026, Teams Phone porting requires a one-time Know Your Customer (KYC) process via Teams Admin Center. Admins must submit business info and documents for validation before port-in requests. Existing numbers are unaffected. This applies globally and includes all tenants, with role-based access control via Entra ID.
Find out more: Teams Phone Know Your Customer overview – Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
Teams: Enhancing update efficiency through peer-to-peer (P2P) download
Microsoft Teams will use peer-to-peer update distribution via Delivery Optimization starting December 2025, enabling devices on the same network to share update files. This reduces CDN bandwidth use, speeds updates, and saves up to 30% bandwidth. No admin action is needed, but network policies should allow Delivery Optimization.
Find out more: Making Teams Updates Seamless: Smarter Delivery with Peer-to-Peer download and Scattered Rollouts | Microsoft Community Hub
Deprecation of Designer bot and Designer banners in Teams
The Designer bot and Designer banners in Microsoft Teams will be retired between mid-January and February 27, 2026. Users can no longer use these features but can generate images via Copilot in Teams. No admin action is needed; notify users and update documentation accordingly.
Find out more: Microsoft 365 Copilot | Create images with AI
OneDrive
OneDrive and SharePoint – recognize text in PDFs
Microsoft have announced that the OneDrive mobile app now includes built-in Optical Character Recognition (OCR), allowing users to turn scanned PDF files into editable, searchable text directly within the app. This feature, rolling out from mid-December 2025 to late January 2026 for iOS and Android, is enabled by default and helps users reuse information, speed up document workflows, and make content easier to find.
Find out more: Overview of optical character recognition | Microsoft Learn
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