Trouble Joining Teams Meetings
Background
Microsoft Teams is the collaboration and meeting platform provided to all faculty, staff and enrolled students at Saint Louis Community College. While Teams is generally easy to use, like any technology it can occasionally fail us. This article is meant to help get you to your meeting successfully.
Want the TL/DR version? Log in to your account before you try to join the meeting.
Best Option: Use the Teams client
For the best Teams meeting experience, install the Microsoft Teams app for Windows or macOS. It is also available in the app stores for iOS and Android if you're using a mobile device.
The Teams app is meant to automatically update on a regular basis, and you should not do anything to stop this no matter what type of computer/device you are using. If there is a problem with an update, you can uninstall and reinstall the app from the web or app store. If you need help troubleshooting Teams on an STLCC-owned computer, submit a support ticket for a technician to assist.
Make sure to log in to the Teams client with your STLCC account before trying to join your meeting. If your Teams meeting is on the calendar of your STLCC account, you'll be able to get straight to it from the Calendar app within Teams (look for it on the left side). If the meeting link was sent to you in an email (i.e. Navigate or Marketing), clicking it with Teams already signed in will usually bypass steps where you might have trouble.
Also A Good Option: Use Teams Web
If you are using a desktop/laptop computer, most modern web browsers (especially current versions of Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, but also Firefox and Safari) work fine with Teams.
Visit https://teams.microsoft.com and log in with your STLCC account to access your Teams resources prior to attempting to join a meeting. It is best to do this step even if you have logged into your STLCC email account in another tab of the same web browser (also a good step).
Mobile devices cannot use Teams on the web. If you're on your smartphone, install the Teams app from the app store.
Teams isn't available to me. Why is that, and what can I do?
Students whose applications to STLCC are accepted get email-only accounts. Teams, OneDrive and other applications and services are only added once you enroll for at least one credit class.
It is possible to join a Teams meeting as a guest without Teams or an account at all. However, there can be some limitations.
- Class attendance and participation may require you to be logged in for identification/verification purposes. A guest could be anyone, anywhere in the world.
- If joining as a guest, you are more likely to go to a virtual lobby where the meeting organizer has to admit you. They may be hesitant to do so if it wasn't expected.
- Depending on the meeting setup, guests may have limited or no access to the chat or some other features of the meeting.
Desktop/laptop users: Follow the link for the meeting. Select "Continue on this browser" to use the web, or "Join on the Teams app" if you have it installed. If prompted in the browser, select Allow for use of the camera and/or microphone (you can turn them off later), and click "Join Now".
Mobile device users: You must use the Teams app to join. If you haven't already installed it, you should be prompted to do so. Once in the app, tap "Join as a guest", enter your name, and tap "Join meeting".
I'm having trouble hearing the meeting, or being heard.
There are separate mute capabilities within Teams for the video and audio. If you can't be heard, make sure at least the mic is unmuted. Also check your headset, as it may have its own mute button that Teams doesn't know about.
If you can't hear others, check your device settings. Some Bluetooth devices, especially on Windows, have both a stereo mode (good for listening to music or watchinig videos) and a communications mode (good for meetings and calls). Make sure the device you have selected is the communications mode version of your device when looking at the devices within Teams. There is a drop-down menu next to the mic for audio settings (shown below).
If you have a Bluetooth audio device connected to a Windows machine, the separation of the devices into stereo and communications/headset can also show up if someone plays a video or shares their desktop sound in a meeting. To hear the shared audio, you may have to temporarily swap devices to the stereo device, use built-in speakers, or use a wired headset.
Related Microsoft articles:
How to log in to Microsoft Teams
I can't join a meeting in Microsoft Teams
Join a meeting without an account in Microsoft Teams
Use Microsoft Teams on the web