Microsoft Teams: Installing, Configuring, and Using Chat for Mobile (iOS and Android)
![UCLA Anderson]()
Installing, Configuring, and Using Chat in Microsoft Teams (iOS)
Sections
- Installing Teams
- Launching and Logging into Teams
- Configuring Teams
- Teams Chat Usage
Section 1 - Installing Teams
As is the case when installing all iOS applications, you must use Apple’s App Store application in order to install Teams on your iPhone:
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TIP: iOS installs applications in the first available icon “slot” on the first available screen, so make sure you’ve got an empty slot on the screen where you’d like Teams to be installed on your iPhone before downloading Teams from the App Store.
- Tap the App store icon and wait for it come up.
- Tap the Search button (Magnifying glass icon) to bring up the Search field.
- Enter Microsoft Teams in the Search field on the top of the screen, and tap the Search button.
- Tap the “Get” button to download and install the Teams client for your iPhone.
Section 2 - Launching and Logging into Teams
- Launch Teams by tapping its icon.
- Tap the Sign in button.
- Tap Work or school account.
-
Sign in to Teams with your UCLA Logon ID followed by @ucla.edu (e.g. jbruin19@ucla.edu). It will redirect you to the UCLA Logon page. Log in with your UCLA Logon credentials.
- When prompted to enable notifications, tap the Notify me button.
- When iOS throws the Teams Would Like to Send You Notifications dialog box, tap Allow.
- When iOS throws the Teams Would Like to Access the Microphone dialog box, tap OK.
- Tap through three screens of marketing messaging by tapping Next , followed by tapping the Got it button on the fourth screen.
Section 3 - Configuring Teams
The primary focus of this document is on Teams' Chat functionality, but a quick overview of the icons you see in Teams is in order.
![]()
To your right are the icons you will find on the bottom of the Teams application that you will use to switch between the various modes of operation and access the different features available in Teams:
Activity - A list of everything relevant to you that has happened recently in Teams, organized from most to least recent.
Chat - Access the chat functionality provided by Teams.
Teams - A list of teams (aka groups of users) organized by topic and containing one or more channels (sub-topics).
Assignments - Disregard - This is for Teams' “Classroom” functionality which we are not using.
Meetings - Displays scheduled events from your Outlook calendar.
![]()
(HandleBar, above the Teams icon) - Tap to open a customizable “drawer” of applications, some of which we don’t use. Useful applications include:
- Files - A list of files you’ve accessed.
- Saved - Access a saved Chat message you’ve previously saved.
- Camera - Access your device’s camera.
- Calls - Place a Call from within your device.
In terms of application configuration, setting your Presence Status, Notification preferences, and General settings are all done through your Profile:
Access your Profile by taping on the “Hamburger Menu” (three dashes stacked atop each other) in the upper left-hand corner of the Teams window.
Your Presence Status will appear in the upper-left hand quadrant of your screen beneath your name and title, and will default to Available - provided that no other Status type (see below) is in effect.
You can change your Presence Status by tapping on your current Status and selecting one from the list below:
- Available
- Busy
- Do not disturb
- Away
- Off work
- Be right back
- Reset status
Tap the Gear icon to bring up the Settings window where you can alter application preferences.
We’re going to be focusing on the Notification setting because it has the most impact on Chat functionality, but here’s a quick overview of the various configuration categories you see before you:
- App Settings - Allows you to select the “Dark theme” to give your eyes a much-needed break. Also allows you to Show history in searches,
- Notifications - An alternate way to get to your Notification preferences (below).
- Clear history, *Clear app data", and specify Image upload quality
- Help - Brings up the Microsoft Teams Help Center in your browser.
Configuring Notifications
Tap the Hamburger Menu in the upper-left hand corner of the Teams application, then tap Notifications.
The Teams mobile client includes some thoughtful features designed to insulate you from both notifications at inappropriate times, as well as redundant notifications:
You can define both Daily quiet hours, as well as declare one or more days as Quiet days. In both cases, you’ll receive no notifications during the time periods you specify.
Take special note of the “Send Notifications” section which allows you to specify that notifications are sent only When I’m not active on desktop (preferred) or Always (redundant).
Teams offers very granular settings in terms of notifications. In the section labelled “NOTIFY ME FOR”, you have the ability to specify notification behavior for the following:
- Mentions - When somebody prefixes @ in front of your name, a Channel name, or a Team name.
- Replies - When somebody replies to a Chat or a message you posted in a Team Channel.
- Followed Channel posts - When somebody follows one of your Channel posts.
- Apps - Allows optionally installed applications to send you notifications.
- Likes - When somebody likes a Chat or a message you posted in a Team Channel.
- Team update alerts - When Team Membership or Roles change.
- Missed calls - When you’ve missed a call initiated in Teams.
- Voicemails - When you have a waiting voicemail in Teams.
- Suggested - Triggered by automated analysis of Teams activity.
- Trending - Triggered by automated analysis of Teams activity.
- Meetings - When a scheduled meeting is approaching.
- Notification sounds - Allows you to enable audible notifications.
- Vibration - Allows you to enable vibrating notifications.
NOTE: Everyone has differing tolerances for interruption - some people find notifications to be enormously disruptive, while others need to know everything that is happening as it happens. Teams' default notification configuration works very well for most people, and should be used as your baseline configuration. That said, if the default notification behavior isn’t working for you then simply adjust the specific notification settings until they are well-tailored to your needs.
Section 4 - Teams Chat Usage
Tap the Chat icon along the bottom of the Teams window and let’s get to chatting!
Teams' Chat workflow is extremely simple:
- Tap the Chat icon on the bottom of the Teams application.
- To start a chat, tap the New Chat (Pen and Paper) icon in the upper-right hand corner of the Teams window to reveal the screen shown below.
- Start typing the first few characters of the last name of the person with whom you wish to chat.
- Type your message in the Composition Box (#8)
- Tap Send (“Paper Airplane” icon, #15) to send your message.
NOTE: It is helpful to re-think what “chat” means in the context of Teams. Historically, chats have usually been very short in messaging applications like Skype - often just a few words; however, in Teams, chats can be either short, like a traditional chat, or longer and more substantive, like posting a notification. Use your best judgment and choose the right length message for the job!
TIP: If you have a longer, multi-line chat, you can insert a blank line between sentences for some vertical spacing by simply tapping the Return key.
TIP: If you wish to search for information before starting a chat, simply tap the Magnifying Glass icon near the top-left of the screen, enter the string you wish to find, and tap “People”, “Messages” or “Files” to select the scope of the search - amazingly useful!
Another way that Chat in Teams differs from Skype is that Skype required both/all participants to be logged in simultaneously in order to chat. Teams makes no such demands, relying instead upon an asynchronous, “running conversation”, approach to chat: a conversation can occur with one (or more) participant(s) offline! Offline participants receive an email stating “your teammates are trying to reach you”, along with the first sentence of the chat, and a Teams reply link.
Teams Chat Interface Elements
Microsoft Teams Chat Window (iOS)
![TeamsChatWindow]()
The Teams Chat window packs a lot of information and user interface elements into a compact space. Please find below a brief overview of the various icons and elements in the Teams screenshot above:
- Back Arrow - Aborts the chat without sending it or saving it.
- Participant(s) - One or more people who are included in the chat.
- Presence Status - Displays your Presence Status.
- Video Call - Start a Video Call.
- Audio Call - Start an Audio Call.
- Participant(s) - One or more people who are included in the chat.
- Conversation - A running history of the chats with the User.
- Compose Box - This is where you actually type your Chat message.
- Insert Photo - Allows you to insert an photo from your Photo Library.
- Giphy - Allows you to insert a Giphy.
- Attach - Allows you to include an attachment from either your computer or OneDrive.
- At Mention - Allows you to specify an At Mention
- Format - Expands the Compose Box and provides you with an abbreviated Rich Text editor, allowing you to apply a few formatting attributes to your text, as shown below:
- … (Ellipsis) - Location: Shares your current location, and Praise: Allows you to give a shout-out to a colleague for a job well-done!
-
Send (“Paper Airplane” icon) - Sends your message.
Microsoft Teams Expanded Chat Compose Box
![TeamsChatWindow]()
- Important - Specifies the chat as important.
- Bold
- Italics
- Underlining
- Text Highlighting
- Font Color - Colors text red for emphasis.
Installing, Configuring, and Using Chat in Microsoft Teams (Android)
Sections
- Installing Teams
- Launching and Logging into Teams
- Configuring Teams
- Teams Chat Usage
Section 1 - Installing Teams
- Tap the Play Store app from the Apps section
- Enter Microsoft Teams in the Search field, and Tap the Search button (“Magnifying glass” icon).
- Tap the “Install” button to download and install the Teams client for your Android phone.
Section 2 - Launching and Logging into Teams
- Launch Teams by tapping its icon.
- Tap the Sign in button.
- Tap Work or school account.
-
Students: Sign in to Teams with your UCLA Logon ID followed by @ucla.edu (e.g. jbruin19@ucla.edu). It will redirect you to the UCLA Logon page. Log in with your UCLA Logon credentials.
- When prompted to enable notifications, tap the Notify me button.
- Tap through three screens of marketing messaging by tapping Next , followed by tapping the Got it button on the fourth screen.
Section 3 - Configuring Teams
The primary focus of this document is on Teams' Chat functionality, but a quick overview of the icons you see in Teams is in order.
To your right are the icons you will find on the bottom of the Teams application that you will use to switch between the various modes of operation and access the different features available in Teams:
Activity - A list of everything relevant to you that has happened recently in Teams, organized from most to least recent.
Chat - Access the chat functionality provided by Teams.
Teams - A list of teams (aka groups of users) organized by topic and containing one or more channels (sub-topics).
Assignments - Disregard - This is for Teams' “Classroom” functionality which we are not using.
Meetings - Displays scheduled events from your Outlook calendar.
(HandleBar, above the Teams icon) - Tap to open a customizable “drawer” of applications, some of which we don’t use. Useful applications include:
- Files - A list of files you’ve accessed.
- Saved - Access a saved Chat message you’ve previously saved.
- Camera - Access your device’s camera.
- Calls - Place a Call from within your device.
In terms of application configuration, setting your Presence Status, Notification preferences, and General settings are all done through your Profile:
Access your Profile by taping on the “Hamburger Menu” (three dashes stacked atop each other) in the upper left-hand corner of the Teams window.
Your Presence Status will appear in the upper-left hand quadrant of your screen beneath your name and title, and will default to Available - provided that no other Status type (see below) is in effect.
You can change your Presence Status by tapping on your current Status and selecting one from the list below:
- Available
- Busy
- Do not disturb
- Away
- Off work
- Be right back
- Reset status
Tap the Gear icon to bring up the Settings window where you can alter application preferences.
- App Settings - Allows you to select the “Dark theme” to give your eyes a much-needed break. Also allows you to Show history in searches,
- Notifications - An alternate way to get to your Notification preferences (below).
- Clear history, *Clear app data", and specify Image upload quality
- Help - Brings up the Microsoft Teams Help Center in your browser.
Configuring Notifications
Tap the Hamburger Menu in the upper-left hand corner of the Teams application, then tap Notifications.
The Teams mobile client includes some thoughtful features designed to insulate you from both notifications at inappropriate times, as well as redundant notifications:
You can define both Daily quiet hours, as well as declare one or more days as Quiet days. In both cases, you’ll receive no notifications during the time periods you specify.
Take special note of the “Receive Notifications” section which allows you to specify that notifications are sent only When I’m not active on desktop (preferred) or Always (redundant).
Teams offers very granular settings in terms of notifications. In the section labelled “Configure notifications”, you have the ability to specify notification behavior for the following:
- Mentions - When somebody prefixes @ in front of your name, a Channel name, or a Team name.
- Replies - When somebody replies to a Chat or a message you posted in a Team Channel.
- Followed Channel posts - When somebody follows one of your Channel posts.
- Apps - Allows optionally installed applications to send you notifications.
- Likes - When somebody likes a Chat or a message you posted in a Team Channel.
- Team update alerts - When Team Membership or Roles change.
- Missed calls - When you’ve missed a call initiated in Teams.
- Voicemails - When you have a waiting voicemail in Teams.
- Suggested - Triggered by automated analysis of Teams activity.
- Trending - Triggered by automated analysis of Teams activity.
- Meetings - When a scheduled meeting is approaching.
- Notification sounds - Allows you to enable audible notifications.
- Vibration - Allows you to enable vibrating notifications.
NOTE: Everyone has differing tolerances for interruption - some people find notifications to be enormously disruptive, while others need to know everything that is happening as it happens. Teams' default notification configuration works very well for most people, and should be used as your baseline configuration. That said, if the default notification behavior isn’t working for you then simply adjust the specific notification settings until they are well-tailored to your needs.
Section 4 - Teams Chat Usage
Tap the Chat icon along the bottom of the Teams window and let’s get to chatting!
Teams' Chat workflow is extremely simple:
- Tap the Chat icon on the bottom of the Teams application.
- To start a chat, tap the New Chat (Pen and Paper) icon in the bottom-right hand corner of the Teams window to reveal the screen shown below.
- Start typing the first few characters of the last name of the person with whom you wish to chat.
- Type your message in the Composition Box (#8)
- Tap Send (“Paper Airplane” icon, #15) to send your message.
NOTE: It is helpful to re-think what “chat” means in the context of Teams. Historically, chats have usually been very short in messaging applications like Skype - often just a few words; however, in Teams, chats can be either short, like a traditional chat, or longer and more substantive, like posting a notification. Use your best judgment and choose the right length message for the job!
TIP: If you have a longer, multi-line chat, you can insert a blank line between sentences for some vertical spacing by simply tapping the Return key.
TIP: If you wish to search for information before starting a chat, simply tap the Magnifying Glass icon at the top-right of the screen, enter the string you wish to find, and tap “People”, “Messages” or “Files” to select the scope of the search - amazingly useful!
Another way that Chat in Teams differs from Skype is that Skype required both/all participants to be logged in simultaneously in order to chat. Teams makes no such demands, relying instead upon an asynchronous, “running conversation”, approach to chat: a conversation can occur with one (or more) participant(s) offline! Offline participants receive an email stating “your teammates are trying to reach you”, along with the first sentence of the chat, and a Teams reply link.
Teams Chat Interface Elements
Microsoft Teams Chat Window (Android)
The Teams Chat window packs a lot of information and user interface elements into a compact space. Please find below a brief overview of the various icons and elements in the Teams screenshot above:
- Back Arrow - Aborts the chat without sending it or saving it.
- Participant(s) - One or more people who are included in the chat.
- Presence Status - Displays your Presence Status.
- Video Call - Start a Video Call.
- Audio Call - Start an Audio Call.
- Participant(s) - One or more people who are included in the chat.
- Conversation - A running history of the chats with the User.
- Compose Box - This is where you actually type your Chat message.
- Insert Photo - Allows you to insert an photo from your Photo Library.
- Giphy - Allows you to insert a Giphy.
- Attach - Allows you to include an attachment from either your computer or OneDrive.
- At Mention - Allows you to specify an At Mention
- Format - Expands the Compose Box and provides you with an abbreviated Rich Text editor, allowing you to apply a few formatting attributes to your text, as shown below:
- … (Ellipsis) - Location: Shares your current location, and Praise: Allows you to give a shout-out to a colleague for a job well-done!
-
Send (“Paper Airplane” icon) - Sends your message.
Microsoft Teams Expanded Chat Compose Box
- Important - Specifies the chat as important.
- Bold
- Italics
- Underlining
- Text Highlighting
- Font Color - Colors text red for emphasis.