Overview

This article covers guidance and best practices for using Microsoft Teams in a virtual environment with the goal of establishing the best end-user experience.

Microsoft Teams is available for use in a Web Browser, as a Mobile App (Android & iOS), and as a Desktop App (Windows, Mac OS, & Linux).  This provides a large amount of flexibility for using Microsoft Teams.  The following are the most common deployment options:

• Corporate provisioned endpoint devices (workstations, laptops, tablets, & phones)
• Personal endpoint devices (laptops, tablets, & phones)
• Dedicated virtual desktops or shared, multi-hosted desktops

MS Teams Use Cases

Microsoft Teams is an application layer on top of Microsoft's online services including the Office apps, Exchange, SharePoint, and Skype for Business.

When rolling out MS Teams to your organization, you want to make sure your virtual environment can handle the increased loads that come with each set of use cases.

Local Endpoint Install vs. Server-Side Virtual Desktop Install

Based on our own end-user experience testing, Evolve IP recommends only deploying Microsoft Teams to local endpoints (corporate devices and/or personal devices).  Here's why:

• There are some feature limitations when running MS Teams in a virtual desktop.  For example:
  • Depending on the virtual environment, only a single incoming video stream may be supported in meetings or group calls.  When there are multiple participants sending their video, only the dominant speaker’s video is shown at any time. 
  • Users may not be able to enable screen sharing during a chat session.  If that's the case, the user has to start an audio/video call before screen sharing will work.
  • When doing screen sharing in multi-monitor setups, it's possible the user's main monitor is only shared.
  • During screen sharing, give control take control may not be supported.
• Installing MS Teams on local endpoints distributes the load and network bandwidth required for the best end-user experience.
• Virtual compute resources (CPU & RAM) used by Microsoft Teams can be significant, especially for audio/video calls and meetings.
• Installing MS Teams on local endpoints is a simple install-and-go process.  Installing MS Teams in a virtual environment can require a very complex optimization process.
• Troubleshooting issues related to MS Teams audio/video calls is easier on local endpoints. No need to consider your virtual infrastructure, audio/video redirection issues with local peripherals (headsets & webcams), or your networking.

Microsoft's Guidance for MS Teams in Virtual Environments

Microsoft's guide for running MS Teams in a Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) environment is very comprehensive, and it should be your starting point for understanding the ins and outs of running MS Teams in your virtual environment.  Pay close attention to the following parts of the guide:

• Installation and upgrade requirements
• Teams on VDI performance considerations
• Known issues and limitations
• Use the Skype for Business Network Assessment Tool to test whether your network is ready for Teams.

Vendor Optimizations for MS Teams

Currently, Microsoft has only certified Citrix virtual environments for an "optimized" audio/video experience with MS Teams.  All other virtual environments, including Windows Virtual Desktops (WVD) in Azure, are considered "unoptimized".

MS Teams Optimization in Citrix

If you're running Citrix for your virtual environment, make sure you follow their Optimization Guide for Microsoft Teams, which is fully certified to run MS Teams in its optimized mode.

MS Teams in Azure Windows Virtual Desktops (WVD)

Microsoft has a short article for running MS Teams in WVD.  Keep in mind that you'll be running MS Teams in its unoptimized mode, and therefore, will be consuming more compute resources (CPU & RAM) than MS Teams in its optimized mode.

MS Teams Optimizations in VMware

In VMware environments, MS Teams will run in its unoptimized mode.  However, VMware is currently working to certify with Microsoft and release their own optimization pack.  Currently, VMware recommends a virtual desktop with a minimum 4 vCPU and 4 GB of RAM (8 GB of RAM is recommended).  VMware also has a guide for optimizing MS Teams for real-time audio/video.

MS Teams Rollout Planning for Virtual Environments

Before installing MS Teams in your virtual environment, make sure you review and plan for the MS Teams hardware requirements, and virtualization requirements, especially if you plan to allow audio/video calls and meetings.

Also, consider turning off MS Teams features by changing global policy settings in the Teams Admin Center.  After turning off features, you can create custom policies that allow the features to be turned on and used by a pilot group of users.  This will ensure you have sized your virtual desktops and servers to support your use cases.

Here are some suggestions:

• Turn off Meeting & Live Events features
• Modify the Messaging settings
• Turn off Voice Calling
• Block 3rd-party cloud storage in the Org-Wide Teams Settings
• Block 3rd-party apps in the Teams app catalog unless there's a business reason for them to be available.
• If the network used by your virtual environment supports Quality of Service (QoS) markers for real-time media traffic, consider turning this on in the Meeting settings page of the admin center.

Peripherals for Microsoft Teams

• Microsoft Teams certified headsets with built-in echo cancellation. 

• Microsoft Teams certified cameras. 

• Skype for Business certified peripherals are compatible with Microsoft Teams too.   

Getting Support for MS Teams in a Virtual Environment

Running MS Teams in a virtual environment has a lot of moving parts, all of which can be difficult to troubleshoot.  Keep in mind that voice & video quality issues are going to be attributed to your virtual environment and your network.  Therefore, we strongly recommend consulting with Microsoft and your virtualization vendor for support.

If Evolve IP is your voice provider for Teams Direct Routing, we may be able to assist with your troubleshooting, but we can only troubleshoot our own voice infrastructure.  Unfortunately, we do not have any means to troubleshoot Microsoft's voice infrastructure or your virtual infrastructure.

Resources

• Hardware requirements for Microsoft Teams

• Microsoft Teams Optimization for VDI

• Office 365 Network Connectivity Principles

• Office 365 Network Onboarding tool

• Skype for Business Network Assessment Tool
• Citrix Optimization for Microsoft Teams
• VMware Optimization for Real-Time Audio-Video