Starting new teams for all users automatically

Hello @Urmas Vanem, 

Thank you for posting your valuable question on Microsoft Q&A forum. 

For new Teams, auto-start is controlled by Windows Startup Tasks. If you turn this on, Teams launches automatically every time you sign in to Windows. Users can change the auto-start setting for Teams if they have permission to manage their Windows startup apps. This is done through: 

• Windows Settings > Apps > Startup 
• Task Manager > Startup tab 

For example

However, this ability depends on how the device is configured by IT admins. 

 You can use Group Policy to prevent other users from making unwanted changes to your system: 

Prerequisites: 

• Download the latest Microsoft Teams Administrative Template (ADMX) from Microsoft. 
• Import the ADMX into your Group Policy Central Store. 

Steps: 

1. Open Group Policy Management Console (GPMC): Start > Administrative Tools > Group Policy Management. 
2. Create or Edit a GPO 

• Right-click your domain > Create a GPO (e.g., Teams Auto-Start Policy). 
• Link it to the OU containing your target users/devices. 

1. Navigate to Teams Settings: User Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Teams. 
2. Configure the Policy 

• Find “Prevent Microsoft Teams from starting automatically after installation”. 
• Set to Disabled > This ensures Teams will auto-start for all users. 

5. Force Policy Update: Run gpupdate /force on client machines or wait for the next refresh cycle. 

Or you can use Windows Registry Editor :

• Press Win + R, type regedit, and hit Enter. 
• Go to:  HKCU\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModel\SystemAppData\MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe\TeamsTfwStartupTask 
  • Value 2 = Enabled, Value 0 = Disabled. 

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Hello @Urmas Vanem, 

Thank you for your confirmation. 

In this case, you can add some steps to prevent users from accessing the Startup Apps to change to computer settings and Teams settings : 

1.Prevent Users from Changing Startup Settings 

Use GPO to hide the Startup Apps page in Windows Settings: 

• Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter. 
• Navigate to: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Settings Page Visibility 
• Set the value to: Hide:Apps-StartupApps 

This hides the Startup Apps settings page from users. 

For your reference: Manage the Settings app with Group Policy | Microsoft Learn 

2.Disable Access to Task Manager 

To prevent users from disabling Teams via Task Manager: 

• Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter. 
• Navigate to:Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Ctrl+Alt+Del Options   
• Double-click Remove Task Manager. 
• Set it to Enabled, then click Apply and OK. 

This method is ideal for centrally managing user access in a domain environment. 

3.Ensure Users Are Not Local Admins 

Make sure users are assigned Standard User accounts: 

• Go to Settings > Accounts > Other users. 
• Select the user > Change account type. 
• Choose Standard User and click OK. 

This prevents them from overriding GPO settings or modifying registry entries manually. 

For your reference: Manage User Accounts in Windows - Microsoft Support 

4.Prevent users from changing Teams settings: 

Unfortunately, there is no direct ways to prevent users from changing their Teams settings in app. However, you can use PowerShell script and Task Scheduler/Intune to Reset Teams Settings daily: 

Step 1: Create the PowerShell Script 

This script deletes the Teams settings folder, which resets user preferences like theme, layout, and notifications. 

• Open Notepad. 
• Paste the following script: 

$teamsSettingsPath = "$env:APPDATA\Microsoft\Teams" 

if (Test-Path $teamsSettingsPath) { 

    Remove-Item -Path $teamsSettingsPath -Recurse -Force 

    Write-Host "Teams settings reset successfully." 

} else { 

    Write-Host "Teams settings folder not found." 

} 

• Save the file as ResetTeamsSettings.ps1 in a known location (e.g., C:\Scripts). 

Step 2: Create a Scheduled Task 

• Open Task Scheduler (search in Start menu). 
• Click Create Task (not Basic Task). 
• Under General: 
  • Name: Reset Teams Settings 
  • Check Run with highest privileges 
  • Choose Configure for: Windows 10 or later 
• Under Triggers: 
  • Click New 
  • Begin the task: Daily 
  • Set the time (e.g., 6:00 AM) 
  • Click OK 
• Under Actions: 
  • Click New 
  • Action: Start a program 
  • Program/script: powershell.exe 
  • Add arguments: -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File "C:\Scripts\ResetTeamsSettings.ps1"   
  • Click OK 
• Under Conditions: 
  • Uncheck Start the task only if the computer is on AC power (optional) 
• Under Settings: 
  • Check Allow task to be run on demand 
  • Check Stop the task if it runs longer than 1 hour 
• Click OK to save the task. 

Step 3: Test the Task 

• Check the registry key to confirm State = 2. 
• Right-click the task and choose Run. 
• Open Teams to confirm settings are reset (you may need to sign in again). 

Optional: Deploy via Intune (Enterprise) 

If you're managing devices with Microsoft Intune: 

• Package the .ps1 script as a Win32 app or use Proactive Remediation. 
• Set it to run daily or at user login. 
• Ensure it runs in user context to affect individual settings. 

For more information, please check: Add PowerShell scripts to Windows 10/11 devices in Microsoft Intune | Microsoft Learn 

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