I can't add members to private channels!

Copper Contributor

 

 

I can't add members to private channels.  Sometimes I can; sometimes I can't. Also having issues adding guests to teams channels.

 

I have tried the following things:
 
  1. In the desktop app, I removed the (guest) members added them back -did not work
  2. try to add them from admin portal - doesn't work
  3. log off log in on account did not work
  4. mobile did not work

please help me!

 

(sorry for my bad English)

 

 
 

 

4 Replies

Hello @kerem66   There is some recent discussion in this community about this being a bug.  But I will also share a past post in this community that offer solutions:

 

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-teams/can-t-add-members-to-private-channels/m-p/103...

 

I've figured out a direct solution to the issue, facing the same problem myself when we wanted to invite guest BETA testers to interact with and get feedback directly. The idea of deleting and re-adding the Team sounded ludicrous to me, so I kept trying to figure it out.

I was able to find a sequence that works consistently and is a direct solution to the problem you're all facing. I perform some of my steps in the Teams Desktop App and some in the Teams Admin Center. You'll need appropriate permissions, I'm a Global Admin for the domain. I'll post my steps in order:
Create a new Team in the Teams App. I created a Microsoft 365 Group for group email distribution, but I believe it will also work setup as a regular blank Team.
Once the Team appears in the App, create your custom "Private" Channel. 
Click on Manage Team and add a new Member. Enter the Guest's email address, and edit their display name prior to finalizing. Do this for all Guests. Remember, you're adding to the TEAM ONLY.
This is usually where adding the newly created user to the Channel fails.  Do not waste your time here any longer. Open the Teams Admin Center and navigate to the Channel itself. 
Teams Admin Center.
Teams.
Manage Team.
Click the Team name itself.
Click the Channels Tab.
Click the Channel Name.
Click the Add button.
Type in the guest user's Display Name.
Select and Apply.
Return back to the Teams App, within a few seconds you should be able to verify that the Guest is a Member of both the Team and the Private Channel.
You're done.
This should work consistently; I've used this method on three Teams and across 6 Private Channels now. Good luck everyone!
Thank you, this works great! I've been wanting to get a handle on member management in private channels that I'm not an owner of for a long time and I can finally manage it all here in addition to overcoming this bug we're addressing in the OP.

Appreciate your help!
Spoiler
 

@ThereseSolimeno 

 

40,000 views over 3 years and still the problem exists.... 

 

The solution I found was to make the "problem member" an owner, then add them to the private channel, then return their status to member. I couldn't follow the instructions in the other replies here because I'm not a full domain admin.