Potential bug: List view.

[LainRobertson]

Hi, folks.

I'm hoping someone can take the time to try reproducing the following new breakage so I can get some context around whether this is an issue only within my environment or Teams more generally.

Issue

When using the web version of Teams and choosing the "list view" layout from within Settings, web Teams hangs and does not recover.

I've been able to reproduce this across multiple computers after having applied the March 2024 security update (KB5035845). It was not an issue prior to this update.

Environment

• Windows 10 Enterprise, version 22H2 (19045.4170);
• Microsoft Edge 64-bit, version 122.0.2365.80;
• Web Teams, version 2 (aka "new Teams");
• Group policy setting(s):
  • InPrivateModeAvailability: Forced (documented here).

It's important to note that only the Windows update was applied. There were no pending Edge updates waiting to be installed at the same time.

Reproduction steps

These steps will only be relevant if your organisation is forcing you to use "new Teams". I can't comment on whether this bug exists on the earlier version.

Ensure you have configured the above group policy setting to enforce InPrivate mode, as there's already a number of critical differences in behaviour between InPrivate and "normal" configurations, meaning results from a "normal" mode test have no practical value to me.

1. Log into login.microsoftonline.com with your work account;
2. Select the "Office app launcher" charm and then "Teams";
3. When you are prompted to switch to "new Teams", do so (not that you have a choice);
4. Go to the "Settings and more" menu and select Settings;
5. From the Settings sidebar menu, select "Appearance and accessibility";
6. Within the "Layout" options, choose the "List" option;
7. Within the app sidebar, select "Teams";
8. Teams now proceeds to hang;
9. Close Edge (after optionally waiting on the standard Edge "this page isn't responding" dialog.

If you leave Teams in the unwieldly "Grid" layout, the hang/bug does not manifest.

If anyone has the time and patience to corroborate or debunk this, I'd appreciate it.

Cheers,

Lain

[#2]

@LainRobertson 

Additional information

This may be more complicated than I imagined, as it seems this is only an issue when you also had a pre-existing default team error, as shown below.

I'm not a Teams person, so I have no idea how to identify the inaccessible Team, or where such a setting would be specified/stored, given InPrivate mode ensures no configuration settings are stored between sessions (hence why I have to re-set up Teams from scratch every day).

The crosscheck (which I'll leverage as a workaround) I just ran entailed:

1. Within the Teams application, choose the "Activity" sidebar option;
2. Find a message related to a Team channel and select it;
3. Click the channel link below the message title/heading;
4. This takes you into the channel view, where "list view" works just fine thereafter.

I've had the initial post login inaccessible channel message for over a month now without any issue, so it can't be the sole cause for the Teams web v2 hang. But it's clearly an important aspect in conjunction with this month's Windows update.

Cheers,

Lain

[#3]

Additional information

After step 3 (above), switching from Teams v2 ("new Teams") back to classic Teams - via the New Teams toggle under in the Settings and more menu - works flawlessly.

No issues/hangs with list view (which is the default layout mode in classic Teams) whatsoever.

This is a better workaround than the clunky one I outlined above, but it would be nice if someone could still test the original scenario.

Cheers,

Lain

[#4]

This problem seems to have "magically" resolved itself in the past 30 minutes, as I can no longer reproduce the hanging issue.

Cheers,

Lain

[#5]

@LainRobertson 

I spoke too early, as the previous "magic fix" only lasted a day.

That's the same pattern I've seen in other issues where there's been underlying CDN issues, but apart from that one "magic fix" day, the list view fault's remained present.

Cheers,

Lain

[#6]

@LainRobertson 

I am getting the same issue when I switch to list view. This happens on both the browser and on the teams app (on windows) 

Can I ask did you get to the root of the problem at all?

Thanks

[#7]

@Matthew Colbourn 

Hi, Matt.

No, it's still an issue for me.

I have a ticket open with Microsoft (or rather, one of their external support agencies) but it's not progressing, hence I've simply lowered my expectations on it being resolved and have made peace with living with the workaround.

Cheers,

Lain