Teams: Collaboration and File Management

Overview

Microsoft Teams is the Microsoft 365 tool designed for active project collaboration. Teams brings together conversation, meetings, and file storage in a single workspace. Files stored in Teams are backed by SharePoint behind the scenes, but are surfaced directly within the Teams interface for convenience.

Appropriate Us Cases

Use Teams for:

  • Project workspaces with ongoing discussion and collaboration
  • Real-time collaboration on deliverables with team members
  • Files that require context from chat conversations
  • Cross-functional project work involving multiple departments
  • Any work that requires regular back-and-forth communication

When Not to Use Teams

Teams is not the best fit for:

  • Personal files or drafts (use OneDrive)
  • Official organizational records or policies that need long-term governance (use SharePoint)
  • Files that do not have an associated active project or team conversation

Working With Files in Teams

Files shared or uploaded within a Teams channel are stored in the associated SharePoint document library. You can access them in the following ways:

  1. Within Teams: Select the "Files" tab at the top of any channel to view and manage files.
  2. Via SharePoint: Each Team has a corresponding SharePoint site. Files can be accessed there for more advanced management options.
  3. Via OneDrive Shortcut: You can add a shortcut to a Teams/SharePoint folder in your OneDrive for easy access via File Explorer. See the SharePoint KB article for instructions.
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