1. New PDF Annotation Layout and Tools in OneDrive and SharePoint
Overview
Microsoft OneDrive and SharePoint are coming with a redesigned PDF annotation layout. It has all the necessary tools that have been streamlined into a single row, put at the top of the screen. That said, a key addition here is a pixel-by-pixel eraser. This is to ease up precise removal of pen and highlighter annotations. The update basically targets improved editing experience and a way more intuitive interface.
Impact
Users now will be able to access all annotation tools in one place. This will reduce clicks and amazingly improve workflows. The new eraser tool allows for detailed adjustments instead of complete annotation deletion. These changes apply only to OneDrive for the web and SharePoint Online. The rollout starts in late March 2025 and is expected to complete by mid-April 2025.
Action Needed
No admin action required !! Users can simply open a PDF in OneDrive or SharePoint. Go to Edit and use the updated annotation tools.
2. Microsoft 365 Copilot: License Requests & Self-Service Purchase
Overview
Microsoft 365 Copilot introduces a new License Request feature in parallel with Self-Service Purchase. This really allows users flexibility if both options: request licenses from admins or purchase ones directly.
This update applies to multiple Microsoft 365 plans i.e. E1, E3, E5, Office 365 E1/E3, Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) E3/E5, Microsoft 365 Apps for Business, etc. Rollout begins late March 2025 and May 2025 will see its completion. However, the existing self-service purchase settings will be unchanged.
Impact
Users can now request Copilot licenses directly from M365 apps like Copilot Chat. Admins will see such requests in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. They can then approve or redirect users to a custom process. Nevertheless, self-service purchases let users buy licenses with a credit card while admins have full visibility into everything. They’ll be tracking every user purchase, managing licenses, and taking over at any time if required.
Action Needed
No immediate admin action required!! However, if self-service purchase was previously disabled, the setting will remain in place.
3. Microsoft Teams: A New Chat and Channels Experience is Coming
Overview
Microsoft Teams introduces a more streamlined Chat and Channels experience. This is rolling out by late March and completing by the April 2025 end. The update integrates chats, teams, channels into a single unified Chat view. This change allows users to navigate conversations quite efficiently. There are some other important improvements as well as they include a quick navigation bar, customizable experience options, an enhanced onboarding flow, etc.
So, users can defer the transition up to a maximum of three times but ultimately they have to move to the new experience. Also, the change applies to all platforms, including Windows, Mac, iOS, etc. but specifically excludes Education tenants.
Impact
As the new layout simplifies everything by merging everything together, it literally reduces the need to switch between sections. A new @mention view gathers all personal mentions in one place.
There are persistent filters to help your users focus more on specific conversations. The quick navigation bar will make tracking of unread messages and @mentions in channels quite easier. Mobile users will also see message previews enabled by default. Whereas, on desktop and web, they will be off by default so they can offer a cleaner look.
Action Needed
No admin action required for this change!!
However, users can customize their experience in Teams Settings. They can choose between the combined Chat view (default) or the separate Chat and Teams views.
4. Microsoft Teams: One-Year Retention Policy for Meeting Attendance Reports
Overview
Microsoft Teams rolls out new one-year retention policy for meeting attendance reports. This is effective immediately now.
Post this, attendance reports will be stored for one year after the meeting’s end date. Basically, it’s an attempt to align with Microsoft’s privacy policy. Before this, these reports had no retention limit. This applies across all platform apps, including Windows, Mac, Web, etc, and Microsoft Graph API requests.
Impact
The one-year retention rule affects all past and future meeting attendance reports. Meeting reports from before Nov 2024, will still be available until August 2025. Post this, older reports will be permanently deleted.
Action Needed
If your organization relies on long-term attendance data storage, you should plan accordingly. To apply the one-year retention policy immediately, contact Microsoft Support.
5. New Exchange Online Tenant Outbound Email Limits – What You Need to Know
Overview
Microsoft rolls out new outbound email limits in Exchange Online. This is the Tenant External Recipient Rate Limit (TERRL). These limits control the number of external recipients a tenant can email per day based on the number of purchased email licenses.
Enforcement begins in phases starting this April and all tenants are expected to be fully covered by May 2025. A new report in the Exchange Admin Center (EAC) will help track usage, compliance, and other stuff.
Impact
When a tenant hits the daily outbound email limit, that will mean no more emails to external contacts until things cool down. Anyone trying to send will get a bounce-back (NDR) letting them know they’re temporarily blocked. Microsoft is rolling this out in phases; Smaller tenants (25 licenses or fewer) being first, ramping up to everyone by this May.
Action Needed
Admins should check the EAC’s Tenant Outbound External Recipients Rate report and monitor well email volume, quotas, etc.
6. Upcoming Deprecation of Key Teams PowerShell Cmdlets – What You Need to Know
Overview
Microsoft is going to defer the deprecation of three Teams PowerShell cmdlets:
- Get-CsDialPlan
- Get-CsOnlineUser
- Get-CsUserPolicyAssignment
This deprecation was initially planned for February 2025, but the rollout of this change will now conclude by mid-March 2025. These cmdlets will no longer be available. Specific attributes i.e. DialPlan, LocationProfile, etc. will also be removed.
Impact
Due to this change, admins will no longer be able to:
- Use Get-CsDialPlan to retrieve dial plans.
- Access the DialPlan attribute via Get-CsOnlineUser.
- Retrieve the LocationProfile attribute from Get-CsUserPolicyAssignment.
Action Needed
No immediate action is required.
But, if your organization is relying on Teams Phone services, this change may impact your ongoing workflows if they use these cmdlets to manage dial plans and user policies.
Moving forward, to retrieve dial plan information, use Get-CsEffectiveTenantDialPlan instead.
For detailed guidance, refer to:
- Get-CsOnlineUser Documentation
- Get-CsUserPolicyAssignment Documentation
- Get-CsEffectiveTenantDialPlan Documentation
7. New Limit for Dynamic Distribution Groups in Microsoft Exchange Online
Overview
Microsoft Exchange Online is enforcing a new limit of 3000 dynamic distribution groups (DDGs) per organization. The change is coming in April 2025 and once this threshold is reached, admins will need to delete existing DDGs before creating new ones.
Impact
Organizations with fewer than 3000 DDGs won’t be affected. This change applies globally and to GCC environments.
Action Needed
No immediate admin action is required. This enforcement is automatic and cannot be disabled.
However, review your DDGs to ensure they are necessary. Use the Dynamic Distribution Groups report in the Exchange admin center to monitor usage and remove any obsolete DDGs. Access the report at: EAC > Reports > Mail flow > Dynamic distribution group report.
8. Microsoft Entra: Default Browser Access for Android Users
Overview
Browser access will be enabled by default for all Android users in Microsoft Entra from this July. The “Enable Browser Access” (EBA) feature will be retired. And, no manual action is needed from admins or users for this change to happen.
Actually, the change is part of a broader security enhancements plan, specifically migrating Microsoft Entra ID device registration to be hardware-bound. After this change takes place, browser access will automatically be enabled during device registration process.
Impact
With this change comes the new experience where users won’t have the option to manually enable/disable browser access in Microsoft Authenticator, Company Portals, etc.
Now, browser access will be built right into the device registration process. This will tie device identity directly to the hardware for better security. If your organization doesn’t support Android devices, you can ignore this update.
Action Needed
No action required from admins or users!!
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