How to Fix Microsoft Teams Not Opening on Windows 11

Microsoft Teams stands as a premier business communication platform, facilitating seamless collaboration across diverse work environments. Nevertheless, numerous users have reported encountering difficulties in accessing the app, with some experiencing crashes immediately upon launch. While these issues can understandably provoke frustration, they can be readily resolved.

It is important to note, however, that there may be multiple underlying causes, necessitating the exploration of several potential solutions outlined below in order to fully address the problem at its core.

Method 1: Check Microsoft Teams’ Service Status

Teams will not open when Microsoft Teams’ servers are down and out. Thus, one of the first things you should check is if Teams is up and running or not. Moreover, checking the current service status is just a single-step process and will hardly take any time.

To check the current status, head to portal.office.com/servicestatus using your preferred browser. Then, locate the ‘Teams’ option on the left section of the page. If the Teams server is running as expected, it should display a green tick as displayed below in the screenshot. You can also learn more by clicking on the ‘Teams’ option.

If Teams is indeed down, there’s nothing to do but wait. But if it’s working, move on to the next fixes.

Method 2: Clear Microsoft Teams’ Local Cache

Microsft Teams creates a local cache on your secondary storage to enable faster access to the chats and Teams channels. A corrupt or damaged cache can render your app non-responsive when trying to launch.

To clear the local cache, press the Windows+R keys together on your keyboard to bring up Run Utility. Then, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command to open the directory in a File Explorer window.

%appdata%MicrosoftTeams

Once the directory is open on your screen, press the Ctrl+A keys together on your keyboard to select all the files and folders present in it. Then, use the Shift+Delete keys combination to permanently delete all files.

A prompt will appear on your screen. Click on the ‘Delete’ button to confirm the deletion of all files.

Then, see if the issue with the Teams app was resolved.

Method 3: Run the App Troubleshooter

If you have downloaded the Teams app from the Microsoft Store, you can also run a troubleshooter to simply let Windows diagnose the issue you are facing.

First, head to the Start Menu and then click on the Settings app icon to proceed. Alternatively, you can also type Settings in the menu to perform a search for it.

After that, make sure you have selected the ‘System’ option from the left sidebar.

Next, click on the ‘Troubleshoot’ option from the right section of the window.

Now, click on the ‘Other troubleshooters’ tile to proceed.

Finally, click on the ‘Run’ button present on the ‘Microsoft Store Apps’ tile to run the troubleshooter for Microsoft Store apps.

Follow the instructions on your screen to complete the troubleshooting process. If it finds something, the troubleshooter will also guide you on how to resolve the issue. Once the problem has been diagnosed and resolved, try relaunching the Teams app to check if the issue persists.

Method 4: Repair or Reset Microsoft Teams from the Settings App

If clearing the cache didn’t work, you can also try to repair Microsoft Teams from the Settings app to fix any corrupt or damaged files

First, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ icon to proceed. Alternatively, you can also press the Windows+I keys together to open the app.

Next, click on the ‘Apps’ tab from the left sidebar to continue.

After that, from the right section of the Settings window, click on the ‘Apps & features’ tile to proceed.

Now, you can either scroll down to locate the Microsoft Teams app manually, or you can use the search bar present under the ‘App list’ section to search for the app.

Once located, click on the kebab menu (three vertical dots) on the right and select ‘Advanced options’ to proceed.

On the next screen, scroll down and click on the ‘Repair’ button.

Once the repair process is completed, a ‘tick’ will be displayed right next to the button. Now, launch the Microsoft Teams app on your machine and check if the issue has been resolved.

In case the issue still persists, head back to the ‘Microsoft Teams’ settings page and locate the ‘Reset’ option and click it to proceed. This will bring up a pop-up prompt on your screen.

Read the information carefully written on the prompt and click on the ‘Reset’ button to give your confirmation and reset the app.

Note: As the prompt mentions, all your account data present on your machine will be deleted and you will have to download it again. Also, this will log you out of the Teams app.

Once the reset is complete, see if Microsoft Teams started working again.

Method 5: Run SFC and DISM Scan

System File Checker and Deployment Image Servicing and Management scans will check and repair the existing operating system files installed on your device along with other system files.

First, head to the Start Menu and type Terminal to search for it. Then, right-click on the ‘Terminal’ tile and choose the ‘Run as administrator’ option to proceed.

Next, if you are not logged in with an admin account, enter credentials for one. Otherwise, click on the ‘Yes’ button to proceed.

After that click on the ‘chevron’ (downward arrow) icon and click on the ‘Command Prompt’ option.

Then, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command and hit Enter on your keyboard. This will restore your currently installed OS image on your device.

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

Once completed, type or copy+paste the following command to check and repair the system files on your PC.

SFC /scannow

Method 6: Reinstall the Microsoft Teams App on your Windows 11 System

If nothing seems to work, you can uninstall and then reinstall the Microsoft Teams app from your machine.

To do so, head to the Settings app and click on the ‘Settings’ tile to proceed. Alternatively, you can also type Settings in the menu to perform a search for it.

Then, from the left sidebar, click on the ‘Apps’ option to continue.

After that, click on the ‘Apps & features’ tile from the right section of the window.

Then, you can either scroll down manually to locate the Microsoft Teams app or you can use the search bar.

Once located, click on the ‘kebab menu’ (three vertical dots) and then choose the ‘Uninstall’ button to proceed.

Next, from the confirmation pop-up, again click on the ‘Uninstall’ button to give your confirmation and uninstall the app from your machine.

Once uninstalled, restart your machine from the Start Menu.

Now, after restarting the system, head to www.microsoft.com/microsoft-teams/download using your preferred browser. Then, click on the ‘Download for desktop’ button.

After that, either download the regular version of Teams or get the education or organization app by clicking on the respective option.

Once the download has been completed, head to the default downloads directory and double-click on the .EXE file to run the installer.

After that, click on the ‘Install’ button to commence installation.

Once the installation completes, check if the issue has been resolved or not.

Method 7: Restore your PC Using a System Image Backup

If you have only recently encountered the problem, and have a system image that was created when Teams was working perfectly fine, you can use it to roll back your Windows 11 system.

Note: Rolling back the system will uninstall and remove the apps, files, and folders that have been installed after the creation of the image.

First, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ tile to proceed.

Next, make sure you have selected the ‘System’ tab from the left sidebar to continue.

After that, click on the ‘Recovery’ tile from the right section of the window.

Then, click on the ‘Restart now’ button present on the ‘Advanced startup’ tile to continue. This will restart your PC immediately.

Once the ‘Advances Startup screen’ is visible on your machine, locate and click on the ‘Troubleshoot’ option.

After that, on the next screen, click on the ‘Advanced options’ tile to continue.

Now, from the ‘Advanced options’ screen, click on the ‘System Image Recovery’ tile to proceed. Your machine will now restart.

Once restarted, the ‘System Image Recovery’ screen will appear on your screen. Then, click on your account name to continue.

On the next screen, enter the account password that you used to log in to your computer and click on the ‘Continue’ button.

After that, click on the radio button preceding the ‘Use the latest available system image’ option and click on the ‘Next’ button to proceed.

Then, click on the ‘Next’ button to continue.

Afterward, click on the ‘Finish’ button to start the backup restore process.

Microsoft Teams is reportedly acting up for quite a lot of users. But hopefully, using the above-mentioned methods, you will be able to resolve the Microsoft Teams not opening on your Windows 11 PC.