- Understand Microsoft Teams activity status
- How to keep Microsoft Teams active to avoid away status
- Manually change your availability status
- Manually change the status of your Microsoft Teams in Windows
- Manually change the status of your Microsoft Teams on Android, iOS/iPhone
- Microsoft Teams Away Status FAQ
- Optimize your Microsoft Teams experience
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Microsoft Teams is a chat-based online workspace that allows friends, colleagues, and students to hold meetings, exchange ideas, and share content. Like any other communication app, Microsoft Teams gives you the option to set your availability status. This is useful for letting others know if you are currently online or busy doing something else. However, Microsoft Teams also changes your status to “Away” when your PC crashes, goes to sleep, or has no activity for a specific time.

In this article, you’ll see steps to change your Microsoft Teams Away status and prevent it from automatically changing to “Away.”
Understand Microsoft Teams activity status
In the team member list, you can see the availability status of each user in the form of icons, indicating whether they are online, offline, or busy.
Microsoft Teams Status Options
There are different types of preconfigured statuses that Microsoft Teams uses to tag its members, including the following:
- Available – this means that you are online right now and available if any other Team member wants to contact you.

- Busy – you are online but you are busy with something. You’ll still receive notifications, but Microsoft Teams will automatically change your status to In a meeting either on a call.

- Do not bother – you are online, but not available to other Team users. This status will disable all your notifications. Your status can also say Presentation either Approachaccording to your calendar entries.

- I’ll be right back – this indicates that you have had to leave Microsoft Teams for a short period of time and that you will return in a few minutes.

- Far – this status informs your colleagues that you are not available to chat and that you are busy working.

- Disconnected – this status appears when you log out or turn off your device.

How to keep Microsoft Teams active to avoid away status
Unfortunately, there are There is no way to prevent Teams from setting your status to “Away” every time you lock your PC, set it to “Sleep,” or leave it idle for the time limit currently set by Teams.. There’s also there is no way to do it permanently, even when changing manually. Anyway, manually changing your availability locks the current status for a longer period: Busy (one day), Do Not Disturb (1 day), and other statuses (7 days). Your active status will not be changed again unless you reach the specified time limit.
Manually change your availability status
Although Microsoft Teams changes your availability status to “Away” automatically, based on your recent inactivity, you still have the option to change your status manually. This feature is also known as “idle timeout.” The scenario often creates problems for computer users, especially when their daily workload and productivity are measured. However, the good news is that you can change your status in several ways.
It’s quite easy to change the status of your activity manually. Here’s how to do it.
Manually change the status of your Microsoft Teams in Windows
- Open “Microsoft Teams”.

- Sign in to Teams if necessary and then click your “profile icon” in the upper right corner of your screen.

- Click on the “state” description.

- When the list of status options appears, choose the one you want, including “Available,” “Appear” either “Appear offline.”

Manually change the status of your Microsoft Teams on Android, iOS/iPhone
If you are using the mobile app, you can modify the status of your activity by following these steps:
- Open the “Microsoft Teams” mobile app.

- Play the “hamburger icon” (three horizontal lines) in the upper left corner of your screen.

- Tap your current “state” description and below appears a list of status options.

- Choose “Available” either “Far.”

The steps above prevent Microsoft Teams from changing your status to “Away” when you are not active within the time limit.
Microsoft Teams Away Status FAQ
How do I create a custom status in Microsoft Teams?
Technically speaking, you can’t create a custom status, but you can create a custom status message. You can choose from a variety of status options (active, do not disturb, be right back, etc.). In case none of these options suit you, you can always create a custom status message.
This is how you do it:
1.Open Microsoft Teams.

2.Go to your profile photo.

3.Select the “Status Message Set” option.

4. Write what you want your message to be (for example, “I’ll be back in five minutes” or “I’ll be back soon”).

5.Click “Delete status message after” drop-down menu and set the duration of your status message. (Your options are never, 1 hour, 4 hours, today, this week, and custom.)

6.Finally, click “Made.”

You now have a custom status message that will appear whenever your colleagues try to contact you.
1. When you want to change your personalized message, go to your profile settings and click “Delete this status message.”

How do you change downtime in Microsoft Teams?
Inactivity time appears in your status when your device goes into sleep mode or if it has been idle for a certain period of time. Microsoft Teams will configure this automatically.
Your status will change to asset once you interact with the app in any way. If this does not happen, you can set your availability status yourself by following the steps described in the previous questions.
Optimize your Microsoft Teams experience
Now you’ve learned how to change your availability status and customize your user presence in Microsoft Teams. By following our instructions and tips, you can increase your work efficiency and overall productivity. You can customize almost anything in Microsoft Teams. You just have to figure out what works for you.