7 Best Ways to Fix Microsoft Teams Won't Share Screen

Microsoft Teams has come a long way since its inception and continues to add new features to its product constantly. But old features are still causing problems for users. One of the key features is the ability to share a screen, but some users complain that Microsoft Teams does not share the screen for them.

There can be several reasons behind this problem, as we will see below. A lot will depend on what platform you use to access Microsoft Teams and share the screen. We’ll cover all platforms so you can share a screen on Teams by the end of the article.

Let’s start.

1. Change platform

This affects Microsoft Teams users who are using an old computer / mobile with insufficient resources. Close all open / background applications on Windows to free up RAM and CPU. Windows 10 users can close background apps using the task manager. Right click on the application to select the End task option to stop it under the Processes tab.

2. CPU resources

People using old computer / mobile with insufficient resources should pay attention to Teams consumption. You must close all open / background applications on Windows to free memory and processor resources. Windows 10 users can close background apps using the task manager. Right click on the application to select the End task option to stop it under the Processes tab.

Smartphone users can close open applications. Another way to free up system resources is with a simple restart. Remember to save all work before doing so.

3. Screen sharing enabled

A lot will also depend on the screen sharing settings you’ve selected in Teams and the type of app or window you’re trying to share with your coworkers.

Have you established a personalized policy? If so, go back and make sure screen sharing is enabled in settings like this.

The option is on by default for most users regardless of what plan you are on, but I recommend that you check the settings once.

4. Screen sharing options

Microsoft allows you to share your screen in different settings. For example, you might want to share a single application or window in particular while hiding other open windows / applications. There is also a dedicated option for PowerPoint.

Are you sharing a presentation? Choose the correct setting from the drop-down menu and see if you can share screen in Microsoft Teams now. Just click on the Share button to select the right option and you are good to go.

5. Screen resolution

As several users recently discovered, there appears to be a workaround with the desktop version of Microsoft Teams. Reducing the screen resolution one notch seems to solve the problem for now. Hopefully Microsoft will release a fix soon, but until then please do the following.

Step 1: Right click anywhere on your desktop and select Properties. You can now change the resolution under the Display heading.

Write down the current settings in case you want to change again. However, the recommended option is usually the way to go.

6. Clear cache and data

This will immediately sign you out of the Teams app if you clear an app specific cache. In some cases, it will log you out of all open apps. Again, save your work before going ahead.

You can easily clear cookies and cache data for a single site on Chrome or any browser powered by Chromium. You can also do this from settings and work for other browsers like Firefox and Safari. Just search for Teams in the search bar where the privacy options are.

There is no way to clear cache or data on Apple devices like iPhones and Macs. You can, however, clear the Teams cache and Android data. Check out the link for more details, like what happens when you go through the process.

Windows users, come here.

Step 1: Press Windows Key + E to open File Explorer. Type the address below into the address bar at the top.

%appdata%MicrosoftteamsCache

2nd step: You will need to delete all the files present in that particular folder. Press Ctrl + A to select all and the Delete key to delete them.

Step 3: You will repeat the same process and delete the files from those Teams folders as well.

%appdata%Microsoftteamstmp
%appdata%Microsoftteamsdatabases
%appdata%MicrosoftteamsGPUCache
%appdata%MicrosoftteamsIndexedDB
%appdata%MicrosoftteamsLocal Storage

Check if you can share screen using Microsoft Teams now.

7. Team policies

Are you part of an organization? In this case, you can only share the screen if your administrator has allowed it under Meeting options> Privacy settings. The “Who can present” parameter must be set to “Everyone”.

Another thing to note here is the type of screen you can share. The administrator can decide if users are allowed to share an application or an entire desktop. This is controlled from Meetings> Meetings Policies. The administrator will need to create a new policy by clicking on Add and then select the correct option from the “ Screen sharing mode ” drop-down menu.

Note that there are separate toggle options for the Whiteboard and the PowerPoint app.

Much depends on your administrator who decides who is allowed to do what and how. Let your admin know that you have something important to share at the next meeting.

Teamwork is essential

While working from home is the new normal, apps like Teams are playing a key role in the transition process. While you can organize or attend meetings in a professional manner, you can also meet your colleagues from all over the world.

Teams do a good job and occasional hiccups like the one you face are part of the process. Hope you can now share the screen using Microsoft Teams and everything is going well. Let us know if you find a different solution in the comments below.