business technology workflow stop working as expected, it can cause major disruptions as people scramble for workarounds. Evolution of software is the norm in the IT world and the best way to handle it with the least number of issues is to be prepared ahead of time.
We’ll go through the dates that you need to be aware of below, along with your options for browser upgrade before your business is negatively impacted by the changes.
Important Browser Support Dates You Need to Know
November 30, 2020: IE 11 Loses Support from Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams will no longer support Internet Explorer on November 30, 2020. This can mean that video calls may no longer work in Teams and that users can’t access some or all of the Teams application in IE 11.
Teams saw a huge surge in use this year because of the pandemic, seeing an increase in monthly active users of over 750%.
If you’re using Teams, then you want to make sure both your users and those they may be inviting to video meetings in Teams know about the loss in support for Internet Explorer. For a smooth video meeting experience, they’ll need to use a supported browser.
August 17, 2021: IE 11 Loses Support from Microsoft 365 In less than a year, the rest of the Microsoft 365 applications will be dropping support for IE 11. This means the online versions Word, Outlook, Excel, and PowerPoint will no longer work as expected in the browser. File sharing apps like OneDrive and SharePoint will also be impacted, along with other apps like Microsoft Lists. It’s also not recommended to log in to Microsoft 365 admin areas for the platform using the IE 11 browser after the loss of support date. Things that can happen when accessing Microsoft 365 from IE 11 after 8/17/2021:
No access to new features
Some features may stop working
You may not have access to the app services at all
March 9, 2021: Microsoft Edge Legacy Reaches End of Life
Another Microsoft browser, and one that many IE users have upgraded to, is the legacy version of Edge. If you’re running this browser, it’s important to upgrade to the Chromium version of Edge before March 9th.
After that date, the browser is reaching end of life, meaning end of all support, including vital security updates. So, if you’re upgrading from IE 11 to Edge, make sure you upgrade to the new Edge browser and not the legacy version.
Common Questions About the Loss of Support
Here are some answers to common questions related to the loss of support for Internet Explorer by Teams and Microsoft 365.
Is IE Reaching End of Life?
No, Internet Explorer is not yet reaching end of life if you’re running it on a Windows 10 operating system. The browser is a component of Windows, so it will take on the lifecycle of that operating system. Windows 10 is not reaching end of life until October of 2025.
If you happen to still be running Windows 7 on any computers, then both that OS and the IE browser are both unsupported, reaching EOL in January 2020, and you should upgrade to Windows 10 as soon as possible.
What Microsoft 365-Compatible Browsers Can I Upgrade to? You have several options when choosing a browser to upgrade to from IE 11. You’ll just want to make sure that the upgrade and migration is done correctly so that you’re not losing any important information that may be stored in your browser, such as favorites and stored passwords. Microsoft 365 is compatible with:
Microsoft Edge
Chrome
Safari
Firefox Three important notes about choosing an upgrade option:
Safari is no longer supported in Windows, so you will only want to consider this browser on Apple devices.
Firefox does not support all Microsoft Teams features.
Microsoft Edge includes a feature called IE Mode, which allows you to open legacy sites in IE 11. So, this is the best choice if you still need to use IE 11 for other online applications.