Using Microsoft Teams on Workspot Desktops

This article gives best-practice advice for using the New Microsoft Teams on Workspot, with an emphasis on Teams for VDI and the Teams Plugin, which provide an enhanced Teams experience with the Workspot Windows Client.

Running Teams

There are four basic approaches to running Microsoft Teams:

1. Run the ordinary version of Teams on the Workspot desktop. Your users have all of Teams’ audio/visual functionality and you can use any Workspot Client (though not all Clients support local Webcams). This is often the simplest option and may work adequately.

2. Run Microsoft Teams for VDI, which uses a Teams extension (the Teams plugin) from Microsoft that optimizes it for use on remote desktops.

Note: Support for "Classic Teams on VDI,” ends on October 1, 2024, with end of availability on July 1, 2025.  Workspot supports “New Teams for VDI” on Workspot Windows desktop and app servers as one endpoint and the Workspot Windows Client as the other.

• Prior support for Classic Teams on VDI is no longer discussed in this article.

• For New Teams for VDI, see Workspot Compatibility with New Teams for VDI.

• For more about the end of support of Classic Teams, see the Microsoft article, End of availability for classic Teams client.

3. Run the Browser version of Teams and the Workspot Media Extension. When running the online version of Teams at https://teams.microsoft.com, the Workspot Media Extension, if enabled, redirects Teams calls to the local (Client) system for full performance.

4. Run Teams on a local device, not a Workspot desktop. This in many ways is the most trouble-free method but may not be consistent with your organization’s policies or preferences. The rest of this document is devoted to the other options.

General Considerations (All Methods)

Enabling Audio and Webcam Use

To participate in Teams video calls, end-users need to be able to share their speakers/headphones, microphones and, optionally, Webcams. When using Workspot resources, access to devices can be enabled or disabled in three different places, two by Administrators in Control, and one by end-users on the Client:

1. Workspot Control's Security Policies (applied per-user-group).

2. Workspot Control's (optional) Protocol Policies (applied per-pool).

3. Workspot Client Settings (applied by the end-user).

Enabling Audio and Webcam in Security Policies

On any desktop pool that doesn't have a Protocol Policy, Security Policies are used instead.

• In Control, go to the "Policies" page.

• For every policy with a Policy Type of "Security," click on the policy name. This will open the policy page.

• If you want users assigned to this policy to be able to use microphones and Webcams, scroll down to the bottom and select:

  • Allow audio redirection: Yes.

  • Allow video redirection: Yes.

  • Allow Teams Client Plug-in: Yes (if you plan on using the Teams Client Plug-in).

• Click “Save.”

Enabling Audio and Webcam in (Optional) Protocol Policies

If you use Workspot's Protocol Policies (most customers do not), go to the "Policies" page in Control.

• For every policy with a Policy Type of "Protocol" that applies to desktops used by Teams users, click on the policy name. This will open the policy page.

• Scroll down to the bottom and select:

  • Allow audio redirection: Yes.

  • Allow video redirection: Yes.

  • Allow Teams Client Plug-in: Yes (if you plan on using the Teams Client Plug-in).

• Click “Save.”

Enabling Audio and Webcam on the Workspot Client

• Enable the following options under “Settings (gear icon) > RDP” on your Workspot Client if they have been disabled (all are enabled by default):

  • Use local headset/speaker

  • Use microphone

  • Use webcam.

• Any options that do not appear in the Client have been disabled in Control by the Workspot Administrator. To enable them, follow the procedure in Enabling Webcam and Microphone Use, above.

• Test: Using the Workspot Client to connect to the user’s Workspot desktop, launch Microsoft Teams on your Workspot Desktop and make a video call or participate in a meeting.

Installing the Teams Application

If desired, install Microsoft Teams on a Workspot desktop or template as described below. Teams can be used with or without the Teams Plugin (Teams for VDI).

Pros and cons of the Teams Plugin:

• Pros: Higher audio and video quality and more consistent performance, especially with poor Internet connections or long latencies between the Client and desktop.

• Cons: Some additional setup is required. Not all features are available.

Note: The Microsoft Teams for VDI section gives additional installation and configuration steps for when you also use the Teams plugin.

Installing Teams on a Draft-Mode Template

Follow these steps to install the Teams Machine-Wide Installer, which is the recommended method for Workspot templates:

• Download Microsoft’s teamsbootstrapper.exe from Upgrade to new Teams for Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) .

• Follow Microsoft’s instructions in Option 1A: Download and install new Teams for a single computer.

• Teams will be available to all users of desktops imaged from the template.

• Publish the template and update the target desktop pools to use the new template.

  • See Using Workspot Templates and Control: Applying Updated Templates to Desktop Pools.

Installing Teams Offline via Intune, Configuration Manager, etc.

• Download Microsoft’s teamsbootstrapper.exe from Upgrade to new Teams for Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) .

• Follow Microsoft’s instructions in Option 1B: Download and install new Teams using an offline installer.

Installing Teams on a Single Desktop

To install Teams manually on a single desktop:

• Use the same procedure as for a template to install for all users of the desktop or

• Navigate to https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/microsoft-teams/download-app and install for the current user by following the prompts.

Optional: Disabling Automatic Teams Updates

Some customers prefer disabling automatic Teams updates and choosing when to perform updates themselves. In the past, new releases of Teams sometimes interfered with Teams Plugin functionality. To allow customers to avoid issues following automatic updates, newer versions of Teams provide a “disableAutoUpdate” registry key for this:

• Location: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Teams

• Name: disableAutoUpdate

• Type: DWORD

• Value: 1

Microsoft Teams for VDI

Microsoft has released a version of Teams called New Teams for VDI. This solution is compatible with the Workspot Windows Client.

Teams on VDI is supported when both the local and Cloud (Workspot) endpoints are running Windows, and the Teams Client Plug-in is installed on the Client-side device. Teams on VDI offloads audio/video processing onto the Client and uses the Cloud desktop for all other tasks. Teams runs in its standard, non-VDI mode if the requirements of Teams on VDI mode aren't met.

Requirements for Teams for VDI Acceleration

Client-Side Requirements

• Workspot Windows Client 4.0 and above.

• Remote Desktop 1.2.5704 or above (used for Teams Plugin).

Workspot Desktop VM Requirements

• Supported version of Windows 10 or 11.

• New Teams August 2024 (24193.1805.3040.8975) build or above.

• WebRTC 1.54.2408.19001 or above. (Microsoft’s new SlimCore protocol is not yet supported.)

Limitations 

Microsoft Teams on VDI has limited functionality compared to standard Microsoft Teams. See Microsoft’s Features not Supported in Teams VDI for an up-to-date list of limitations.

In addition, the following features are not available:

• Background blur

• Screen share in Window sharing mode (Screen share in Desktop mode works)

• Whiteboard

• Give Control

Installing Microsoft Teams on VDI on a Workspot Template or Desktop

See Using Workspot Templates for general information about Workspot templates.

See Microsoft’s Upgrade to new Teams for Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) for general information about Microsoft Teams on VDI.

Initial Steps (for Templates and Desktops)

1. Sign into the desktop or draft-mode template you wish to use.

2. Install Teams if you haven’t done so already.

3. Download WorkspotTeamsRemoteHostInstall.bat from https://download.workspot.com. You will see multiple browser warnings because this is a .bat file.

4. Launch a CMD window in Administrator mode.

4. Run “TeamsRemoteHostInstallAddonsForWorkspot.bat” and follow the prompts on the application installers and the CMD window. This will:

   • Download and install the Visual Studio C++ runtime package.

   • Download and install the Remote Desktop WebRTC Redirector Service.

     • If the Remote Desktop WebRTC Redirector Service is already installed, it will be uninstalled and you must reboot and run “TeamsRemoteHostInstallAddonsForWorkspot.bat” again.

   • Set the Teams IsWVDEnvironment registry key, enabling Teams for VDI.

   • Prompt for reboot.

The Teams Client Plugin/Teams for VDI must be configured in Workspot Control:

1. Disable “Install Teams Client Plug-in” on the “Users > Group” page. As of Control 18.6 and 18.7, this still downloads the Classic Teams Plugin, which is the wrong version.

2. Set “Enable Teams Client Plug-in” to “Yes” in the Security Policy assigned to the users’ Group. (We want to use the Plugin but we don’t want to download the old one.)

Configuration on the Workspot Client Devices

Install Microsoft Remote Desktop Client

1. The Teams for VDI Plugin is not currently downloaded automatically by the Workspot Windows Client. It is included with the Microsoft Remote Desktop Client.

   1. On the Client device, download the current MSI version of the Remote Desktop Client from Microsoft (version 1.2.5704 or above).

2. Install the Client, choosing “Install just for you” if possible.

3. If you launch Remote Desktop, you will see a “Let’s get started” procedure. For our purposes, you can ignore this and close Remote Desktop.

Set WebRTC Registry Settings

1. Set the following WebRTC Redirector registry entries (which you can do by running the settings in the WebRTCredirectorRegSettings ZIP file or by entering the registry values by other means).

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Default\AddIns\WebRTC Redirector]
"SettingsEnabled"=dword:00000001
"EnableSurfaceConsumerScreenshare"=dword:00000000
"EnableSessionDesktopAppshare"=dword:00000000

3. Check that the Client’s “Settings > RDP menu has these boxes selected:

   • Use local headset/speaker

   • Use microphone

   • Use webcam.

   • Use Microsoft Teams.

Verify Operation

• Launch a Workspot Desktop with Microsoft Teams on VDI installed.

• On the Workspot Desktop, launch Teams.

• In Teams, go to your profile (indicated by the face icon), then “About > Version.” The top of the screen should show a version number that ends with “AVD Media Optimized.”

  • This shows that Teams is optimized using WebRTC. (The new SlimCore protocol is not yet supported.)

• In Teams, go to “Settings > Devices.” You should see a preview window of the local system's Webcam, and an audio test should show that your microphone and speakers/headset are connected to your Workspot desktop.

Troubleshooting

General

Exiting and restarting both the Workspot Client and Teams on the Workspot Desktop will resolve many issues, especially after a recent installation.

Teams Does Not Report “AVD Media Optimized”

1. Check that “Use Microsoft Teams,” is set in the Workspot Client.

2. Check that “Allow Teams Plugin” is enabled in the Security Policy assigned to the end-user’s Group.

3. If you have completed all the steps in Installing Microsoft Teams on VDI, above, restart Teams and the Workspot Client. If that doesn’t work:

Check the registry key “\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Default\AddIns\RdcTeamsAddIn” should be set to the path to MsRdcWebRTCAddin.dll, which is usually:

• Installed for current user: “C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Apps\Remote Desktop\MsRdcWebRTCAddIn.dll.”

  • If this is correct, check that the .dll file is present in that location.

• Installed for all users: “C:\Program Files\Remote Desktop\MsRdcWebRTCAddIn.dll,” or “C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Apps\Remote Desktop\MsRdcWebRTCAddIn.dll.”

  • If one of these locations is listed, check that the .dll file is present in that location

• Installed for Old Teams by Workspot Client: "Name"="C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Programs\WorkspotWebRTCAddIn\MsRdcWebRTCAddIn.dll"

  • This will not work with the new Teams on VDI. It should have been updated with the Installing Microsoft Teams on VDI procedure, above.

  • Check that “Install Teams Client Plugin” is disabled in Workspot Control as described in Configuration in Workspot Control, above.

  • Repeat the procedure in  Installing Microsoft Teams on VDI procedure, above.

  • If that doesn’t work, contact Support.

Webcam not working with Teams Video

Symptom: The Webcam on a Windows 10 Client device produces no video (or a black screen) even when enabled in a Teams video call.

• Check that “Use webcam” is enabled on the Workspot Client.

• Check that the selected Webcam is not covered.

• There is a known bug where the remote Windows desktop does not install the appropriate Webcam drivers. Microsoft has provided the following workaround, to be installed on your Windows 10 Client

  • Go to the Windows 10 device running the Workspot Windows Client.

  • In the Search bar, type “CMD”.

  • Windows will offer you the “Command Prompt” app with several options. Click on “Run as administrator.”

• In the command window, enter this command exactly as-is, all on one line (with no extraneous line breaks or spaces):

rundll32.exe streamci,StreamingDeviceSetup {97ebaacc-95bd-11d0-a3ea-00a0c9223196},{53172480-4791-11D0-A5D6-28DB04C10000},{53172480-4791-11D0-A5D6-28DB04C10000}

• If Teams is open on the Workspot desktop, quit Teams.

• Launch Teams on the Workspot desktop.

• Test the Webcam functionality. In Teams, go to “Settings > Devices” and scroll down to “Camera.” You should see a preview window showing video from the Client system’s Webcam.