using the “upload custom apps” option for microsoft teams bots

Managing the “Upload custom apps” option in Microsoft Teams for specific users can be a bit intricate but is certainly feasible with the right approach.

Here’s a breakdown of the process, drawing from the latest information available (as of December 2023):

Step-by-Step Guide to Restricting Custom App Uploads in Teams

1. Access the Teams Admin Center: You need to be an administrator to perform these actions. Go to the Microsoft Teams admin center.
2. Review and Manage Apps: In the Teams Admin Center, you can interact with apps through the ‘Manage apps’ page. This allows you to block or enable apps and publish sets of apps to users through setup policies.
3. Create Custom App Permission Policies:
   • Navigate to ‘Teams apps’ and then ‘Permission policies’ in the admin center.
   • Choose ‘Add’ to create a new policy.
   • Provide a name and description for your policy.
   • Define your policy settings for Microsoft apps, Third-party apps, and Custom apps. You can choose to allow all, allow specific and block others, block specific and allow others, or block all.
   • For custom apps, select ‘Allow specific apps and block all others’ and add the apps you want to allow.
4. Assign Policies to Specific Users:
   • Once the custom policy is created, it needs to be assigned to individual users or groups.
   • Navigate to ‘Users’ > ‘Manage users’ in the admin center.
   • Search and select the user, then choose ‘Edit settings’.
   • Apply the custom app permission policy to the user.
5. Manage App Setup Policies:
   • These policies enable you to install and pin apps for users and control their ability to upload custom apps.
   • Navigate to ‘Teams apps’ > ‘Setup policies’.
   • You can edit the global policy or create custom policies. When creating or editing a policy, you can decide if users can upload custom apps.
6. Team-Specific Settings:
   • As a team owner, go to a team and select ‘Manage team’ > ‘Settings’.
   • Under ‘Member permissions’, you can select or clear the ‘Allow members to upload custom apps’ checkbox.
7. Monitor and Adjust:
   • Keep an eye on how these changes impact your Teams environment. Adjust policies as necessary.

Important Notes

• Custom app policies and settings enable you to tailor the app experience for specific users in your organization.
• You can customize or rebrand app properties for some apps to align with your organization’s branding.
• It’s essential to review and understand the apps in terms of client data, privacy, and permissions.
• Consider the consent settings in Azure Active Directory for app permissions.

By following these steps, you can effectively manage who can upload custom apps in your Microsoft Teams environment, ensuring that this capability is limited to specific users or groups according to your organizational needs.

For more detailed information and step-by-step guides, you can refer to the Microsoft Teams documentation on Managing apps in the Microsoft Teams admin center and Managing app permission policies in Microsoft Teams.