MC1189656 - Upcoming Change to Teams Desktop Client on Windows

Service

Microsoft Teams

Published

Nov 25, 2025

Tag

Major change
Updated message
Feature update
User impact
Admin impact

Summary

Microsoft Teams Desktop Client for Windows will introduce a new process, ms-teams_modulehost.exe, to handle calling features separately, improving performance and startup time. Rollout begins January 2026. Admins should allowlist the new process in security software and inform helpdesk staff; no user workflow changes expected.

More information

Updated November 25, 2025: We have updated the content below to provide additional information. Thank you for your feedback.

Introduction

We’re improving the performance and startup time of calling features in the Microsoft Teams Desktop Client for Windows. To achieve this, we’re introducing a new child process named ms-teams_modulehost.exe that will handle the calling stack separately from the main application process (ms-teams.exe). This change optimizes resource usage and enhances meeting experiences.

When this will happen:

Worldwide, GCC, GCC High, and DoD: Rollout will begin early January 2026 and complete by late January 2026.

Note: Timelines may shift due to year-end feature flag rollout freeze.

How this affects your organization:
  • Who is affected: All users running the Teams Desktop Client on Windows.
  • What will happen:
    • A new process (ms-teams_modulehost.exe) will appear in Task Manager under the main Teams process (ms-teams.exe).
    • This process is dedicated to calling features and improves performance.
    • No changes to user workflows or UI; however, admins should ensure endpoint and security software allow this new process.
What you can do to prepare:
  • Update endpoint management and security software to allowlist ms-teams_modulehost.exe alongside ms-teams.exe.
  • Communicate this change to helpdesk staff to avoid confusion during troubleshooting.
  • Update internal documentation if you reference Teams process names.
  • Make sure the same QoS settings applied to ms-teams.exe are also applied to ms-teams_modulehost.exe. Refer to this page for details: Implement Quality of Service (QoS) in Microsoft Teams
Compliance considerations:

No compliance considerations identified, review as appropriate for your organization.