In this article, we are going to talk about what Share Tray is in Microsoft Teams, how to use it during meetings and what you can use it for.
Over the past few years, video conferencing has evolved to go beyond simply connecting two or people via video. In this day and age and especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, people and companies have started using video conferencing for almost office-like collaboration purposes and Microsoft Teams is one of the leading services that offers a complete package.
The collaboration that Microsoft offers has been as capable as Zoom with features like team building, holding meetings, groups and direct messages, virtual backgrounds, noise cancellation, and more. Among other important tools that set it apart, Share Tray in Microsoft Teams might be one of those utilities that goes unnoticed, but instead becomes a lifesaver if you take a closer look.
What is Share Tray in Microsoft Teams?
During a meeting or class, you may want to show others something you might have on your computer or screen. Share Tray is used to share it with others in meetings in Microsoft Teams and this Share Tray will appear differently for the type of content you want to share with others.
Also read: How to Share Screen in Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams offers Share Tray on its mobile and computer apps, thus allowing you to share content from your screen to someone else’s screen as well as files that you want to show others.
What Can Be Shared in the Share Tray?
The Share Tray lets you share content using the Teams app but its functionality is different between the desktop client and the mobile app of the collaborative service.
On Android and iOS Phones / Cellphones
To differentiate between phone and PC, the Share Tray in Teams on iOS and Android will have a dedicated Live video option that casts everything from your phone’s main camera and shares it with everyone in the meeting. Other than that, all options remain the same as those in the Teams desktop client.
On Desktop PC
Teams desktop users are missing out on the live video sharing feature but the service offers a Whiteboard option in the Share Tray. The whiteboard can be used interchangeably to create physical presentations with the added ability to collaborate with other members in real time.
Also read: How to Use the Whiteboard in Microsoft Teams
Here’s how to use the Microsoft Teams Share Tray on Android / iOS PCs and cellphones. What you need to remember is that the Share Tray can only be accessed when you are inside the meeting screen with other participants.
How to Use Microsoft Teams Share Tray on Desktop PC
To use the Share Tray on your desktop PC, join a meeting in Microsoft Teams, then click the icon Share indicated by the up arrow icon in the box from the meeting controls at the top.
You can also access the Share Tray in Teams using the following keyboard shortcuts on macOS and Windows:
macOS: Command + Shift + Space
Windows: Ctrl + Shift + Space
You will see a new popup screen appear at the bottom of your meeting screen. This is the Share Tray and this section will show you all the content options available on your computer to share with others.
You can choose what content you want to share with others just by clicking on it. If you want to share a Powerpoint presentation that is not already in the Teams library, you can click on the ‘Browse‘, then find, and select a presentation file to share with others. Apart from sharing your screen or presentation, you can also collaborate using Microsoft Whiteboard or Freehand.
How to Use Microsoft Teams Share Tray on Android / iOS Phones
Despite having similar functionality, the Share Tray is not directly accessible via the meeting screen in the Teams mobile app on iOS or Android. To pull up the Share Tray in the Teams mobile app, join the meeting, then tap 3-dot icon on the meeting screen.
This will bring out the many options available to you in the meeting. From here, tap on the option ‘Share‘ from the popup menu.
Another popup menu will now appear on the screen, offering you different options to share with others in the meeting. Tap on any of the options as described above to share the content that you want to show others.
Share Tray in Microsoft Teams can extract any content that you have open on the desktop and share it with other members in the meeting. If you want to share content other than the current screen, presentation, or whiteboard, there is one more way to add content to the Share Tray.
How to add more content to the Share Tray
As described in This Microsoft Answers page, you can add more content to your Share Tray by opening a new app or file on your desktop. Teams will detect any open apps, files or items in the taskbar, then display them as additional content for you to share using the Share Tray.
To make sure you can add more content to a Teams meeting, make sure the shareable content is open on the taskbar before you join the meeting. After you open the file or application, click on the icon
Share in the meeting screen, and select app or file which will now be visible in the Share Tray.
How to share your computer audio in a Teams meeting
Apart from sharing content from your screen with your teammates, Teams also allows you to stream audio from your computer to meeting participants. This way, others can also listen to your content while you are playing an audio or video clip.
To share computer audio in a meeting, click the Share icon from the meeting controls at the top and then toggle the ‘Include computer sound’ switch from the Share Tray at the bottom of the meeting screen. All sounds from your computer will now be streamed to other members’ speakers for listening.
How to stop sharing in Teams
At any point during the meeting, you can stop sharing content with others. You can do this by clicking on the Share icon within the meeting screen which will now be marked with a ‘x‘, not the up arrow. You can click the icon Share and the content that you share with others will stop appearing in the meeting and will no longer be accessible to others in the meeting.
That’s the tutorial using Share Tray in Microsoft Teams. Hopefully this article is useful for you, don’t forget to share it with your friends too. Thank you for your visit.
