New Module Includes Skype for Business Online Connector
In July 2020, the Teams development group started the process of removing the dependency on the Skype for Business Online PowerShell connector to manage Teams policies through PowerShell. At the time, Teams introduced a preview version of the MicrosoftTeams module (1.1.3-preview) which included the New-CsOnlineSession cmdlet needed to create a connection to the Skype for Business Online endpoint and download the other Skype for Business Online cmdlets.
Update March 6, 2021: Microsoft has updated the Teams PowerShell module to V2.0. In general, it’s best to use the latest version of a module but test it first!
Upgrade to Teams PowerShell Module 1.1.6
On September 14, Microsoft shipped version 1.1.6 of the MicrosoftTeams module. This is a full-blown production-quality release that includes New-CsOnlineSession. It’s recommended that you should download and use this module for PowerShell activity against Teams and Skype for Business Online.
To upgrade a workstation from a previous version of the MicrosoftTeams module, run the Update-Module cmdlet. For example:
Update-Module MicrosoftTeams -Force -Scope AllUsers
Once the new module is installed, you can connect to the Teams and Skype for Business Online endpoints as normal:
Connect-MicrosoftTeams -Credential $O365Cred $SfbSession = New-CsOnlineSession -Credential $O365Cred Import-PSSession $SfbSession
In this example, the $O365Cred variable contains credentials prepopulated with a call to the Get-Credential cmdlet. After the session is established, you will be able to execute the cmdlets which used to be in the Skype for Business Online connector to manage Teams policies. For instance, you can call Get-CsTeamsMeetingPolicy to work with Teams meeting policies.
No Enable-CsOnlineSessionForReconnection
A small problem exists in that 1.1.6 does not include the Enable-CsOnlineSessionForReconnection cmdlet, which is used to maintain a connection to the Skype for Business Online endpoint. This is not an issue for short sessions where you connect, do some stuff, and terminate. It is if you want to leave a session open for hours. I am sure that Microsoft will update the module quickly to reintroduce the cmdlet, but in the interim you can use the workaround described here to get the cmdlet working as a script.
Alternatively, if you don’t remove the Skype for Business Online connector from your workstation, the Enable-CsOnlineSessionForReconnection cmdlet should be available after you connect to Skype for Business Online. I only noticed that the cmdlet was missing after removing the connector using Control Panel.
This is one of the small but important changes which happen all the time within Office 365. Stay up to date by subscribing to the Office 365 for IT Pros eBook. We’ll keep an eye on the important stuff for you!
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