Fix: Microsoft Teams Images, GIFs and Videos Not Showing, Loading or Playing

Microsoft Teams is one of the popular and proprietary business communication platforms from Microsoft itself as a part of the Microsoft 365 family. Microsoft Teams basically offers video calls, chat systems, meetings, files, tasks, calendars, and more. It also includes a media player for opening or playing media files. However, it seems that plenty of users are facing issues with Microsoft Teams Images, GIFs and Videos Not Showing, Loading or Playing.

Well, apart from the Microsoft Teams’ features, the virtual meeting tools & cloud-based file sharing option allows users to share and open media files like images, GIFs, or videos quite easily via the app integration. But the chances are high that somehow Microsoft Teams software isn’t working properly due to software glitches or app cache data issues. Whereas the images, GIFs, and videos not showing, loading, or playing issues are one of them.

Fix: Microsoft Teams Images, GIFs and Videos Not Showing, Loading or Playing

Here we’ve shared a couple of possible workarounds for you that should be going to help a lot. Make sure to follow all the methods one by one until the problem gets fixed. Now, without wasting any more time, let’s jump into it.

1. Check your Internet Connection

It’s highly recommended to check the internet connection at your end because a poor or unstable network can easily trigger multiple issues whatsoever. You should always test your network signal and speed any reliable net speed checker service like Fast.com or Ookla speed test. If in case, there is an issue with your internet connection then make sure to contact your ISP for further technical help.

2. Check Microsoft Teams Server Status

You should also check out the official Microsoft Teams Server Status webpage to ensure that everything is running fine. Sometimes issues with the server connectivity can trigger multiple conflicts to join the server and the media files playback-related issues may appear a lot. If in case, there is a server downtime or outage then make sure to wait for a couple of hours and try again. You can also visit the third-party Down Detector webpage to check it.

At the time of writing this article, there are some issues with the Microsoft Teams server in some regions that have been reported by the users on Down Detector. If everything works fine then head over to the next method.

3. Sign Out of Microsoft Teams and Sign Back In

Sometimes the Microsoft Teams images and videos not showing, loading, or playing due to software glitches or connectivity errors, etc. According to multiple reports, it seems that refreshing the Microsoft Teams account manually by signing out of the account and signing back into the account may help in most cases. To do that:

For Windows/macOS:

• Open Microsoft Teams > Click on your profile located on the top-right side.
• Click on the Sign Out button > Once you’re logged out of your account, close Microsoft Teams.
• Now, open Teams again > Log into your Teams account again to check for the issue.

For Android/iOS:

• Go to your Microsoft Teams profile on the top-left corner.
• Now, select Settings > Tap on Sign out then select OK.
• Make sure to restart your Microsoft Teams client to apply changes.
• Finally, log into your Microsoft Teams account once again to check for the issue.

4. Reboot the Microsoft Teams app

Sometimes issues with the Microsoft Teams application on the computer or mobile device may appear due to the failure to process sent or received data something as images and videos. It’s recommended to restart the Teams client to refresh any kind of temporary glitch whatsoever. To do that:

For Windows:

• Open the Windows tray on the Taskbar > Go to the Microsoft Teams icon.
• Then, right-click on it > Select Exit to close it.
• Next, press the Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys to open Task Manager.
• Here you’ll need to go to the Processes tab > Search for Microsoft Teams from the list.
• Click on the task and select End Task to close it from running in the background.

For Mac:

• Click on the Microsoft Teams option from the top Menu Bar.
• Select Quit Microsoft Teams from the drop-down menu.
• Next, press the Command+Option+Escape keys to open up the Force Quit Applications window.
• Then click on the Microsoft Teams icon and select Force Quit.

For Android/iOS:

• Just remove the Microsoft Teams app from your Recent Apps or App Switcher.
• Then long-press on the Microsoft Teams app icon.
• Tap on App info > Select Force Stop.
• Finally, launch Microsoft Teams again.

While iOS users will have to close the Microsoft Teams app by swiping up from the bottom-middle screen. Once you’re on the home screen page, swipe up again from the bottom-middle screen and hold at half of the screen to open the Recent Apps or App Switcher interface. Just swipe up the Microsoft Teams app card from the list to individually close it.

5. Update the Microsoft Teams app

Outdated software or application on the device mostly triggers multiple issues with the program launching or running properly. You should manually check for the latest update and install it (if any). To do this:

For Windows/Mac:

As the user interface and options are the same on the Microsoft Teams app for both Windows and Mac computers, you can follow the steps below for the same devices.

• Launch the Microsoft Teams app > Click on the three-dots menu icon on the top right side.
• Now, select Check for updates in the drop-down menu.
• Microsoft Teams interface will open a window again then it’ll check for the latest updates automatically.
• If the update is available, you can choose to download it.

For Android/iOS:

• Open the Google Play Store on Android or Apple App Store on iOS.
• Search for the Microsoft Teams app and open the app page.
• Now, tap on the Update button (if available).
• The application will be updated to the latest version automatically.

Note: If in case, the Update option isn’t available that means there is no latest version arrived yet.

6. Clear the Microsoft Teams app Cache and Data

It seems that the Microsoft Teams app does have some issues with the temporary cache data that need to be fixed manually by following the steps below.

For Windows:

• Make sure to close the Microsoft Teams app properly.
• Next, press the Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys to open Task Manager > Click on Processes > Click on Microsoft Teams from the list > Select End Task to close from background running.
• Then press the Windows+R keys to open up the Run dialogue box.
• Copy and paste %appdata%/Microsoft then hit Enter to open the Microsoft AppData folder.
• Click on the Teams folder to select it > Tap on the Delete key to remove it.
• Finally, open Microsoft Teams, and check for the issue again.

For Mac:

• Ensure that Microsoft Teams is fully closed.
• Next, press the Command+Shift+G keys and copy-paste the following path to open the Microsoft folder.

 ~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft

• Just select the Microsoft Teams folder and delete it.
• Once done, make sure to open the Keychain Access app through Launchpad.
• Now, delete the Microsoft Teams listing while login is selected in the left sidebar.
• Finally, open Microsoft Teams, and check for the issue again.

For Android:

• Open the Settings app on the device > Tap on Apps & Notifications.
• Select Microsoft Teams from the list of apps.
• Tap on Storage & Cache > Tap on Clear Cache.
• Now, tap on Clear Storage > Once done, open the Microsoft Teams app again to check for the issue.

For Web Version:

If you’re using the Microsoft Teams web version via Chrome or any other web browser then you can follow the steps below.

Note: Keep in mind that clearing cookies and site data will log out of your account from the website. So, make sure to keep the login credentials ready.

• Go to the Microsoft Teams web version here and log into your account.
• Click on the lock icon from the left side of the address bar.
• Now, click on the Clear cookies and site data… option.
• Once done, click on Remove in the bottom right corner.
• Press the Ctrl+F5 (Fn+F5) keys to forcefully refresh the Microsoft Teams webpage.
• Finally, log into your account, and check for the Microsoft Teams Images, GIFs and Videos Not Showing, Loading or Playing issue.

7. Disable Hardware Acceleration in Microsoft Teams

Heading over to the hardware acceleration option, the chances are high that the Microsoft Teams client isn’t running well due to any conflict. It’s better to disable the hardware acceleration option on the PC by following the steps below:

• Open Microsoft Teams > Go to the top-right corner and click on the three-dots icon.
• Now, select Settings > Go to the General tab.
• Make sure to Uncheck the Disable GPU hardware acceleration checkbox to disable it.
• Finally, reboot the Microsoft Teams app then try again.

8. Change Language Settings in Microsoft Teams

Sometimes issues with the default language settings in Microsoft Teams may trigger multiple issues whatsoever. You should change the language settings by following the steps below:

• Open Microsoft Teams > Go to the top-right corner and click on the three-dots icon.
• Select Settings > Under the General tab, scroll down to the Language section.
• Now, change the language to another one or English variant (i,e United Kingdom or United States).
• Click on Save and restart Microsoft Teams to complete the process.

9. Try Using Microsoft Stream to Upload Videos

You can also try using the Microsoft Streams method to upload videos that aren’t playing normally. Microsoft Stream is a video streaming service for Microsoft Teams and organizations that works like a charm and comes as a part of the Microsoft Office 365 package.

It’s suggested to use Microsoft Stream by directly opening through the Microsoft Teams web version. Once you’ve uploaded the video on Microsoft Stream, make sure to use the URL link or add a new Microsoft Stream tab to your Microsoft Teams channel.

10. Try Using the Web Version

It’s also worth mentioning to try using the Microsoft Teams website via the web browser from your respective device to cross-check if the media files are working fine or not. Sometimes a system glitch or app cache data issue can cause multiple errors with the desktop or mobile applications whatsoever.

• Just visit this official Microsoft Teams webpage and sign in to your valid account.
• If prompted, select Use Web Version Instead > You’re good to go.

11. Contact Microsoft Teams Support

If none of the methods worked for you then make sure to contact Microsoft Teams Support for further assistance. You can either follow the Microsoft Teams Twitter page and ask for support or visit the Microsoft Support page or visit the Microsoft 365 Forum for the same.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For further queries, you can comment below.