Users of Microsoft 365, Outlook, and Microsoft Teams are experiencing a return to normalcy following significant outages that impacted services globally. Early this morning, Microsoft reported that functionality for most affected services had been restored, although some issues with Outlook on the web were still being addressed. The company acknowledged ongoing problems, including mail delivery delays, and assured users that it was actively troubleshooting these issues.
The outages began around 8 AM ET yesterday, with thousands of reports surfacing by midday, as noted by outage tracking website Downdetector. Although a rise in reports was observed today, they remain significantly lower compared to the previous day.
Microsoft attributed the outages to a recent change they implemented, which has since been reversed. By midday yesterday, they had applied a fix to approximately 70% of the impacted environments, conducting manual restarts for the remaining machines. As of this morning, around 98% of affected systems were resolved, although the restoration process had been slower than anticipated. Microsoft expects to finalize the resolution soon.
Users are advised to check the Microsoft admin center for further updates, specifically referencing the issue identified as MO941162. It is expected that updates will follow later today.
Despite the restoration of most services, there are still some warnings for users. Outlook users may encounter difficulties accessing their mailboxes through various platforms, including Outlook on the web and desktop client, alongside potential delays in mail transport. Additionally, Teams users may face limitations in creating or updating virtual events, accessing calendars, or managing team communications.
As a positive note, Microsoft appears committed to resolving the remaining issues swiftly, and users can look forward to potential improvements in service soon. With the company actively monitoring the situation and providing regular updates, a complete return to functionality seems imminent.
In a broader sense, such incidents serve as important reminders of the reliance on these digital tools and the ongoing commitment to enhancing the resilience and reliability of cloud services.