How to Share Microsoft Teams Whiteboard with Meeting Participants

Microsoft Teams lets you open a shared Microsoft Whiteboard canvas during a meeting so participants can draw, type and add notes together. This guide explains how to share the board, confirm that others can see and edit it, and what to check when the option is missing or participants are stuck in view-only mode.

Before you start

Whiteboard in Teams is a cloud service, not a local drawing tool. The board is created and stored in your organization's Microsoft 365 environment, so an internet connection is required and sign-in matters. Where the board is saved, how long it is kept and who can open it later are set by your organization, so confirm these details with your IT admin instead of assuming them.

• A work or school Microsoft 365 account with Whiteboard enabled. Admins can turn Whiteboard off, and personal Teams accounts may not offer the same option.
• An up-to-date Teams desktop app or a supported browser for Teams on the web. The layout differs between classic Teams and new Teams, so button positions may not match older screenshots.
• Presenter rights in the meeting. If the organizer limited who can present, attendees cannot share content until they are made presenters.
• Awareness of who is attending. Guests, external users and anonymous participants may get limited or view-only access depending on your organization's settings.
• A desktop or browser for starting the board. Mobile apps may support viewing or limited interaction; check your version before relying on a phone or tablet.

Step-by-step instructions

The steps below apply to a scheduled or ad-hoc Teams meeting on desktop or web. Labels can vary slightly between versions; if a step looks different, look for the closest equivalent in the meeting controls.

• Join the meeting from the Teams desktop app or Teams on the web.
• Select Share in the meeting controls. In some versions it appears as a share content icon instead of a text label.
• In the sharing options, choose Microsoft Whiteboard. If it is not listed, see the problems section below before trying other workarounds.
• Wait for the board to load. Once it opens, it appears on the meeting stage for everyone who has access.
• Review the board settings. Depending on your version, a settings option on the board controls whether other participants can edit or only view. Turn editing on if you want people to contribute.
• Use the available tools, such as pen, text, sticky notes and templates, to work with participants. The exact toolset depends on your Whiteboard version.
• When finished, select Stop sharing or Stop presenting. This removes the board from the stage but does not delete it, so the step is reversible and you can share the same board again.

If you want the board ready before the meeting begins, many Teams versions let you add Whiteboard as a tab in the meeting chat. Participants can then open it from the chat even when it is not being shared on stage.

Sharing a physical whiteboard instead

If you are writing on a real whiteboard in the room, Teams may offer a content-from-camera option in the same share menu, where available. This works differently from Microsoft Whiteboard: it uses your camera, so Teams needs camera permission, and the selected camera must be the one pointed at the board. Even lighting without glare, a stable camera position and enough resolution make handwriting easier to read. Availability depends on your Teams version and organization settings.

Check the output

• Ask one participant to confirm they can see the board and add a mark. If guests or external users are attending, ask one of them too, since their access can differ from internal colleagues.
• After the meeting, open the meeting chat. The board usually stays available there as a tab or shared item, and it may also appear in your list of boards in the Whiteboard app.
• If you need a copy outside Teams, check the board's menu for an export option. Available formats and image quality depend on your version, so open the exported file to make sure the content is complete and readable.
• If you shared a physical whiteboard through the camera, remember that legibility depends on the camera's resolution and frame rate, the lighting and the participants' connection quality, so ask someone to confirm they can read it.

Common problems and next steps

Microsoft Whiteboard is missing from the share menu. The most common causes are that Whiteboard is disabled by your admin, you are not a presenter, you are using a personal account, or your Teams client is outdated. Update Teams, try Teams on the web, and ask the organizer to make you a presenter. If the option still does not appear, contact your IT admin to confirm whether Whiteboard is enabled for your account.

Participants can see the board but cannot draw. Check the board settings to make sure editing is allowed for others. If only certain people are affected, they may be guests, external users or anonymous participants restricted by organization policy, or they may be using a client with limited Whiteboard support. Ask them to join from the desktop app or a supported browser and to sign in with an account that has access.

The board stays blank or does not load. Because Whiteboard depends on a cloud service, network restrictions, a firewall or a temporary service issue can block it. Ask affected users to reload, sign out and back in, or switch to Teams on the web. If it fails for everyone in your organization, report it to IT.

You cannot find the board after the meeting. Look in the meeting chat first, then in the Whiteboard app's list of boards. Ownership and storage location depend on your organization's setup, so if the person who started the board is unavailable or has left, ask IT how to recover it.

Treat a shared board like any other shared document. Meeting participants may keep access after the session ends, so avoid adding sensitive information unless you have confirmed with your admin who can open the board and how long it is retained.