When opening Microsoft Teams, users sometimes see a black or white screen, which prevents them from doing any activities within the apps. Microsoft confirms this only happens on the desktop version; this bug does not affect online and mobile versions.
Teams is a very influential collaboration platform with many options packed together, used by 270 million monthly users for its availability of collaboration tools and user-friendly UI.
But just like any other program or software, Teams has some issues, and seeing a blank screen is one of them, which prevents you from sharing your screen.
Don’t worry. In this well-researched article, I will let you know why your Microsoft Teams displays a Black Screen and how you can fix this.
Tag along!
Why is Microsoft Teams Showing Black Screen?
You can see a black screen in MS Teams primarily when you share copyright content via Teams. Microsoft has a strict copyright policy; if you share your screen on Teams, it will display a black screen when you have copyright content on your screen.
But some other reasons cause this issue too. To know more about them, move on.
Microsoft Teams shows a black screen for the following reasons:
Corrupt File
I find people on different community forums who admitted that they face the black screen problem due to a corrupt file in the system folder.
High Resolution
Some people claim that higher resolution on your device can lead to the black screen problem.
Outdated Drivers
Outdated drivers are incompatible with other software and can lead to a black Microsoft Teams Screen while sharing.
Settings.json Error
Sometimes, a corrupted settings.json file creates an error, which leads us to face a Microsoft Teams black or blank screen case.
Camera Settings
Another possible reason for this issue could be your camera settings. If other applications use your device’s camera, you will see the black screen problem in Microsoft Teams app.
Cache file
Teams can probably show a black screen because of corrupted Microsoft Teams cache files stored on your device. You may have to fix or remove the corrupted cache data in this case.
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How to Fix Microsoft Teams Black Screen Issues When Screen Sharing?
While sharing, your computer can show a black or blank white screen in Teams. There are several methods you can try to fix the issue when your screen isn’t working. Updating drivers, tweaking settings, and changing the resolution to lower can solve screen sharing not working.
Here are the steps to fix Black Screen in Microsoft Teams:
1. Close and Restart Teams
The Task Manager app can be used to terminate programs and background processes related to the programs if they are running in your system.
When you exit Teams using the Task Manager and relaunch the desktop app, it fixes any bug or glitch causing the screen sharing feature to malfunction and shows an empty screen in the meeting when you are trying to stream.
You can try closing Microsoft Teams processes and relaunching the app to fix the issue of the Teams screen turning black.
Here are the processes to close and restart Teams:
- Sign out from your Teams account.
- Click using the right mouse button on the Taskbar and select Task Manager .
- Right-click on every Microsoft Teams program and process and click End task.
- Relaunch Teams.
When you relaunch the app, the app window will open. Check if the app window is still having a black screen.
If you are a Surface device user and often face this problem, make sure to use this process every time you dock or undock the device.
2. Update Your Drivers
Backdated drivers can cause numerous issues because of their incompatibility, including a black screen window while screen sharing on Teams. So, ensure your graphics drivers are updated to fix this issue.
Here are the stages of updating your drivers:
- Open Device Manager from Start Menu and select Display Adapters to expand the list.
- Right-click on the GPU and click on Update driver.
- Restart your device and check if the Black Screen is still there.
- Click using the right mouse button on the GPU and select Uninstall device if the problem still exists.
- Restart your computer again and open Microsoft Teams.
These steps should fix your issue if your driver got corrupted or backdated.
3. Launch Microsoft Teams meeting in Outlook
Try opening Teams launching Microsoft on the Outlook web and click the New Teams Meeting button to a new meeting window. Many users reported that it helps them to bypass the Black Screen problem if they launch Outlook on the web and open meetings from there. If your Teams work fine, cancel joining that meeting.
4. Remove the settings.json file
Deleting the settings.json file can fix the Black Screen problem for many users.
Here are the steps to remove the settings.json file:
- Open Run (Win+r) Window.
- Go to %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams.
- Find the settings.json file in the app folder.
- Delete it.
Many users have reported that removing the setting.json file helps them overcome the screen staying black issue. If the problem persists, move on to the following fix.
5. Set the Resolution to Lower
Higher resolution often causes a Black Screen when using Microsoft Teams on Windows. Lower your computer’s resolution and check if that works for your device to solve the issue that you’re experiencing.
Here are the processes to lower your device resolution:
- Go to Settings from the Start menu.
- Select System and click on Display.
- Use the drop-down menu to lower your resolution from Scale and Layout.
If you are still unable to share, maybe you are facing a copyright content issue. Microsoft Teams prevent sharing content that has a copyright. So make sure you are not sharing anything which has a copyright.
Check out the easiest way to enable equation editor in Microsoft Word.
6. Run The Program Compatibility Troubleshooting
When the software is incompatible with other programs, the program compatibility troubleshooting can detect and resolve the issue.
Here are the stages of running the program compatibility troubleshooting:
- Click using the right mouse button on the Microsoft Teams desktop icon and select Troubleshoot Compatibility.
- Wait for the Detecting Issues to be finished.
- Experiment with recommended settings.
- Select the Test the program option and check if this process resolves your issue.
If this fixes your problem, select the option and store this setting for your application. If screen sharing still isn’t working properly, continue with the steps below.
7. Disable Hardware Acceleration
You can have hardware acceleration permanently disabled after successfully launching the Microsoft Teams program to fix your black screen.
Here are the steps to disable hardware acceleration:
- Click on your photo in the top right corner of the Teams app.
- Go to Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Uncheck the checkbox next to GPU hardware acceleration on the GPU configuration screen to disable hardware acceleration.
- Close the Microsoft Teams application from Task Manager.
A significant number of users claimed that this process helps to fix the Black Screen.
8. Change Graphical Processor
Changing the graphical processor linked to the Microsoft Teams application can permanently resolve this problem. You can change the Graphical Processor by following the instructions below.
Here are the processes to change the graphical processor:
- Go to Start Menu and type Teams.
- Right-click on the Teams.
- Open the file location.
- Right-click on the Teams icon.
- Set Graphical Processor.
Following these steps appropriately can quickly solve the Black Screen problem.
But before that, go through our epic guide on do Microsoft points still work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is my Teams Meeting a black screen?
If you are facing a black screen while using Microsoft Teams on your Windows PC to share the screen with others, lower your device resolution and check if that helps. You can also close and relaunch the Teams to solve this issue.
Why I can’t see my video in Teams?
To use your device camera in Teams, you must ensure that other apps are not currently using your camera. Using an external camera also causes trouble; try unplugging it and plugging it back in.
How to leave Microsoft Teams?
To leave a Team in the Teams app, follow the steps. Open Teams and Login > Navigate to Teams options > Select your Team and Click on the Options Menu > Select Leave > Click Ok to leave the team.
A Final Thought
Microsoft Teams is a super efficient and helpful Application for collaborating with your teams. Facing the Black Screen issue can be frustrating, though you can quickly solve this issue by following the steps described in this article.
Whenever you face the Black Screen problem in Teams, try restarting your device. Restarting helps to eliminate the corrupted data stored in RAM and gives you a completely new environment to start over.
I hope you find this article engaging and valuable. Still have any additional queries, don’t hesitate to mention them in the comment below.
Signing Out!
