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Install the Auto-Answer App for Microsoft Teams

How to install and configure the AI-powered Auto-Answer App for Microsoft Teams.

Loren Alldrin avatar
Written by Loren Alldrin
Updated this week

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Tags | AI | Microsoft Teams | Integrations | Auto-Answer |

Applies to: Enterprise

ADMIN PRIVILEGES REQUIRED

This documentation is for Stack Overflow for Teams Enterprise. Free, Basic, and Business users can access their documentation here. Find your plan.

Overview

The Stack Overflow for Teams Enterprise (SOE) Auto-Answer App for Microsoft Teams enhances the original Microsoft Teams app with two additional features. The Thread Summary feature collects data from a thread in MS Teams and can post it as a new question on your site. The Auto Answer feature automatically searches your SOE site and returns results in a specified channel (when prompted). You can learn more about using the Auto-Answer App in the Auto-Answer App for Microsoft Teams User Guide.

NOTE: You must install the SOE Microsoft Teams integration and configure the MS Teams bot before installing the Auto-Answer App. If you haven't installed the Microsoft Teams integration, follow the instructions in the Configure Microsoft Teams Integration article.

Installing the Auto-Answer App for Microsoft Teams requires first granting the MS Teams bot access to the Microsoft Graph APIs. This initial step is required for all functionality, and once completed, will enable Thread Summary immediately in all places where your existing MS Teams app is working.

To enable the Auto Answer function, you'll need to take additional steps to add the bot to specific channels and then register those channels. The Auto Answer function will then operate within those registered channels.

To update your Auto-Answer App for MS Teams to the latest version, see the Update the Auto-Answer app section below.

Grant your existing Microsoft Teams bot access to Microsoft Graph APIs​

  1. Log into the Microsoft Azure Entra tenant that has your existing bot. Find the bot under App Registrations by its name and/or bot ID.

  2. Expand the Manage section, then click API Permissions.

  3. Under Configured permissions, click + Add a permission.

  4. In the opened blade, choose Microsoft Graph, then Application Permissions.

  5. Grant the following permissions. You can use the search bar to find the permissions quickly:

    • Channel.ReadBasic.All

    • Team.ReadBasic.All

    • ChannelMessage.Read.All

  6. Click Grant admin consent.

Install the app in your chosen Auto-Answer channel​

NOTE: If you've already installed and added the Microsoft Teams app to a channel, skip down to the "Register your Auto-Answer channel on SOE" section below.

  1. In Microsoft Teams, go to the channel where you want to add the Auto-Answer App.

  2. Click [+] on the top bar and add the Stack Overflow Enterprise app.

Register your Auto-Answer channel on SOE​

  1. In SOE, go to the Microsoft Teams Auto-Answer Feature by clicking Admin Settings then Microsoft Teams Auto-Answer under the INTEGRATION AND APPS heading.

  2. Use one of the following methods to register your channel.

    • Channel Link Use a share link from your Microsoft Team. To get the share link, go to your Microsoft Team and click the three dots button in the upper-right corner. Click Copy Link to Channel, then paste that link into the Channel Link field in SOE.

    • Team Choose your Microsoft Team from the pull-down menu.

  3. In the "Step 4" section, you can add tags to focus Auto-Answer App searches. The app will only return content that has at least one of the tags listed. Type into the Tags box to search for and add up to three tags that already exist on your SOE site.

  4. Click Register to complete the configuration process.

The newly registered channel will appear in a list at the bottom of the page, along with its tags (if any). To remove a registered channel, click its Delete link.

NOTE: You can't change a registered channel (for example: to add or remove tags). Instead, you'll need to delete and re-register the channel.

After you successfully register a channel, you should start seeing responses immediately as you interact with it in MS Teams.

For a quick overview of what channels the MS Teams Auto-Answer bot will work with, watch this video.

Update the Auto-Answer app

As Stack Overflow continues to improve the Auto-Answer app for MS Teams, you may need to reinstall it to access the latest features. Follow the instructions below to reinstall and update your Auto-Answer app for MS Teams.

NOTE: To update the Auto-Answer for MS Teams app, you must be an administrator for both SOE and MS Teams.

  1. Go to your MS Teams admin page at https://admin.teams.microsoft.com/policies/manage-apps and delete the Stack Overflow for Enterprise app.

  2. In SOE, click Admin settings then Microsoft Teams under the "INTEGRATIONS AND APPS" heading.

  3. Under the "Upgrade or fix your MS Teams app" heading, click the app manifest to download the app manifest.

  4. In MS Teams, click Actions in the upper-hand corner of the page, then +Upload new App.

  5. Locate and upload the app manifest .zip file.

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