Microsoft has stopped the automatic installation of the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on Windows devices for the time being. Microsoft 365 Message Center said on March 16, 2026, that the company had put the mandatory rollout on hold. It was supposed to be done by the end of last year.
This change has a direct impact on IT administrators and global system deployment plans. But it doesn't include customers in the European Economic Area, which is a big deal. Microsoft had planned to roll out the Copilot app to all Windows devices that could run Microsoft 365 desktop clients starting in December 2025. The goal was to make it easier to find and use AI features across all Microsoft products.
How to Install the Microsoft 365 Copilot App This automatic deployment would have added a new Copilot icon to the Windows Start menu. It would have been turned on by default, so users and administrators wouldn't have had to do anything. Microsoft has officially shut down this automated deployment pipeline.
The company hasn't given a clear technical reason for the pause or a clear date for when the automatic installations will start up again. Security teams and system administrators who keep an eye on software baseline configurations and unauthorized software installations will need to change their deployment plans. There won't be any problems or rollbacks for organizations that have already gotten the update. The temporary suspension only affects devices that haven't already downloaded the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on their own.
There won't be any visible changes on workstations where the software is already installed, and users can keep using their AI-powered productivity tools as usual. Manual deployment is still fully functional for IT departments that want to give their employees the Copilot experience. Using standard software management controls, administrators can skip the automatic pause.
Until the automated feature is officially restored, Microsoft suggests using Microsoft Intune or a similar endpoint management solution to push the app to company devices. Microsoft has turned off the automatic installation of the Microsoft 365 Copilot app for now. This change only affects Windows devices that use Microsoft 365 desktop apps, and it doesn't affect customers in the European Economic Area (EEA).
The service is not affected at all for devices that already had the app installed, and the app works just as it always has. In the meantime, administrators should use Microsoft Intune or other endpoint management tools as other ways to deploy. The reference ID MC1152323 keeps track of this service update.
System administrators should keep an eye on official Microsoft channels for future notices about enabling. Organizations should look over their policies for providing software to see if they need to do manual installations in the meantime to meet their operational needs., LinkedIn, and X for daily news about cybersecurity. Get in touch with us to have your stories featured.
