import a class roster into teams

Question

I'm trying to set up a class notebook for a course in canvas with roughly 50 students enrolled. Is there a way to batch upload the roster to teams, or am I really supposed to individually add 50 student names? In the past, the students self enrolled by clicking on the class notebook link in canvas. Thanks!

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Answer 1

Dear @Matt Harding,

Thank you for your question, this is a very common scenario when setting up a class team with a larger roster.

From my research, Microsoft Teams does not support uploading a roster file (CSV or similar) directly into a Class team or Class Notebook through the Teams interface. You are not expected to manually add 50 students one by one if the roster is managed by an external system.

Roster management in Teams depends on which system owns the roster:

Canvas (or another SIS/LMS) If your institution has Canvas integrated with Microsoft Teams, the recommended and supported approach is for Canvas to manage enrollment automatically. When the integration is configured correctly, students can be synced or self‑enroll via the Canvas course, and they will appear in Teams without manual addition.

Microsoft 365 Groups / School Data Sync (SDS) If your IT team uses School Data Sync or pre‑created Microsoft 365 groups for classes, those groups can be used to populate the Class team in bulk.

If the class team was created manually in Teams and is not linked to Canvas or SDS, then Teams does not currently offer a built‑in roster upload option in the UI. In that case, enrollment must come from:

• The connected LMS (Canvas), or
• IT‑managed group automation (not individual file upload)

What you described earlier: students joining automatically by accessing the class through Canvas is the intended and preferred workflow. If that behavior is no longer occurring, it’s likely that:

• The Canvas-Teams integration is not currently active for this course, or
• The team was created outside of the LMS‑linked process

In that case, I recommend checking with your institution’s IT or LMS administrator to confirm that the Canvas-Teams integration is enabled and correctly associated with this course.

Also, if this is a feature you would like to see, I suggest keeping an eye on the Microsoft Teams blog or the Microsoft 365 Roadmap | Microsoft 365 for any updates on this feature. In the meantime, I apologize for the inconvenience this may cause. I also strongly recommend that you share your detailed experience and feedback directly with the Microsoft product team through their official channels. This is the most effective way to make your voice heard and influence future feature improvements and adjustments.  You can visit the Microsoft Teams · Community to submit a new idea or vote on existing one. Our product team is in charge of this site, and they constantly check customer reviews and feedback. The higher the number of votes, the more attention the team will pay to it. Many features are developed and improved based on customer feedback. As a moderator, I will also pass along your feedback to the appropriate team for further consideration. While we don't directly influence product design, user feedback is actively reviewed and helps prioritize future development. If you’re unable to submit feedback yourself, please feel free to reach out to me, and I’ll be happy to submit it on your behalf. 

Thank you for your kindness and understanding as Microsoft navigates these evolutionary product changes. Please get in touch if you need anything else. I wish you a great day.

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Answer 2

Class Notebook and Teams do not support uploading a roster file directly into a Class Notebook created from Canvas or Teams. Students must be added through the system that owns the roster:

1. For a Class Notebook created directly with the Class Notebook Wizard (not via LMS or Teams), students can be added in bulk only by typing or pasting their names, group names, or email addresses, separated by semicolons, in the Add students step of the wizard. This allows adding many students at once without selecting them individually.
2. If the Class Notebook is created in Microsoft Teams, student membership is controlled by the team roster. Students must be added to the team (for example, via your school’s SIS/rostering or by adding them in Teams), not directly in the notebook.
3. If the Class Notebook is created via the Microsoft 365 LTI app in an LMS such as Canvas, student enrollment is controlled by the LMS course. In that case, students must be added/managed in Canvas; they cannot be added or removed from the Class Notebook Wizard online.

So for a Canvas-connected Class Notebook, manage the roster in Canvas. For a standalone Class Notebook, paste all student emails at once (semicolon-separated) into the wizard instead of adding each student one by one.

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References:

• Connect a Class Notebook to Canvas
• Add students to a Class Notebook in OneNote
• Use Class Notebook in Teams
• Use OneNote Class Notebook in Teams
• OneNote Class Notebook: A teacher's all-in-one notebook for students