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Quickstart

Get started with Teams SDK quickly using the Teams Developer CLI.

Set up a new project​

Prerequisites​

Instructions​

Install the Teams Developer CLI​

Install teams globally:

npm install -g @microsoft/teams.cli
teams --version
info

The Teams Developer CLI is the command-line tool for scaffolding, registering, and managing Teams apps.

Creating Your First Agent​

Let's begin by creating a simple echo agent that responds to messages. Run:

teams project new csharp quote-agent --template echo

This command:

  1. Creates a new directory called QuoteAgent.
  2. Bootstraps the echo agent template files into your project directory.

The echo template creates a basic agent that repeats back any message it receives - perfect for learning the fundamentals.

Running your agent​

  1. Navigate to your new agent's directory:
cd QuoteAgent/QuoteAgent
  1. Install the dependencies:
dotnet restore
  1. Start the development server:
dotnet run
  1. In the console, you should see a similar output:
info: Microsoft.Hosting.Lifetime[14]
      Now listening on: http://localhost:3978
info: Microsoft.Hosting.Lifetime[0]
      Application started. Press Ctrl+C to shut down.

The HTTP server is now listening on port 3978. To test your agent locally without sideloading it into Teams, use the Microsoft 365 Agents Playground.

The playground sends unauthenticated requests, and SDK 2.1 rejects them by default. For local testing, enable DangerouslyAllowUnauthenticatedRequests in your launch settings:

Properties/launchSettings.json
{
  "profiles": {
    "https": {
      "environmentVariables": {
        "AzureAd__DangerouslyAllowUnauthenticatedRequests": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}
warning

Only use DangerouslyAllowUnauthenticatedRequests for local development — never in production, as it disables inbound request authentication.

Install the playground globally:

npm install -g @microsoft/m365agentsplayground

Then, with your agent still running, open a second terminal and launch the playground pointed at your agent:

agentsplayground -e http://localhost:3978/api/messages -c emulator

The playground opens at http://localhost:56150. Send a message in the compose box and your agent's reply renders inline.

Microsoft 365 Agents Playground showing a user message 'hello!' and an agent reply 'you said "hello!"'.

Add to an Existing Project​

If you already have a project and want to add Teams support, install the SDK directly:

dotnet add package Microsoft.Teams.Apps

// Then register the Teams services on your existing app.

using Microsoft.Teams.Apps;

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);
builder.Services.AddTeamsBotApplication();
var app = builder.Build();

// Maps POST /api/messages onto your existing ASP.NET Core app
TeamsBotApplication teams = app.UseTeamsBotApplication();

teams.OnMessage(async (context, cancellationToken) =>
{
    await context.SendAsync($"you said: {context.Activity.Text}", cancellationToken);
});

app.Run();

app.UseTeamsBotApplication() registers the Teams endpoint onto your existing ASP.NET Core app.

Next steps​

After creating and running your first agent, read about the code basics to better understand its components and structure.

Otherwise, if you want to run your agent in Teams, you can check out the Running in Teams guide.

Resources​