Microsoft 365 Targeted release retirement: move to Standard, Deferred or Frontier

Microsoft is retiring Targeted release for Microsoft 365 services in January 2027, and from November 2026 admins can no longer add, remove or change Targeted release assignments (Message center post MC1490899). It is replaced by three audiences: Standard release (features at general availability, the default), Deferred release (eligible major features about 30 days after Standard), and the opt-in Frontier program for pre-release features. To prepare, record who is in Targeted release today, then set Standard or Deferred release, and Frontier if you want it, in the Microsoft 365 admin center.

Who this is for and what you will have

This guide is for Microsoft 365 admins and change managers who used Targeted release to see changes early, or who simply need to confirm what happens to their tenant. At the end you will have:

• A record of your current Targeted release configuration.
• A decision on Standard, Deferred and Frontier for your tenant and pilot groups.
• The settings configured, with security groups for exceptions.
• A plan for Message center triage under the new tags.

What changes and when

Because this article is published in November 2026, the Targeted release page may already be read-only in your tenant. The Standard, Deferred and Frontier settings are where you act now.

What's in scope

The change applies to Microsoft 365 services that delivered features through Targeted release: the Microsoft 365 admin center, Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, SharePoint Online, Outlook on the web, new Outlook for Windows and Office for the web. It doesn't change Microsoft 365 Apps update channels (Current Channel, Monthly Enterprise Channel and so on), Windows update channels or Microsoft 365 Insider programs. Existing services keep working normally; only feature timing changes.

Government clouds

For GCC, GCC High and DoD, Standard release remains the supported option after the retirement. Deferred release and Frontier aren't currently available in government clouds, so those tenants don't have an early or delayed option to configure.

The three release audiences

A user can be enrolled in Frontier and also be assigned to Standard or Deferred release. Frontier decides pre-GA access for eligible features; Standard or Deferred decides when everything else arrives at GA.

How Deferred release really works

Deferred release is narrower than it sounds, so check these points against your change process:

• It only delays features tagged in Message center as both Major update and Deferred feature. Everything else reaches Deferred users on the Standard schedule.
• The 30-day timer starts when the GA rollout to Standard users begins, not when it finishes.
• You can't defer individual features. Use per-feature admin controls where Microsoft provides them.
• Some features are deployed at tenant level and can apply to everyone at once, whatever the user's audience.
• Moving users from Standard to Deferred can make features they already have disappear until the Deferred date.
• Deferred release doesn't apply to Frontier features.

What Frontier involves

Frontier now covers non-AI features too, and Microsoft says a Copilot license isn't required to enroll users. Users only see Frontier features for products they're licensed for: Copilot Frontier features need a Copilot license, Teams Frontier features need a license that includes Teams. Before enrolling production users, read Microsoft's terms on the Frontier page: Frontier experiences are previews that may not have standard support or SLAs, aren't covered by the HIPAA Business Associate Agreement, and don't comply with ISO 27001, ISO 27002 or ISO 27018 requirements. Some may be paid or consume Copilot credits.

How to check whether you're affected

1. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center with Office Apps Admin, Security Admin or AI Admin. These are the roles Microsoft lists for release options.
2. Go to Settings > Org settings, open the Organization profile tab and select Release preferences.
3. Note which option is selected: Standard release, Targeted release for everyone or Targeted release for selected users. If it's selected users, record the user list.

If the page shows Standard release, Targeted release isn't in use and no immediate action is required, though the new audiences are still worth configuring. If the unified Release preferences experience has already replaced this page in your tenant, Microsoft says the Learn articles will be updated with the new navigation; the option names above are the ones documented as of 12 November 2026.

Map your current setup to the new options

Microsoft publishes this mapping:

The second row is the important one. A pilot group in Targeted release used to see features earlier than everyone else. In the new model the pilot group stays on Standard release and everyone else moves to Deferred, so the pilot still sees eligible major features about 30 days ahead of the rest of the organization.

Make sure the help desk is in the pilot group. Microsoft's Targeted release guidance already recommended that, and it matters more with Deferred release because support staff on Deferred would see changes after the users calling them.

Step 1: Create security groups for exceptions

Exceptions are users or Microsoft Entra security groups. Create a dedicated security group, for example Release-Standard-Pilot, and add your pilot, IT and help desk users. Using a group means later changes happen in Entra rather than in the release settings.

You can add up to 10,000 exceptions. Each user in a security group and each individually added user counts toward the limit. If you add users to a group that is already an exception and the total goes over 10,000, the admin center shows an error and you have to remove some exceptions first.

Step 2: Set Standard or Deferred release

Microsoft's documented path, as of 12 November 2026:

1. In the Microsoft 365 admin center, expand Copilot in the left navigation and select Settings.
2. On the View all tab, select Copilot Release Preferences: General Availability.
3. Choose Standard release or Deferred release for the organization.
4. Add exceptions:
   • To put only specific users or groups on Deferred release, select Standard release for the organization, then search for and select those users or groups.
   • To put only specific users or groups on Standard release, select Deferred release for the organization, then search for and select those users or groups.
5. Select Save.

Changes can take up to 24 hours to take effect. Microsoft notes that this page will be replaced by the unified Release preferences experience in November 2026, so the navigation may differ in your tenant; the options themselves stay the same.

Step 3: Decide on Frontier

If you want a group to try preview features:

1. In the Microsoft 365 admin center, go to Copilot > Settings and select the View all tab.
2. Search for "Frontier" in Search all Copilot settings and select Copilot Frontier.
3. Choose No access (the default), All users, or Specific users and groups, and select your Frontier group.

Frontier features and agents can take about three hours to appear. Frontier agents also need Agent > Settings > Agent and plugin access with Allow agents and plugins built by Microsoft checked, and the Frontier control never overrides an agent you turned off in the Agents section. Users already enrolled in Frontier stay enrolled after Targeted release retires.

For most organizations, a small Frontier group of IT and early adopters, separate from the Standard release pilot group, is easier to manage than putting the whole pilot into preview.

Step 4: Update your change process

• Message center triage: Deferred-eligible features are labelled in Message center, and Microsoft added a Rollout timing column. Filter for Major update items, and note which are tagged Deferred feature.
• Documentation: replace references to Targeted release in runbooks, onboarding and help desk articles.
• Communication: tell change management, support, security and compliance teams, and the pilot group, what their new audience is.
• Review: Microsoft recommends adjusting audience assignments over time as readiness changes.

Test and rollback

There's no way to keep Targeted release after January 2027. What you can test and reverse is the new configuration:

• After saving, wait up to 24 hours, then compare a pilot user and a Deferred user when the next Message center item tagged Deferred feature starts rolling out. The pilot user should see it first.
• To roll back a Deferred decision, select Standard release again and save. Users on Deferred catch up to the Standard schedule; users moved the other way may temporarily lose features they had.
• To remove someone from Frontier, take them out of the Frontier group or set Copilot Frontier to No access.

Microsoft doesn't document a PowerShell or Microsoft Graph method for these release preferences in the pages reviewed here, so plan to manage them in the admin center.

Checklist

• Recorded the current Targeted release option and user list.
• Created security groups for Standard release exceptions and for Frontier.
• Set the organization to Standard or Deferred release, with exceptions, and saved.
• Decided on Frontier and reviewed its preview terms with compliance.
• Help desk placed in the early group.
• Runbooks and Message center triage updated.
• Government cloud tenants: confirmed Standard release is the only option and no action is needed.

For related admin-side planning, see Microsoft 365 Copilot license assignment checklist.

What we checked

• Opened MC1490899 on mc.merill.net on 2026-11-12: published 7 October 2026, act-by 31 October 2026, November 2026 freeze and January 2027 retirement, plus the three admin center paths.
• Read "Plan for the retirement of Targeted release" on Microsoft Learn (dated 2026-10-07) and copied the mapping table, the scope list of services and the government cloud note.
• Cross-checked the Standard/Deferred steps, the 10,000 exception limit, the 24-hour delay and the required roles on "Configure new Standard and Deferred release options" (dated 2026-11-03).
• Confirmed in the release options FAQ (dated 2026-11-03) that the 30-day timer starts when the Standard rollout begins, that only features tagged Major update and Deferred feature are deferred, and that Microsoft won't change release preferences automatically.
• Copied the Release preferences option names and path from the older "Set up the Standard or Targeted release options" page (dated 2026-11-03), which also says unconfigured Targeted release users default to Standard release.
• Checked the Frontier enrollment steps, license note and compliance limitations on "Get started with the Microsoft Frontier Program" (updated 2026-11-04).
• Not tested on a live tenant: the unified Release preferences experience arriving in November 2026 may change the menu paths. Steps follow Microsoft's documentation as of 2026-11-12.

Last tested: 2026-11-12

References

• MC1490899, Microsoft 365: Targeted Release retirement (Message center mirror): https://mc.merill.net/message/MC1490899
• Plan for the retirement of Targeted release in Microsoft 365: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/manage/targeted-release-retirement
• Configure new Standard and Deferred release options for Microsoft 365: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/manage/configure-release-options
• Frequently asked questions about modern release options for Microsoft 365: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/manage/release-options-faq
• Set up the Standard or Targeted release options: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/manage/release-options-in-office-365
• Get started with the Microsoft Frontier Program: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/manage/get-started-frontier