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[Solved] “We couldn’t sign you in. Please try again.” Error in Teams

By Asmi Dhakal

[Solved] “We couldn’t sign you in. Please try again.” Error in Teams

The “We couldn’t sign you in. Please try again.” error in Microsoft Teams is generally related to a problem with the system time zone. However, there can be other issues that may cause MS teams to display this error. Imagine not getting past the login screen while having a big meeting to attend; now that’s stressful!

If you’re in a similar situation, we’re here to help you through it. In this article, we will be giving you a brief insight into this login issue with viable fixes you can try on your own.

Probable Causes of The Issue

To state the obvious, you get this error message when MS Teams fails to sign you into your account. According to online forums, it isn’t uncommon to run into this alert. One of the most common reasons seemed to be an issue with the system timezone. However, users also reported other different causes behind this problem.

Below we’ve listed reasons why you may come across this issue. Skim through each one and determine which situation is the most relevant to you:

  • Time Zone Problem
  • Unstable Network
  • Proxy Enabled
  • Malfunctioning Credential Manager/ Keychain Access
  • Malicious Bugs
  • Cache Memory

How to Fix “We couldn’t sign you in. Please try again.” Error in Teams?

After you’ve self-diagnosed the issue you might be dealing with, you can move on to the fixes. For each of the issues we’ve listed above, we have created fixes accordingly. 

Change System Time Zone

An incorrect system time zone does more harm than you might’ve anticipated. In this case, it causes an issue with the information within your system. With an incorrect time zone, your system will fail to transmit information to the Teams server, failing your login process.

As grave as this issue might sound, fixing it is actually pretty simple. You can fix the system time zone from the Settings application in Windows and System Preferences if you’re a Mac user. Refer to these steps to restore the correct time zone on your system:

On Windows

  1. On your keyboard, hit the combination Windows key + I to open the Settings application.
  2. From the navigation panel on your left, select Time & Language.
  3. Head to Date & Time.
  4. Toggle the slider next to Set time automatically on.
    WindowsDisableProxy2

On Mac

  1. Launch Apple Menu > System Preferences.
    choosing-system-preferences-on-mac-1
  2. Select Date & Time.
  3. Under the Date & Time tab, click on the padlock if locked in the bottom-left corner to make further changes.
  4. Select the box next to Set date and time automatically.
    DateTimeMac

Switch to a Stable Network

If you have an unstable network, you will most definitely run into an issue while logging into your Teams account. Although this may sound general, this can also be one of the most undermined causes.

Switch to a better internet connection if possible, and try logging in to your MS Teams account again.  If you get logged in, you’ve found your culprit.

Disable Proxy

When the proxy settings are enabled, your system will block certain information from the internet. This may include information from the server that your system needs to get you logged in to your Teams account. 

You can try disabling the proxy settings and try logging in to your Team account again. This option is available for both Windows and macOS. If you’re a Windows user, you can disable proxy settings from the in-built settings application. Mac users can disable proxy settings from their System Preferences.

Here are the steps you can follow to disable proxy settings:

On Windows

  1. Launch Start to open the Settings app.
  2. On the sidebar to your left, click on Network & Internet.
  3. Hop on to Proxy.
    WindowsDisableProxy
  4. Toggle off the slider next to Automatically detect settings.

On Mac

  1. Click on Apple Menu > System Preferences > Network.
    SystemPreferancesNetwork
  2. From the sidebar, click on WiFi.
    MacDisableProxy
  3. Locate and select the Advanced button on the bottom-right corner of the window.
  4. Head to the Proxies tab.
  5. Deselect all boxes under Select a protocol to configure.
    MacDisableProxy2
  6. Click OK.

Erase Passwords

Although password managers are a great convenience while logging in to frequently visited websites and applications, they aren’t free from issues either. If you have your passwords saved in Credential Manager or Keychain Access, that might be causing issues with you logging in to your MS Teams account.

You can remove your Microsoft account from your password managers and try to log in to MS Teams again. Depending on if you own a Windows or a Mac, here are the steps you can follow to remove passwords from your system:

On Windows

  1. Click on the Start icon and enter Credential Manager to open the utility.
  2. Choose Windows Credential.
  3. Locate your credentials and select the drop-down menu next to it.
  4. Select Remove.
    CredentialManager

On Mac

  1. Open Finder.
  2. Locate and select Applications, then head to Utilities.
    macUtilities
  3. Select Keychain Access.
  4. Locate the credentials for the MS Teams app.
  5. On your keyboard, press the control key and click on the password.
  6. Select Delete.
    KeychainAccess

Re-install MS Teams

If the methods mentioned above do not resolve your issue, you mostly have an issue with your application. The issue can range from corrupted or missing files to application bugs. All these issues can be the reason why you cannot log in to your MS Teams account.

You can re-install your Teams app to fix any in-app issues. When you re-install an application, all program files are deleted and reinstalled. Here are the methods you can refer to while uninstalling your Microsoft Teams application:

On Windows 

  1. On your keyboard, hit the Windows key + I to open the settings app.
  2. Head to Apps from the panel to your left.
  3. Select Apps & features.
    Go-to-apps-and-Select-Apps-and-Features
  4. Scroll down to locate Microsoft Teams. 
  5. Click on the vertical three-dot menu and select Uninstall.
    uninstallteamsapp

On Mac

  1. On your keyboard, select Command + N to open the finder.
  2. Select Applications from the sidebar.
  3. From the folder, locate Microsoft Teams and select it.
  4. Click on File then select Move to Trash.
    TrashMac

You can re-install teams from the official site of Microsoft. Open any browser and navigate to Microsoft’s official site and download Teams for desktop.

Clear Cache

Cache memory, although stored for your own convenience, can cause problems in the overall functioning of the application itself. The more space cache takes, it leaves lesser space for the application to operate. This may sometimes cause your app to malfunction. This can be a probable reason why you may not be logged in to your account.

You can clear the cache on both Windows and Mac. Make sure to have closed the Teams app from the background before you proceed to clear the cache memory. We have mentioned the procedure to clear cache for both Windows and macOS below:

On Windows

  1. On your keyboard, use the shortcut Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog.
  2. Enter %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams on the search box and hit enter.
  3. Delete all folders in the directory.
    ClearTeamsCache
  4. Restart your Teams app.

On Mac

  1. Open Finder.
  2. Head to Applications > Utilities.
  3. Locate Terminal and double-click on it.
    terminal-in-macs-1024x487
  4. On the Terminal window, enter the command and hit Enter.
    rm -r ~/Library/Application\ Support/Microsoft/Teams
  5. Re-open your Teams app.