23 September, 2025
In the office, working remotely, or enjoying some vacation time? Make it easy for colleagues to know your availability by setting your Microsoft Teams status, turning on Outlook automatic replies, or using Gmail’s vacation responder. A few quick updates keep the KAUST community connected and help avoid those “Are you around?” messages.
Used by: All KAUST staff, faculty, and students.
You can set your availability (Available, Busy, etc.) and add a custom status message so colleagues see at a glance if you’re in the office, remote, or away. Microsoft’s guide: Change your status in Microsoft Teams.
| Platform | How to Do It |
|---|---|
| Windows, macOS, Web | Click your profile picture (top right) → select your status (Available, Busy, Away, etc.) → choose Set status message → type something like “Working remotely today” or “On vacation until Oct 10” → set how long it should display. |
| Mobile (iOS, Android) | Tap your profile picture → choose a status → tap Set status message → add your note and optionally a duration. |
Sample message: “Working from home today. Contact @John.Smith for urgent support.”
Tip: You can even @mention colleagues in your Teams status message, so people know exactly who to reach out to while you’re away.
Used by: Staff and some faculty on Microsoft 365.
If you’ll be unavailable (vacation, travel, etc.), setting up an automatic reply in Outlook helps manage expectations. Microsoft’s guide: Send automatic replies (Out of Office) from Outlook.
| Platform | How to Do It |
|---|---|
| Windows, macOS App | Open Outlook → File > Automatic Replies (Out of Office) → turn on replies → type your message → set start & end dates so replies turn off automatically. |
| Outlook on the Web | Log in at outlook.office.com → Settings (gear icon) > Automatic replies → enable → set timeframe & message. |
| Mobile (iOS, Android) | Open the Outlook app → Settings > Mail > Automatic replies → toggle on → add your message and set dates. |
Sample message: “I’m out of office until September 20. Please contact @Sarah.Ahmed for urgent matters.”
Tip: Just like in Teams, you can use @mentions in Outlook replies to point colleagues directly to the right contact.
Used by: Students and some faculty on KAUST Google Workspace.
Gmail has a vacation responder that automatically replies while you’re away. Google’s guide: Send an automatic reply when you're out of office.
| Platform | How to Do It |
|---|---|
| Web (Desktop) | Open Gmail → Settings (gear) > See all settings > General > Vacation responder → enable → set start & end dates → type your subject & message → choose if replies go to everyone or only contacts. |
| Mobile (iOS, Android) | Open Gmail app → ☰ menu → Settings > Choose your account > Vacation responder → toggle on → set dates & message. |
Sample message: “I’m on leave until August 15. I’ll respond to your message after I return.”
Pro tip: If you’re going on vacation, use both a Teams status message and an automatic reply (Outlook or Gmail). That way, no matter how someone reaches you, they’ll know when you’ll be back.
If you run into issues setting up Teams, Outlook, or Gmail:
