What happens when Microsoft 365 goes down?
We notice within minutes. Break Glass switches on, automatically or after we confirm, and your team gets a text with the link. New mail to your company comes to Break Glass, and people sign in and keep working at their own addresses and in Break Glass chat.
Does our mail go through Break Glass every day?
No. On a normal day mail goes straight to Microsoft. Break Glass only carries your mail while it's switched on.
What will people see when they sign in?
Their last seven days of Inbox and Sent Items, copied ahead of time, plus everything that arrives during the outage.
Can people send email during an outage?
Yes, from their own addresses. Mail is signed for your domain, so it lands in inboxes, not spam.
How do people sign in if Microsoft is down?
With a passkey set up ahead of time (Face ID, Touch ID or Windows Hello), or a one-time code texted to their mobile. No Microsoft account or password is involved.
What happens when Microsoft comes back?
Mail received during the outage is delivered to Outlook, and mail people sent from Break Glass is copied into their Outlook Sent Items. Then mail goes straight to Microsoft again.
Do we need to change our email setup?
Once, ahead of time: your IT team (or Asfalia) runs one setup step in Microsoft 365 and makes one DNS change. After that, switching happens on its own.
How long does setup take?
Typically about 15 minutes of IT time, plus waiting for the DNS change to take effect. Then each person spends a minute setting up their passkey.
Who counts as a user for billing?
People with a Microsoft 365 license who can sign in. Shared mailboxes, rooms, disabled accounts and guests aren't counted, though their mail is still covered.
Does it cover Teams?
Yes. Break Glass chat opens with your Teams teams and channels and the same people in each, plus one-to-one and group chats. Message history from Teams isn't copied: Break Glass chat starts when the outage does.
What happens to chat after the outage?
It stays in Break Glass, readable for your retention period (90 days by default, adjustable). Teams doesn't accept messages written elsewhere, so Break Glass chat isn't copied back into Teams.
Can we turn chat off?
Yes. Your admin can switch chat off, or change how long it's kept, at any time.
Can we use our own logo?
Yes. Your team sees your logo and name when they sign in to Break Glass.
Is our data safe?
See Security for how sign-in, access, encryption and retention work.
Be ready before the next outage.
Setup takes an afternoon. After that, Break Glass waits quietly until the day you need it.