---
title: Desks and Places
summary: Organize Microsoft 365 rooms and desk pools for Room Finder, enrich resources with Places metadata, and prepare for desk hoteling — with Outlook booking today and a native iOS app coming later in 2026.
lastReviewed: 2026-06-10
products:
  - desks-and-places
status: published
---

# Desks and Places

Meeting Room 365 **Desks and Places** helps workplace and IT teams make **Microsoft 365 bookable resources** easy to find — meeting rooms, **desk pools (workspaces)**, and (when your tenant exposes them) individual desks. The admin experience lives at **[admin.meetingroom365.com/places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places)** and focuses on what Microsoft’s own admin surfaces do not fully solve: **Room Finder organization**, **rich resource metadata**, **floor plan images**, and alignment with your **[room displays](../room-displays/index.md)**.

This guide is about the **directory and desk-pool story** in Microsoft 365 — not a replacement for Google or Exchange room calendars.

## The Microsoft Room Finder gap

Employees discover bookable rooms and workspaces in **Outlook** and **Microsoft 365** apps through **Room Finder**. What appears there depends on how your tenant is configured:

- **Legacy Room Lists** — the long-standing model: resources grouped into lists and floors, maintained largely through **PowerShell**.
- **Places Room Finder** — Microsoft’s newer hierarchy (**Buildings → Floors → Sections → resources**), available after your organization **opts in** to Microsoft Places Room Finder (a **paid Microsoft offering**).

Many tenants still run **Room Lists** while they evaluate or roll out Places. Either way, IT needs a practical way to **see every resource**, **fix how it appears in Room Finder**, and **add photos, equipment, maps, and descriptions** that Outlook alone does not manage. That is what the Meeting Room 365 **Places** area is for.

Meeting Room 365 also provides a **free Interactive PowerShell Tool** that walks you through Room List setup: **[room-finder-setup](https://www.meetingroom365.com/room-finder-setup)**. Download and run it in your environment to create and organize lists without starting from a blank script.

> **Remote PowerShell for room mailboxes** (for example subject visibility on room calendars) is a separate, optional tool under **Powershell** in the admin portal. See [Room displays — calendar connections](../room-displays/calendar-connections.md) for RBAC and mailbox setup.

## Two directory models

Use the model that matches what employees already see in Outlook.

| Model | When it applies | How IT organizes resources | Where to work in Meeting Room 365 |
|-------|-----------------|----------------------------|-----------------------------------|
| **Legacy Room Lists** | Tenant has **not** opted into Places Room Finder | **PowerShell** and Room List mailboxes; use the [interactive setup tool](https://www.meetingroom365.com/room-finder-setup) | **Room Lists** tab at [admin.meetingroom365.com/places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places) |
| **Places Room Finder** | Tenant **has** opted into Microsoft Places Room Finder | **Buildings, floors, sections** in Microsoft Places; desk pools and rooms nested in that hierarchy | **Buildings** tab at [admin.meetingroom365.com/places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places) |

**Room Lists** control Outlook Room Finder when you are on the legacy path. **Buildings** reflect the Places hierarchy when you are on the Places path. If you have opted into Places Room Finder, prefer **Buildings**; if Room Lists still drive Finder in your tenant, start with **Room Lists** and PowerShell.

You can open **[Microsoft Places admin](https://places.cloud.microsoft/places/admin/space-management)** for tenant-side space management; Meeting Room 365 complements that with **metadata, maps, and links to your room displays**.

## Places metadata in the admin portal

Sign in to the admin portal with **Microsoft 365** (the Places view needs Graph access to read place data in your tenant). From **[Places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places)** you can:

- Browse **rooms**, **workspaces (desk pools)**, and **desks** imported from Microsoft 365.
- Edit **Meeting Room 365 metadata** per resource or floor: descriptions, location labels, equipment icons, room codes, photos, AV notes, and **floor map images**.
- See when a **room** already has a matching **[room display](../room-displays/index.md)** configured on the same mailbox — so door tablets and directory data stay aligned.
- Optionally **sync** display name or capacity from metadata back to the resource when you enable those toggles for a room.

Metadata is stored for Meeting Room 365 end-user experiences (Room Finder enrichment, future desk booking surfaces, and floor wayfinding). It does not replace creating the underlying **room or workspace mailboxes** in Microsoft 365.

### Floor maps

Upload a **map image** per floor in Places metadata. Maps support wayfinding in desk and place experiences. They are separate from interactive **[floor map displays](../room-displays/floor-maps.md)** on room signage — many sites use both: a static floor image for desk pools and a live map display for meeting-room availability.

## Desk pool booking (Microsoft 365)

**Desk hoteling** in this product is **pool-based**, not “pick desk 14B on a floor plan” at booking time:

- Employees reserve a **workspace** (desk **pool**) with a capacity — for example “Open area, 40 seats.”
- **No specific desk is assigned** in the reservation; people choose any open desk when they arrive.
- They can **check in** so coworkers know where to find them on site.
- Your organization can publish a **desk booking policy** (welcome text, advance booking norms, cancellation etiquette) from admin when desk booking features are enabled for your tenant.

**Today, the live employee path is Outlook (and Microsoft 365 apps)** — book the workspace the same way other bookable resources are reserved. Meeting Room 365 configures **defaults** (domain, service connection, contact email, policy) on the **Desk Booking Setup** tab for organizations rolling out the native app.

**Platform:** desk pools and Places metadata require **Microsoft 365**. They do not apply to Google Workspace, Exchange-only room mailboxes, or Dibs displays.

## Desk booking app (preview)

Meeting Room 365 is shipping a **native iOS desk booking app** (**desks-ios**) for employees who want a dedicated mobile experience — floor maps, pool availability, check-in, and policy text in one place.

| Status | What it means for you |
|--------|------------------------|
| **Now** | **TestFlight, invite only** — contact Meeting Room 365 if you want early access for a pilot group. |
| **Later in 2026** | **Broader public release** on the App Store is planned. |
| **Until then** | Train employees to book **desk pools in Outlook**; use **[Places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places)** for metadata, maps, and IT setup. |

The app consumes the same **workspace** resources and **Places metadata** you manage in admin. It is an additional front end — not a separate calendar system.

## Connection to room displays

**Room displays** and **Desks and Places** solve different problems but share the same meeting rooms:

| Surface | Primary job |
|---------|-------------|
| **[Room displays](../room-displays/index.md)** | Live calendar on the door — availability, walk-up book, extend, end early |
| **Desks and Places** | Directory richness — Finder layout, photos, equipment, floor maps, desk pools |

When a room mailbox powers both a display and Places metadata, the admin **Rooms** tab can reflect the link so you edit description, photo, and equipment once. Walk-up booking still happens on the **display**; **desk pool** booking happens in **Outlook** (and later in the **iOS app**).

Lobby **[status boards](../status-boards/index.md)** summarize **meeting room** availability from displays; they do not replace desk pool booking.

## Supported and not supported

| Capability | Supported | Not supported |
|------------|-----------|---------------|
| Microsoft 365 rooms in Room Finder / Places | Yes — metadata, photos, maps | — |
| Microsoft 365 **workspace** desk pools | Yes — pool capacity booking via Outlook today | Per-desk reservation at booking time |
| Legacy **Room Lists** setup | Yes — free [PowerShell setup tool](https://www.meetingroom365.com/room-finder-setup) | — |
| **Places Room Finder** hierarchy (Buildings tab) | Yes — when tenant opted in | — |
| **Desk booking iOS app** | TestFlight (invite); App Store later 2026 | Android desk app (not described here) |
| Google Workspace / Exchange / Dibs calendars | — | Desk pools and Places admin |
| Booking meeting rooms from Places admin | — | Use [room displays](../room-displays/index.md) or Outlook |
| Visitor check-in | — | [Visitor management](../visitor-management/index.md) |

## Best fit for

Desks and Places is a strong fit when you:

- Run **Microsoft 365** and use or plan **hybrid desk hoteling** alongside meeting rooms.
- Need **Room Finder** to show sensible **buildings and floors** — whether via **Room Lists** or **Places**.
- Want **photos, equipment icons, and floor maps** on resources without custom PowerShell-only workflows.
- Already use Meeting Room 365 **room displays** and want **one admin home** for room metadata and display alignment.
- Are willing to pilot the **iOS desk booking app** on TestFlight while keeping **Outlook** as the day-to-day booking path for everyone else.

It is usually **not** the first product to deploy if you only need door tablets — start with [room displays](../room-displays/index.md). Add Desks and Places when Finder, desk pools, or metadata become a workplace priority.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do we have to opt into Microsoft Places Room Finder to use desk pools?

No. **Desk pool (workspace) booking** uses standard M365 workspace resources. **Places Room Finder** is Microsoft’s optional premium directory experience. You can run **legacy Room Lists** and still book desk pools in Outlook while you enrich resources in Meeting Room 365.

### How do we set up Room Lists?

Use the free **[Interactive PowerShell Tool](https://www.meetingroom365.com/room-finder-setup)**. Room Lists are created and maintained with PowerShell; the tool guides the steps. After lists exist, use the **Room Lists** tab in [Places](https://admin.meetingroom365.com/places) to review hierarchy and attach metadata.

### Can employees pick a specific desk when they book?

Not in the Meeting Room 365 model documented here. Reservations are against a **pool**; individuals choose a physical desk on arrival. Check-in can communicate which desk they took.

### How do employees book a desk today?

In **Outlook** (or Microsoft 365 mobile): find the **workspace** / desk pool resource and reserve it like a meeting room. Train users on your pool names and policy text.

### How do we get the iOS desk booking app?

It is **TestFlight invite only** today. Ask Meeting Room 365 support or your account contact for pilot access. Public App Store release is **planned later in 2026**.

### Does this work with Google Workspace room displays?

**Room displays** can connect to Google calendars. **Desks and Places** is **Microsoft 365 only** because it relies on Microsoft Graph place and workspace APIs.

### Where does RBAC fit in?

For **room displays** and automated calendar access, Microsoft recommends **application RBAC** (client credential) rather than per-mailbox passwords. Desk booking setup in admin similarly recommends an **app-only service user** for the service connection. See [Configure RBAC via PowerShell](https://www.meetingroom365.com/en/article/configuring-role-based-access-control-via-powershell-microsoft-365-1dc5k5b/) and [calendar connections](../room-displays/calendar-connections.md).

### Is there an extra charge for Desks and Places?

Consult [Pricing and billing](../pricing-and-billing.md) for your plan. The **Room Finder PowerShell setup tool** is **free**. Pilot access to the **TestFlight** app is arranged with Meeting Room 365 — not a separate self-serve download today.

## Related

- [Room displays](../room-displays/index.md)
- [Floor maps on displays](../room-displays/floor-maps.md)
- [Status boards](../status-boards/index.md)
- [Use cases](../use-cases/index.md)
- [Getting started](../getting-started.md)
- [Meeting Room 365 Guide home](../index.md)