Microsoft’s sprawling set of software tools were experiencing widespread outages on Thursday, leaving businesses and workers without crucial utilities for hours.

The outage began early Thursday afternoon, as workers and offices around the world began reporting issues with a range of Microsoft 365’s tools and apps, including email and chat software. The problems appeared to be persisting through Thursday night.

Between 12:15 p.m. and 1 p.m. Eastern, the outage tracker Downdetector showed that more than 130,000 users were experiencing problems with Microsoft Outlook, the workplace messaging app Microsoft Teams, the A.I. assistant Microsoft Copilot and the Microsoft Store.

In an update posted on social media around 5 p.m., Microsoft said it was “opening all available pathways to restore service, as our actions taken thus far have not provided the anticipated relief.”

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