Auto-launch + auto-hide Teams: 'I only see TeamsISO' experience

Two new persisted preferences in DISPLAY settings, paired to give operators the 'launch TeamsISO, never see Teams' experience the user asked for:

- LaunchTeamsOnStartup: TeamsISO auto-starts Teams in the background each launch (fire-and-forget background task in App.OnStartup, after the main window has materialized so a slow Teams launch doesn't delay the UI).

- AutoHideTeamsWindows: as soon as Teams' windows materialize after launch, hide them. New TeamsLauncher.AutoHideAfterLaunchAsync runs a polling loop (250ms / up to 15s) that catches the splash, main window, and any follow-up panels Teams opens. Teams takes 2-5s to render its main window and the splash arrives separately, so a one-shot hide right after launch wouldn't be enough.

When TeamsISO starts and Teams is already running (from a prior session), the auto-hide path still fires so the 'I only see TeamsISO' rule applies even when Teams was launched externally.

Operator drives everything through the IN-CALL bar (mute / camera / share / leave / marker) + participants DataGrid (ISO routing). Eye-toggle in the rail still restores Teams windows on demand.

Both toggles default to off — opt-in. Persisted via UIPreferences so they survive process restart.

src/TeamsISO.App/App.xaml.cs

@@ -221,6 +221,42 @@ public partial class App : Application
 
             await _viewModel.InitializeAsync(CancellationToken.None);
 
+            // Auto-launch Teams in the background if the operator has opted in.
+            // Combined with AutoHideTeamsWindows this gives the "I only see
+            // TeamsISO" experience — Teams runs but never appears on screen,
+            // and all interaction routes through the IN-CALL bar + participants
+            // DataGrid. Fire-and-forget so a slow Teams launch doesn't delay
+            // TeamsISO's window from appearing.
+            if (_viewModel.Settings.LaunchTeamsOnStartup && !Services.TeamsLauncher.IsRunning())
+            {
+                _ = Task.Run(() =>
+                {
+                    try
+                    {
+                        if (Services.TeamsLauncher.TryLaunch(out var launchError))
+                        {
+                            if (_viewModel.Settings.AutoHideTeamsWindows)
+                                _ = Services.TeamsLauncher.AutoHideAfterLaunchAsync();
+                        }
+                        else
+                        {
+                            logger.LogWarning("Auto-launch Teams on startup failed: {Error}", launchError);
+                        }
+                    }
+                    catch (Exception ex)
+                    {
+                        logger.LogWarning(ex, "Auto-launch Teams on startup threw");
+                    }
+                });
+            }
+            else if (_viewModel.Settings.AutoHideTeamsWindows && Services.TeamsLauncher.IsRunning())
+            {
+                // Teams is already up from a previous session. If auto-hide is
+                // on, hide it now so the operator's "I only see TeamsISO" rule
+                // applies even when Teams was launched externally.
+                _ = Services.TeamsLauncher.AutoHideAfterLaunchAsync();
+            }
+
             // Background update check, throttled to once per 24h. Fire-and-forget
             // so a slow / offline update server never delays startup. Surfaces a
             // banner via UpdateBanner if newer; failures just log.

src/TeamsISO.App/MainWindow.xaml

@@ -1251,6 +1251,20 @@
                                           Margin="0,12,0,0"
                                           ToolTip="When checked, minimizing the window hides it and shows a tray icon. Useful for long unattended shows. Double-click the tray icon to restore."/>
 
+                                <!-- Phase E.1/E.2 "I only see TeamsISO" pair. With both ticked,
+                                     the operator launches TeamsISO and never sees the Teams UI —
+                                     Teams runs in the background and all interaction routes
+                                     through the IN-CALL bar + participants DataGrid. -->
+                                <CheckBox Content="Launch Microsoft Teams on TeamsISO startup"
+                                          IsChecked="{Binding Settings.LaunchTeamsOnStartup}"
+                                          Margin="0,16,0,0"
+                                          ToolTip="When checked, TeamsISO will auto-launch Microsoft Teams in the background each time it starts. Combine with 'Auto-hide Teams windows' for the 'I only see TeamsISO' experience."/>
+
+                                <CheckBox Content="Auto-hide Teams windows when launched"
+                                          IsChecked="{Binding Settings.AutoHideTeamsWindows}"
+                                          Margin="0,8,0,0"
+                                          ToolTip="When checked, Teams' windows are hidden as soon as they materialize after launch. Use the eye-icon button in the rail to restore them when needed. Drives Teams via the IN-CALL bar (mute / camera / share / leave / marker) and the participants DataGrid for ISO routing."/>
+
                                 <Separator Margin="0,16,0,8"/>
 
                                 <CheckBox Content="Record ISOs to disk"

src/TeamsISO.App/MainWindow.xaml.cs

@@ -141,8 +141,19 @@ public partial class MainWindow : Window
             }
             else
             {
-                toast?.Show("Launching Microsoft Teams…");
-                _teamsWindowsHidden = false;
+                var autoHide = (DataContext as MainViewModel)?.Settings.AutoHideTeamsWindows ?? false;
+                toast?.Show(autoHide
+                    ? "Launching Microsoft Teams (will hide windows automatically)…"
+                    : "Launching Microsoft Teams…");
+                if (autoHide)
+                {
+                    _ = TeamsLauncher.AutoHideAfterLaunchAsync();
+                    _teamsWindowsHidden = true;
+                }
+                else
+                {
+                    _teamsWindowsHidden = false;
+                }
             }
             return;
         }

src/TeamsISO.App/Services/TeamsLauncher.cs

@@ -251,6 +251,60 @@ public static class TeamsLauncher
         return windows.Count;
     }
 
+    /// <summary>
+    /// Fire-and-forget background watcher that polls every 250ms for up to
+    /// <paramref name="timeout"/> and hides any visible top-level Teams
+    /// windows it finds. Used after launch so the operator never sees the
+    /// Teams UI flash on screen — Teams takes 2-5s to splash + render its
+    /// main window, and the splash arrives separately from the main window
+    /// (so we keep polling past the first hide to catch follow-up windows).
+    ///
+    /// Returns the Task so callers can await completion if they want, but
+    /// production code should fire-and-forget. Exceptions are swallowed —
+    /// failure to hide is harmless (user just sees Teams briefly).
+    /// </summary>
+    public static Task AutoHideAfterLaunchAsync(TimeSpan? timeout = null, CancellationToken ct = default)
+    {
+        var deadline = DateTime.UtcNow + (timeout ?? TimeSpan.FromSeconds(15));
+        return Task.Run(async () =>
+        {
+            try
+            {
+                var hiddenAny = false;
+                while (!ct.IsCancellationRequested && DateTime.UtcNow < deadline)
+                {
+                    // Poll for visible windows. Each iteration may catch new
+                    // ones — Teams sometimes opens a small splash, then a
+                    // larger main window 1-2s later, then a "What's new"
+                    // banner. Keep hiding until we've gone a full second
+                    // with nothing new appearing.
+                    var hidden = HideWindows();
+                    if (hidden > 0)
+                    {
+                        hiddenAny = true;
+                        // Settling delay: after we hide windows, wait a beat
+                        // before polling again so we don't busy-loop while
+                        // Teams' window manager catches up.
+                        await Task.Delay(750, ct).ConfigureAwait(false);
+                    }
+                    else if (hiddenAny)
+                    {
+                        // We hid at least once; if the next poll finds
+                        // nothing, Teams has settled. Bail early.
+                        return;
+                    }
+                    else
+                    {
+                        // Teams hasn't materialized yet; keep waiting.
+                        await Task.Delay(250, ct).ConfigureAwait(false);
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+            catch (OperationCanceledException) { /* expected on cancel */ }
+            catch { /* defensive — auto-hide is best-effort, never breaks the app */ }
+        }, ct);
+    }
+
     // ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
     // Keyboard-shortcut forwarding (PostMessage path).
     //

src/TeamsISO.App/Services/UIPreferences.cs

@@ -39,7 +39,13 @@ public static class UIPreferences
         bool AutoDisableOnDeparture = false,
         SortMode ParticipantSort = SortMode.JoinOrder,
         bool MinimizeToTray = false,
-        bool ControlSurfaceLanReachable = false);
+        bool ControlSurfaceLanReachable = false,
+        // Phase E.1 / E.2 quality-of-life. With both true, the operator launches
+        // TeamsISO and never sees the Teams UI — Teams auto-starts in the
+        // background and its windows are auto-hidden as soon as they materialize.
+        // All control happens via the IN-CALL bar + participants DataGrid.
+        bool LaunchTeamsOnStartup = false,
+        bool AutoHideTeamsWindows = false);
 
     public static Prefs Load()
     {

src/TeamsISO.App/ViewModels/GlobalSettingsViewModel.cs

@@ -34,6 +34,8 @@ public sealed class GlobalSettingsViewModel : ObservableObject
     private UIPreferences.SortMode _participantSort = UIPreferences.SortMode.JoinOrder;
     private bool _minimizeToTray;
     private bool _controlSurfaceLanReachable;
+    private bool _launchTeamsOnStartup;
+    private bool _autoHideTeamsWindows;
 
     public GlobalSettingsViewModel(IIsoController controller, ToastViewModel? toast = null)
     {
@@ -59,6 +61,8 @@ public sealed class GlobalSettingsViewModel : ObservableObject
         _participantSort = uiPrefs.ParticipantSort;
         _minimizeToTray = uiPrefs.MinimizeToTray;
         _controlSurfaceLanReachable = uiPrefs.ControlSurfaceLanReachable;
+        _launchTeamsOnStartup = uiPrefs.LaunchTeamsOnStartup;
+        _autoHideTeamsWindows = uiPrefs.AutoHideTeamsWindows;
 
         // Bring the auto-apply flag in from the presets store so the checkbox
         // reflects the user's prior choice when the settings panel opens.
@@ -222,7 +226,41 @@ public sealed class GlobalSettingsViewModel : ObservableObject
             AutoDisableOnDeparture: _autoDisableOnDeparture,
             ParticipantSort: _participantSort,
             MinimizeToTray: _minimizeToTray,
-            ControlSurfaceLanReachable: _controlSurfaceLanReachable));
+            ControlSurfaceLanReachable: _controlSurfaceLanReachable,
+            LaunchTeamsOnStartup: _launchTeamsOnStartup,
+            AutoHideTeamsWindows: _autoHideTeamsWindows));
+
+    /// <summary>
+    /// Auto-launch the Microsoft Teams desktop client when TeamsISO starts.
+    /// Paired with <see cref="AutoHideTeamsWindows"/> gives the operator a
+    /// "TeamsISO is the only window I see" experience — Teams runs in the
+    /// background, all interaction happens through the participants DataGrid
+    /// + IN-CALL bar.
+    /// </summary>
+    public bool LaunchTeamsOnStartup
+    {
+        get => _launchTeamsOnStartup;
+        set
+        {
+            if (SetField(ref _launchTeamsOnStartup, value)) PersistUiPrefs();
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// <summary>
+    /// Auto-hide Teams' top-level windows as soon as they materialize after
+    /// a launch (whether triggered via <see cref="LaunchTeamsOnStartup"/>,
+    /// the rail button, or the eye-toggle). Runs a brief background poll
+    /// that calls <c>TeamsLauncher.HideWindows</c> every ~250ms for up to
+    /// 15 seconds, catching splash + main + follow-up panels.
+    /// </summary>
+    public bool AutoHideTeamsWindows
+    {
+        get => _autoHideTeamsWindows;
+        set
+        {
+            if (SetField(ref _autoHideTeamsWindows, value)) PersistUiPrefs();
+        }
+    }
 
     /// <summary>
     /// Record each newly-enabled ISO's normalized output to disk under