This article guides you on finding guidance on Microsoft Bookings if you are no longer able to use Clustermarket.

Overview of Clustermarket

Many teams within the University used to use an online tool called Clustermarket.

Clustermarket is a lab management system for booking the use of lab equipment. Several laboratories used it in their day-to-day activities because this tool was free.

During the second half of 2023, Clustermarket has become a tool based on annual subscriptions. Due to the high price per/user, iSolutions suggest moving to Microsoft Bookings.

If you want or need to buy a licence, please contact the procurement team.

Moving to Microsoft bookings

Overview of Microsoft Bookings 

Microsoft Bookings is a scheduling tool and is part of the Microsoft 365 suite.

Through Bookings, you can create and manage:

• Equipment bookings
• Appointment booking (for example: a careers advice meeting)
• 1 to 1 tutor/tutee sessions. For managing 1 to 1 sessions you can also use the Bookings with Me app.

Getting started

Microsoft Bookings consists of several elements. During the setup of your staff list, you will need to configure part of those elements before your colleagues can use the service.

Finding Bookings application from Microsoft 365 or Teams

From Microsoft 365

1. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 homepage

2. Select the App launcher from the top-left corner of the page

3. Select the link Explore all your Apps

4. Select the link All Apps or use the search field

5. Select the the box to open the app in a new tab.

From Teams

1. Open Teams

2. Select the Apps icon from the sidebar

3. Type Bookings into the Search field

4. Select the button Add from the Bookings' box

5. Select the button Add

7. Bookings will open a new screen and will appear into the list of the apps added to Teams

Setting up your calendar

Set up your calendar following these articles from the Microsoft Support website:

1. Enter your business information
2. Set your scheduling policies
3. Define your service offerings
4. Create your staff list
5. Set staff working hours
6. Schedule business closures, time off, and vacation time
7. Customise and publish your booking page
8. Create a manual booking

Further guidance

Find guidance on using Bookings from Outlook and Teams from the following pages:

• Bookings - How do I ...?
• Creating a bookings calendar (Source: Microsoft Support)
• Microsoft Bookings Frequently Asked Questions (Source: Microsoft Learn)
• Set Bookings scheduling policies (Source: Microsoft Learn)