Course overview

Office 365 is part of Microsoft 365. You can license Office 365 alone or as part of a Microsoft 365 subscription. Microsoft 365 includes additional Security and compliance features as well as Windows licenses on top of Office 365. Whilst this course focuses on the features in the Office 365 component, it is also applicable to organisations deploying and administering Microsoft 365.

This five-day course describes how to set up, configure and manage an Office 365 tenant including identities, and the core services of Microsoft 365. In this five-day course, you will learn how to plan the configuration of an Office 365 tenant including integration with existing user identities; plan, configure and manage core services; and report on key metrics.

Although this course and the associated labs are written for Office 365 with Windows 11, the skills taught will also be backwards compatible with Windows 10. This course is based on the features available in the Office 365 E3 license as these are the core features in Office 365 and Microsoft 365 plans.

 

Audience profile

This course is intended for IT professionals who are responsible for planning, configuring, and managing an Office 365 environment. Students who attend this course are expected to have a fairly broad understanding of several on-premises technologies such as Domain Name System (DNS) and Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS). In addition, they should have a general understanding of Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft SharePoint.

Course outline

Module 1: Planning and Provisioning Office 365

In this module, you will learn about setting up an Office 365 tenant for a trial or for a full deployment including the key technical decision points in both pilot and deployment phases. This module introduces the core services of Office 365 and how to configure DNS settings to add custom/vanity domains for use with all Office 365 services.

Lessons

  • Overview of Office 365
  • Core Services of Office 365
  • Requirements for an Office 365 Tenant
  • Planning a Pilot and Deployment
  • Creating an Office 365 Tenant
  • Adding Custom Domains and Managing DNS Settings

Lab: Provisioning Office 365

  • Configure an Office 365 Tenant
  • Configure a custom Domain


Module 2: Managing Users and Groups in Office 365

After setting up your Office 365 tenant, the next stage is to give access to users. In this module, you will learn how to create, manage and license users in Office 365, via PowerShell and using synchronization with on-premises directory services. This module also introduces the different types of groups available in Office 365 and how they are used.

You will then learn how to manage administrative access using Role Based Access Control (RBAC).

Lessons

  • Managing User Accounts and Licences
  • Managing Passwords and Authentication
  • Create and Managing the Different Types of Groups in Office 365
  • Managing Users and Groups with PowerShell
  • Managing Users and Groups in the Microsoft Entra Admin Center
  • Role Based Access and Administrative Roles
  • Planning and Configuring Directory Synchronization

Lab A: Managing Users and Groups in Office 365

  • Create and Update User Accounts
  • Assign a Licence to a User
  • Manage Office 365 Password Policies
  • Create and Manage Microsoft 365 Groups
  • Create and Manage Security Groups
  • Create Users and Groups with PowerShell
  • Assigning Service Administration Roles
  • Creating Administrative Units

Lab B: Planning and Configuring Directory Synchronisation

  • Preparing for Directory Synchronization
  • Configuring Directory Synchronization
  • Managing Active Directory Users and Groups

Module 3: Deploying and Configuring Tools and Applications for Office 365

This module looks at the tools and client applications you can use to connect to Office 365. You will learn about the options for configuring and deploying the Microsoft Apps for Enterprise (previously known as Microsoft Office/Office 365 Pro Plus) across web, Windows, Mac OSX and mobile platforms.

Lessons

  • Planning Network Configuration for Office 365 Tools and Applications
  • Using the Office Configuration Tool
  • Click to Run Installation Use and Control
  • Managing Centralized Deployment of Tools, Applications and Add-ins
  • Reporting

Lab: Deploying and Configuring Tools and Applications for Office 365

  • Running the Microsoft 365 Network Connectivity Test
  • Create a Custom Configuration for Click to Run
  • Create a Custom Configuration for Centralized Deployment

Module 4: Planning and Managing Exchange Online

In this module, you will learn to create and manage mailboxes including shared group and resource mailboxes as well as distribution lists. You will then learn about Exchange Online permissions which offer more granular control of Exchange Online Administration than the Office 365 Administration roles.

This module also considers Mail Flow rules and email protection including anti-spam and anti-malware.

Lessons

  • What is Exchange Online
  • Managing Exchange Online Mailboxes
  • Managing Office 365 Groups in Exchange Online
  • Configuring Exchange Online Permissions
  • Managing Exchange Online using PowerShell
  • Plan and Configure Mail Flow
  • Plan and Configure Email Protection

Lab: Planning and Managing Exchange Online

  • Configuring Exchange Online Recipients
  • Configuring Exchange Online Resource Mailboxes
  • Configure Email Protection


Module 5: Planning and Managing SharePoint Online

This module introduces SharePoint Online and its role in providing other Office 365 services such as Microsoft Teams and OneDrive. In this module, you will learn how to plan and configure SharePoint Online including controlling External Sharing.

Lessons

  • What is SharePoint Online
  • Understanding the relationship between SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, and Office 365 Groups
  • SharePoint Online Architecture
  • Configure SharePoint Online
  • Configure and Control External Sharing
  • Managing SharePoint Online Site Collections
  • Managing SharePoint Online using PowerShell

Lab: Planning and Managing SharePoint Online

  • Configuring SharePoint Online Settings
  • Create a SharePoint Intranet
  • Verify External User Sharing

Module 6: Planning and Managing Microsoft Teams

This module explains how to plan and configure Microsoft Teams for communication and collaboration within your organization and how to control external communications. You will learn to use Microsoft Teams policies to configure Teams user settings.

Lessons

  • What is Microsoft Teams
  • How Microsoft Teams integrates with other Office 365 Services
  • Create and Manage Organization Wide Settings
  • Create, Manage and Assign Microsoft Teams Policies
  • Plan and Configure External and Guest Access
  • Managing Microsoft Teams using PowerShell

Lab: Planning and Managing Microsoft Teams

  • Configure Organization Wide Settings
  • Working with Teams Policies
  • Configure External and Guest Access
  • Create a Team

Module 7: Planning and Managing Other Office 365 Services

In this module, you will learn about the other Office 365 services including their purpose, and an introduction to the use and administration of each service. You will then learn about selected Add-ins to extend Office 365.

Lessons

  • Viva Engage
  • Planner
  • Visio
  • Bookings
  • Delve
  • Forms
  • Power Platform
  • Stream
  • Sway
  • Viva
  • Scheduler
  • Add-ins, including Find Time and Junk Reporter

Lab: Planning and Managing Office 365 Services

  • Configure and Manage Planner
  • Configure and Manage Bookings
  • Configure Power Platform Data Policy

Module 8: Security and Compliance in Office 365

This module introduces the Security and Compliance features in Office 365. Whilst Microsoft 365 plans includes extended security and compliance features, this module will focus on those products available in the core plans without the extended licensing.

Lessons

  • Overview of Security and Compliance Features in Office 365
  • Extending Security and compliance Features with Additional Licences
  • Using the Microsoft Defender Portal and Secure Score
  • Using the Office 365 Compliance Portal and Compliance Score
  • Plan and Configure Retention Labels and Policies
  • Plan and Configure Data Loss Prevention Policies
  • Create and Assign Sensitivity Labels
  • Configure Safe Attachments and Safe Links Policies
  • Plan and Configure Multi Factor Authentication

Lab: Configure Security and Compliance in Office 365

  • Review Secure Score
  • Configure Threat Protection
  • Configure Sensitivity Labels
  • Configure Retention for Microsoft Teams
  • Configure Multi Factor Authentication

Module 9: Reporting, Monitoring and Troubleshooting Office 365

This module looks at techniques for troubleshooting issues with Office 365 focusing on the core services. You will also learn about the reporting and monitoring tools and features available.

Lessons

  • Monitoring Office 365 Service Health
  • Troubleshooting Administrative Access in Office 365
  • Troubleshoot Directory Synchronization
  • Troubleshooting Exchange Online
  • Troubleshooting SharePoint Online
  • Troubleshooting Microsoft Teams
  • Troubleshooting Office 365 Security and Compliance

Lab: Reporting, Monitoring and Troubleshooting in Office 365

  • Troubleshooting synchronization issues with user objects in Office 365
  • Troubleshooting Exchange Online
  • Troubleshoot SharePoint Online
  • Troubleshoot Microsoft Teams
  • Troubleshoot Sensitivity Labels

After completing this module, students will be able to:

  • Monitor Office 365 Service Health
  • Troubleshoot Office 365 Connectivity and Service Issues