Am a keen follower of Microsoft's SharePoint Blog and proud to provide this direct from the Microsoft Tech Community:
The “Create and share Copilot agents in SharePoint in a few clicks” is our latest ‘Meet the Makers’ webinar is just around the corner. This is a great opportunity to learn more from our primary product maker lead, CJ Tan. Karuana Gatimu interviews CJ to uncover more about what agents are within SharePoint, how they work, how you can use them within your SharePoint sites, how you can govern them (hint: “they’re a file in SharePoint”), and beyond (hint: Teams).
NOW ON DEMAND | Originally aired: Wednesday, October 16th, 2024, 8am PDT.
In fact, you can watch it right here (embedded below), directly in YouTube (set an alert), or from its dedicated event page within the Tech Community (you can login, RSVP, and add it to your calendar). Plus, check out the new *Microsoft 365 Copilot agents in SharePoint* adoption hub: https://aka.ms/SharePoint/agents.
Am a keen follower of Microsoft's SharePoint Blog and proud to provide this direct from the Microsoft Tech Community:
The “Create and share Copilot agents in SharePoint in a few clicks” is our latest ‘Meet the Makers’ webinar is just around the corner. This is a great opportunity to learn more from our primary product maker lead, CJ Tan. Karuana Gatimu interviews CJ to uncover more about what agents are within SharePoint, how they work, how you can use them within your SharePoint sites, how you can govern them (hint: “they’re a file in SharePoint”), and beyond (hint: Teams).
Tune in | Wednesday, October 16th, 2024, 8:00 AM – 8:30 AM PDT.
In fact, you can watch it right here (embedded below), directly in YouTube (set an alert), or from its dedicated event page within the Tech Community (you can login, RSVP, and add it to your calendar).
Traditionally, attended automation takes over users’ mouse, keyboard, and screen, halting their current activity. Picture-in-Picture in Power Automate for desktop lets you run attended desktop flows within a virtual window that mirrors your desktop. It allows multitasking, improves user experience, and increases productivity.
You no longer need to wait for the flow to finish before continuing your work!
To execute in picture-in-picture mode from the Power Automate console, select your flow, open the command bar, and click on Run in picture-in-picture.
Alternatively, enable the Run in picture-in-picture flow property to ensure your flow always operates in this mode when initiated locally via the console or its Run URL.
Initiate a desktop flow from a cloud flow using picture-in-picture mode. Use the Run a flow built with Power Automate for desktop cloud action, set Run Mode to Attended, and in the Advanced parameters, choose Attended Mode as Picture-in-picture.
To troubleshoot a desktop flow with picture-in-picture, enable this option in the designer and run your tests. This helps confirm the flow will work seamlessly in production.
To supervise the flow executions in picture-in-picture mode, navigate to desktop flow runs in the portal and apply a filter by run mode.
UPDATE | All parts of the Loop Learning Series have aired and are now available to watch on demand, playable below in this blog post.
Are you ready to learn more about Microsoft Loop? We have five upcoming Loop events for you – numerous opportunities to see Microsoft Loop in action, to learn about upcoming roadmap items and Copilot/AI innovations, ask questions, get time-saving tips and tricks, and provide direct feedback to the Loop product team.
Microsoft Loop – Five-part learning series: https://aka.ms/LoopLearningSeries.
We’re all eyes and ears each week for five weeks – starting August 14th, 2024. Review each weekly, online learning opportunity below. Register to learn and share all things Loop – there it is! If you can’t make it to one, each part will be made available for on-demand viewing as soon as possible; we’ll keep this blog up to date throughout the series. As you learn, try it for yourself within the Microsoft Loop app.
Part 1 | “Meet the makers: The story behind Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 1 of 5 in the Loop community learning series:
Co-presenters: Ron Pessner, Michelle Holtmann, and Karuana Gatimu
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 14th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:30am PDT
Abstract: In our ‘Meet the Makers’ virtual event on August 14th, leaders from the Microsoft Loop product team kickoff our learning series to share insights about the future of creating together with ease – no matter where you are or what tools you use. This opening session focuses on the strategy and vision for how Loop unlocks the power of shared thinking – with the intelligence of Microsoft Copilot – into a simple, familiar experience to get more done, right where you are, coordinated across your apps. And there will be experts live, active in the comments to address questions and feedback based on what’s shared.
Part 2 | “Almost everything you need to know to start with Microsoft Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 2 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Co-presenters: Rebecca Keys and Tamine Mokdissi
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 21st, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:20am PDT.
Abstract: Ever wondered how to get started with Loop? Whether you’re new to Loop or need a refresher, we’ve got you covered in this engaging session. We’ll show you both what’s coming soon and how to get started with Loop. We’ll highlight Loop components across various Microsoft 365 apps – creating and customizing your pages and workspaces within your favorite apps. We will share many tips along the way so you, too, can seamlessly and collaboratively whip up your projects to the next level.
Part 3 | “Level up your project management with Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 3 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Speakers: Esha Mathur and Jessica Mariscal Quintana
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 28th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:15am PDT.
Abstract: Turn your projects into progress! With Loop, project management gets better – from set up, to onboarding your team, to working in collaborative workspace – all you need in one place. We’ll demo a variety of project-oriented tasks: Creating and sharing tasks lists, setting automation rules, and monitoring your milestones with automatically generated Workspace status. And we’ll have experts online to address your project questions and feedback.
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 4 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Speakers: Jenna Hong and Oby Omu
Original air date/time: Wednesday, September 4th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:15am PDT.
Abstract: Take productivity one step further with Copilot in Loop. Discover the value of starting projects with content created by AI, stay in sync with a Loop-powered assistant, and make the most of your Microsoft Teams meetings. Copilot in Loop saves you time when creating page summaries, recap changes, and quickly get answers to make progress. We have a lot to share and are eager to hear what you think. Plus, discover more about “Copilot in Loop” within Copilot Lab.
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 5 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Co-presenters: Derek Liddell, Dan Costenaro, and Manon Knoertzer
Original air date/time: Thursday, September 12th, 2024, from 10:00am – 11:30am PDT.
Abstract: The Loop AMA (Ask Microsoft Anything) is a chance to ask open questions and provide feedback about what you’ve learned about Microsoft Loop throughout this learning series. The AMA is a 90-minute opportunity to connect live with Loop experts who will be live on video to answer your questions and listen to feedback. Note: If you are unable to attend the live AMA hour, you can ask your question at any time on the event page below in comments and the team will work to address it during the event – either on video or in direct written response in the comments; so, check back for sure.
BONUS ‘Part 6’ | “Microsoft Loop IT governance and management controls“
NOW ON DEMAND | This is an IT-focused session about all the auditing, eDiscovery, compliance, and more management and control capabilities when working with Microsoft Loop and managing Loop workspaces in SharePoint (SharePoint Embedded).
Co-presenters: Dan Costenaro, Akanksha Rakesh, and Abi Ramesh
Original air date/time: Thursday, September 26th, 2024, from 9:00am – 10:00am PDT.
Abstract: Discover the latest admin capabilities for managing Microsoft Loop. Whether you’re new to Loop or looking to validate its readiness for a large enterprise, this session is tailored for you. We’ll guide you through Loop’s available and newest admin and compliance features, demonstrate how to use Purview for eDiscovery with Loop content, establish good governance, and explore SharePoint admin center functionality for managing Loop workspaces. Additionally, we’ll share valuable tips to manage Loop content within your organization. Don’t miss this opportunity to unleash Loop to your employees while optimizing Loop manageability.
Microsoft Loop is a transformative co-creation experience that brings together teams, content and tasks across your tools and devices. Loop combines a powerful and flexible canvas with portable components that move freely and stay in sync across applications — enabling teams to think, plan, and create together.
We are excited to share more about the productivity experience we love. Our goal is to bring you into the Loop and keep you there – both by gaining knowledge and helping you discover the power of working together in new ways. My team and I couldn’t be more excited and ready to engage with the best community in tech. See you every week once the series kicks off.
Note: Additional Microsoft Loop links and resources
Continue the conversation by joining us in the Microsoft 365 community. Want to share best practices or join community events? Become a member by “joining” the Microsoft 365 community. For tips & tricks or to stay up to date on the latest news and announcements directly from the product teams, make sure to Follow or Subscribe to the Microsoft 365 community blog (review all Loop posts).
UPDATE | All parts of the Loop Learning Series have aired and are now available to watch on demand, playable below in this blog post.
Are you ready to learn more about Microsoft Loop? We have five upcoming Loop events for you – numerous opportunities to see Microsoft Loop in action, to learn about upcoming roadmap items and Copilot/AI innovations, ask questions, get time-saving tips and tricks, and provide direct feedback to the Loop product team.
Microsoft Loop – Five-part learning series: https://aka.ms/LoopLearningSeries.
We’re all eyes and ears each week for five weeks – starting August 14th, 2024. Review each weekly, online learning opportunity below. Register to learn and share all things Loop – there it is! If you can’t make it to one, each part will be made available for on-demand viewing as soon as possible; we’ll keep this blog up to date throughout the series. As you learn, try it for yourself within the Microsoft Loop app.
Part 1 | “Meet the makers: The story behind Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 1 of 5 in the Loop community learning series:
Co-presenters: Ron Pessner, Michelle Holtmann, and Karuana Gatimu
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 14th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:30am PDT
Abstract: In our ‘Meet the Makers’ virtual event on August 14th, leaders from the Microsoft Loop product team kickoff our learning series to share insights about the future of creating together with ease – no matter where you are or what tools you use. This opening session focuses on the strategy and vision for how Loop unlocks the power of shared thinking – with the intelligence of Microsoft Copilot – into a simple, familiar experience to get more done, right where you are, coordinated across your apps. And there will be experts live, active in the comments to address questions and feedback based on what’s shared.
Part 2 | “Almost everything you need to know to start with Microsoft Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 2 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Co-presenters: Rebecca Keys and Tamine Mokdissi
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 21st, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:20am PDT.
Abstract: Ever wondered how to get started with Loop? Whether you’re new to Loop or need a refresher, we’ve got you covered in this engaging session. We’ll show you both what’s coming soon and how to get started with Loop. We’ll highlight Loop components across various Microsoft 365 apps – creating and customizing your pages and workspaces within your favorite apps. We will share many tips along the way so you, too, can seamlessly and collaboratively whip up your projects to the next level.
Part 3 | “Level up your project management with Loop”
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 3 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Speakers: Esha Mathur and Jessica Mariscal Quintana
Original air date/time: Wednesday, August 28th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:15am PDT.
Abstract: Turn your projects into progress! With Loop, project management gets better – from set up, to onboarding your team, to working in collaborative workspace – all you need in one place. We’ll demo a variety of project-oriented tasks: Creating and sharing tasks lists, setting automation rules, and monitoring your milestones with automatically generated Workspace status. And we’ll have experts online to address your project questions and feedback.
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 4 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Speakers: Jenna Hong and Oby Omu
Original air date/time: Wednesday, September 4th, 2024, from 10:00am – 10:15am PDT.
Abstract: Take productivity one step further with Copilot in Loop. Discover the value of starting projects with content created by AI, stay in sync with a Loop-powered assistant, and make the most of your Microsoft Teams meetings. Copilot in Loop saves you time when creating page summaries, recap changes, and quickly get answers to make progress. We have a lot to share and are eager to hear what you think. Plus, discover more about “Copilot in Loop” within Copilot Lab.
NOW ON DEMAND | This is part 5 of 5 in the Loop community learning series.
Co-presenters: Derek Liddell, Dan Costenaro, and Manon Knoertzer
Original air date/time: Thursday, September 12th, 2024, from 10:00am – 11:30am PDT.
Abstract: The Loop AMA (Ask Microsoft Anything) is a chance to ask open questions and provide feedback about what you’ve learned about Microsoft Loop throughout this learning series. The AMA is a 90-minute opportunity to connect live with Loop experts who will be live on video to answer your questions and listen to feedback. Note: If you are unable to attend the live AMA hour, you can ask your question at any time on the event page below in comments and the team will work to address it during the event – either on video or in direct written response in the comments; so, check back for sure.
BONUS ‘Part 6’ | “Microsoft Loop IT governance and management controls“
NOW ON DEMAND | This is an IT-focused session about all the auditing, eDiscovery, compliance, and more management and control capabilities when working with Microsoft Loop and managing Loop workspaces in SharePoint (SharePoint Embedded).
Co-presenters: Dan Costenaro, Akanksha Rakesh, and Abi Ramesh
Original air date/time: Thursday, September 26th, 2024, from 9:00am – 10:00am PDT.
Abstract: Discover the latest admin capabilities for managing Microsoft Loop. Whether you’re new to Loop or looking to validate its readiness for a large enterprise, this session is tailored for you. We’ll guide you through Loop’s available and newest admin and compliance features, demonstrate how to use Purview for eDiscovery with Loop content, establish good governance, and explore SharePoint admin center functionality for managing Loop workspaces. Additionally, we’ll share valuable tips to manage Loop content within your organization. Don’t miss this opportunity to unleash Loop to your employees while optimizing Loop manageability.
Microsoft Loop is a transformative co-creation experience that brings together teams, content and tasks across your tools and devices. Loop combines a powerful and flexible canvas with portable components that move freely and stay in sync across applications — enabling teams to think, plan, and create together.
We are excited to share more about the productivity experience we love. Our goal is to bring you into the Loop and keep you there – both by gaining knowledge and helping you discover the power of working together in new ways. My team and I couldn’t be more excited and ready to engage with the best community in tech. See you every week once the series kicks off.
Note: Additional Microsoft Loop links and resources
Continue the conversation by joining us in the Microsoft 365 community. Want to share best practices or join community events? Become a member by “joining” the Microsoft 365 community. For tips & tricks or to stay up to date on the latest news and announcements directly from the product teams, make sure to Follow or Subscribe to the Microsoft 365 community blog (review all Loop posts).
The advent of generative AI is driving a rethink of what outcomes we deserve from our productivity software – from gains in efficiency to more deeply engaging employees and unleashing creativity and innovation. Expectations are higher and growing fast, even as the understanding of the key scenarios and use cases for this technology evolves just as quickly.
We anticipate businesses of all sizes to leverage a variety of tools and customizations to meet their specific needs and deliver on the potential of AI-enhanced productivity, and there is an ecosystem of options rising to meet this challenge. On Monday September 16th, we shared updates we are making to the capabilities offered by Microsoft 365 Copilot, introduced Copilot agents and announced a new simplified agent builder experience powered by Copilot Studio. This article offers an overview of how Microsoft 365 customers can also leverage partner tools and apps as part of their broader approach to productivity, and Microsoft’s commitment to providing interoperability for those solutions across key Microsoft 365 surfaces.
Supporting the Ecosystem of Gen-AI Productivity Apps
The market for generative AI productivity solutions has grown exponentially in the past few years, both in number and the sophistication of available products. Microsoft is committed to offering developers and customers flexibility and choice as they try and deploy generative AI tools in tandem with Microsoft 365 applications, backed by a robust marketplace for customers to discover and adopt a diverse set of third-party solutions to meet their needs. Developers can create tailored and integrated experiences across Office, Outlook and Teams using extensive interoperability options within Microsoft 365 and Office 365 apps and services. The Microsoft Teams Store and Microsoft AppSource help create a vibrant ecosystem where customers get a wide range of solutions and partners get a platform where they can innovate and grow their business. Microsoft Teams alone supports more than 1,400 third-party apps, and monthly usage of third-party apps within Teams has increased more than 10 times over the past 2 years.
Partner Highlight, AI in Office (Word) – Harvey.ai
Harvey, the leading professional services platform engineered with AI, has developed an integration with Microsoft Word specialized for the law, tax, and finance fields. The new Harvey integration helps users draft, analyze, and research with natural language instructions and AI-powered experiences directly in Word.
Partner Highlight, AI in Office (Excel) – Datasnipper
DataSnipper, a generative-AI software startup that automates critical tasks for accountants and auditors, has developed a deep integration with Microsoft Excel. DataSnipper’s integrated product experience streamlines manual steps such as data entry and validation for audit and finance teams with intelligent automation directly in Excel.
Partner Highlight, Microsoft 365 Copilot – Moveworks
Moveworks is integrating with Microsoft 365 Copilot to make it easier for employees to perform routine tasks and get the help they need, when and where they need it. By providing a collaborative experience across two GenAI assistants, mutual customers can simplify complex processes and transform user workflows.
Integrating AI Apps in Microsoft 365
There are several different ways Microsoft customers can integrate AI tools from other providers into their Microsoft 365 applications. In some cases, customers and partners will choose to build on or extend Microsoft 365 Copilot through extensions or custom agents using Copilot Studio or Azure AI Studio. Customers can integrate third-party AI applications through App Store interfaces directly in Microsoft 365 applications like Teams, Outlook and the Microsoft 365 app. IT Admins can also find and deploy apps from the Microsoft admin center and Teams admin center.
Adding third party apps in Microsoft 365 in a few simple steps
Users can view all the apps available in Teams from the Teams apps store in a Teams desktop or web client
Open your Microsoft 365 apps: In Teams, Outlook, and the Microsoft 365 app you can access the app store from the Apps icon on the left navigation rail.
Search for Apps: Use the top banner or search bar to find specific apps or browse categories and top picks to discover new tools. Click on an app to view its description, ratings, and user reviews.
Install and pin: If adding apps has been enabled, users can simply click “Add” to install the app. To pin the app to the left navigation rail in Teams, Outlook, and the Microsoft 365 App for easy persistent access, users can right click on the app icon and select “Pin.” Users can then drag and drop the pinned apps to reorder them according to preference.
Managing Apps for your Organization
The Microsoft 365 admin center and Teams admin center offers a broad set of capabilities and controls to ensure that Microsoft and third-party apps are used according to their organization’s needs and preferences. Key examples of these controls include:
Manage Copilot agents as apps in the Integrated apps section of the Microsoft 365 admin center. Admins can enable, disable, assign, block, or remove Copilot agents for their organization, and manage Copilot capabilities and data privacy.
Pin third-party apps to the left navigation rail and integrate various elements that each Microsoft 365 app supports to extend functionality across Outlook, Teams, the Microsoft 365 app.
Configure org-wide app settings to control whether users can install third-party apps, overriding any other app permission policies.
Manage app subscriptions, including activating third-party apps via the third-party publisher’s portal before assigning them to users.
Additional interoperability options with Microsoft 365
Microsoft provides additional ways to connect with partners, ISV’s and third-party data sources with Microsoft 365. The Microsoft commercial marketplace supports your organization’s needs to purchase innovative vendor solutions, while satisfying your organization’s business requirements. Microsoft AppSource already hosts thousands of apps, with millions of end users using these tools to enhance their workflows and productivity every day. AppSource is best for independent purchasing or for Microsoft 365 or Power BI applications, providing efficient distribution and reach for developers and where the product catalog can be accessed at https://appsource.microsoft.com/ or through the in-product experience in Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Microsoft Power Platform.
For services external to Microsoft 365, Microsoft Graph connectors enable your organization to index content from on-premises or cloud-based data sources into Microsoft Graph. Microsoft Graph connectors allow your third-party content to participate in many Microsoft 365 experiences across search and Copilot for Microsoft 365, and used in Microsoft 365 apps whilst respecting appropriate permissions. User queries for information are always checked at runtime, so users only see what they have access to. We’re excited to share that starting September 20, 2024, Microsoft 365 and Office 365 subscriptions will now receive a 50 million item index per tenant without any extra cost for data ingested via Microsoft Graph connectors. With this change, previous index quota entitlements per license is removed, as is add-on cost for additional quota. Learn more about Microsoft Graph connectors and how to get started here.
Looking Forward
As the landscape of generative AI continues to evolve, so too does the suite of tools and systems that customers use to harness this technology for their organizations. For Microsoft, this means not only enhancing our own applications and features but also providing dependable, secure, and compliant integration options for third-party tools. Our goal is to ensure that Microsoft 365 remains the premier platform for adopting generative AI solutions, whether built on Azure Open AI, leveraging Copilot Studio, using Microsoft first-party solutions, or integrating with third-party tools.
We are committed to maintaining and expanding interoperability to ensure that our customers have the freedom to choose the tools that best meet their needs. We recognize that the exact needs for the future are uncertain, but by continually listening to and learning from our customers, we aim to adapt and provide the best possible solutions based on their feedback.
Am a keen follower of Microsoft's SharePoint Blog and proud to provide this direct from the Microsoft Tech Community:
The SharePoint brand center introduces a central location for your organization to manage and create brand assets for Microsoft 365. The new Brand center brings together the power of your organization asset libraries and your organization’s brand assets to create and manage product application of your brand into Microsoft 365 products.
SharePoint brand center
Our new SharePoint brand center provides an easy-to-use location for your brand managers (individuals responsible for your organizations brand) to create and manage from a single location. While today’s brand center is primarily focused on SharePoint and Viva Connections, we are excited to be working with multiple teams across Microsoft 365 to integrate their services for organization brand with the brand center and will share a bit more on this topic in this document.
Features and capabilities mentioned in this blog post, are demonstrated in the following video with Cathy Dew(Microsoft) and Vesa Juvonen (Microsoft).
Manage your organization’s brand assets
The Brand center is setup to allow easy management of your organization assets that will be available across Microsoft 365 in one location while also providing a location to create product specific brand application scenarios. The first of these organization assets to be supported in the brand center are brand fonts and brand colors.
Brand fonts
Manage your organization’s brand fonts using the brand fonts library in the SharePoint brand center. As a brand manager uploads your font files into the brand fonts library you will be able to manage which fonts are available in picker experiences. Fonts can be used to define and showcase your brand’s expression.
Manage your organization’s brand colors using the brand color list in the SharePoint brand center. As a brand manager, you can create a list of your brand colors that will be available for picker experiences. Brand colors can be utilized to customize and add personality to your content and experiences.
Add your brand colors in the SharePoint brand center
Images and logos can provide the context, definition, and identity of your content to align with your brand. By utilizing Organization Assets Libraries brand managers can provide the images to help anyone in their organization create content that will reflect the values and beliefs of their brand.
Once you have uploaded your organizations brand fonts into the SharePoint brand center, you will be able to create a font package that can later be applied to your SharePoint sites and Viva Connections desktop experiences. A font package contains the configuration of how you want your fonts to be utilized within your content.
Font packages in the SharePoint brand center
Microsoft has provided a set of 8 font packages that can be used without uploading custom fonts into the Brand center to transform your sites and experiences.
You can include 2 font families into your font package and then select 4 font styles to assign to the font package slots. Headline, title, content, and interactive will determine which fonts and styles are used in your content.
SharePoint includes custom font support for the following areas (September 2024):
Site header – site title
Quick links web part
Hero web part
All web part titles (From Microsoft)
Link web part
Hub header – hub title
Button web part
Sites web part
Countdown timer web part
Organization chart web part
Navigation (hub and site) – links and labels
Dashboard for Viva Connections
People web part
Events web part
Site activity web part
News web part
Image web part
Call to action web part
Highlighted content web part
Weather web part
Page title region
Section heading
Text web part (RTE)
Image gallery web part
World clock web part
Viva Connections includes custom font support for the following areas:
Using color can transform the look of your sites and experiences and we are excited to introduce a new way to create and manage themes within the SharePoint brand center. You can use this new tool to create your organization’s themes without needing PowerShell. Any existing themes created in your tenant via PowerShell will remain available and manageable with PowerShell.
Theme creation in the SharePoint brand center
Creating themes in the SharePoint brand center will make these themes available for your organization to use in the Change the look experience.
Copilot in PowerPoint using your organization’s brand library
When working with Copilot and PowerPoint you have two options to utilize your organization’s brand content in your presentations.
By using Copilot with your organization’s branded templates, you can create presentations that look tailored for your information. Copilot will try it’s best to create beautiful presentations with your content, but by following the best practices outlined in the linked documentation you will have the best chance to be successful.
Once you have a presentation or if you are creating a presentation on your own and would like to use your organization’s images you can also make use of Copilot to select images. With a few simple steps, you can ask Copilot to find images from your organization with a simple conversation.
When creating video content Clipchamp makes it easy to provide all of your organization’s brand assets in one simple package called a Brand kit. It is now possible to create brand kits for your organization and distribute them to your enterprise users. Organization brand kits are available in Clipchamp
Am a keen follower of Microsoft's SharePoint Blog and proud to provide this direct from the Microsoft Tech Community:
SharePoint site templates come in all shapes and sizes, save time and address numerous scenarios, and provide an opportunity to programmatically adhere to your organization’s preferred custom site creation policies.
Using a template when creating SharePoint sites improves efficiency and helps standardize site creation. While templates provide a starting point, they are customizable to adapt them to specific needs of a project or team. As your organization grows, templates make it easier to deploy new sites quickly and efficiently, with governance to ensure features and settings comply with organizational policies or industry regulations.
Select “+ Create site” on the SharePoint start page and choose between a Team site or a Communication site (pictured). Then, select the template that you want to use to create your new site – out-of-the-box or custom.
At their core, SharePoint site templates contain pre-populated pages, page templates, news post templates, themes, and web parts. When you create a site, you choose from either a Communication site or a Team site, and then select the site template that matches your desired outcome. You will find numerous site templates available directly within the service, ready to use. You can create and deploy your own custom site templates – for reuse within your tenant. And take advantage of custom PnP site templates from GitHub – implemented via PowerShell.
This article aims to highlight what’s possible, share what’s new, and clarify where and how you get, deploy, and use SharePoint site templates in Microsoft 365.
Use and adopt SharePoint site templates directly from SharePoint service within Microsoft 365.
Much of what we’ve learned about SharePoint site templates, and developed for use in production, now resides within the Microsoft 365 commercial service – meaning many of the deployable site templates are now available to choose from during the standard, out-of-the-box + Create site process – in SharePoint. These templates make it easy to create a SharePoint site. They demonstrate the art of what’s possible with design-focused layouts and content to save you time (and heartache ).
To get a broad overview of what’s available, review the SharePoint Look Book page – now hosted on adoption.microsoft.com (recently updated; more on the original look book website below). This page highlights the value of each site and breaks down what gets created for you when applying the various templates. And we published an important related Help article to learn how to apply and customize SharePoint site templates, including several guided walkthroughs to familiarize yourself with how to create sites for your organization. Below are two site template examples:
IT help desk (Team site template)
The ‘IT help desk’ template helps manage technical requests, track devices, and share training materials.
Learning central (Communication site template)
The ‘Learning central’ template provides a landing experience for your organization’s learning opportunities.
As with all our other Microsoft-provided site templates, these are automatically available in SharePoint tenants and can be applied by users with site owner permissions or higher. When you create a new site, you will be asked if you’d like to use a template. Select Browse templates to see Microsoft templates and templates from your organization. Additionally, we’ve released the site template history panel. Site owners will be able to access the Site information panel from within Settings, and then select View template history. A history of all site templates previously applied to the site will then be displayed. Selecting an entry will display all site script actions and if they ran successfully or encountered errors. Whether you’re creating a new site or applying a template to an existing site, navigate to Settings and then select Apply a site template.
Custom templates made by your organization using site scripts will display in the site template gallery based on the type of site a user chose to start with – either a communication site or team site. Therefore, it is likely that all the custom site templates will not appear in the site template gallery at once. Soon, users will have the ability to choose to view all custom site templates in the From your organization tab regardless of the type of site chosen.
Site templates provided by your organization will appear in the From your organization tab when selecting a template type. Customization instructions will vary depending on the site template design. Review customization resources below to learn more about site personalization options.
You can create site templates to provide reusable lists, themes, layouts, pages, or custom actions so that your users can quickly build new SharePoint sites with the features they need. Learn more about how to create custom site templates for your organization.
Deploying scenario-based solutions with custom PnP site templates from the GitHub repository.
Explore additional scenario-based solutions with custom PnP* site templates found in the GitHub repository. Several custom site templates exist for you to utilize and are standardized for how to implement into your own environment using PowerShell.
The following video by Microsoft MVP, Paolo Pialorsi, shows you how to provision custom PnP site templates from the GitHub repository, in this instance using the example of the ‘Learning Pathways’ site template. Watch now:
The move away from the original lookbook.microsoft.com website.
Previously, Microsoft maintained a website at lookbook.microsoft.com – where tenant admins could select scenario-based templates and deploy them – from this website directly into their own tenant. The website’s DNS registration has expired and no longer resolves. We understand this is not ideal. Going forward, Microsoft is investing in the SharePoint Look Book page on adoption.microsoft.com; we created a new aka.ms link: aka.ms/SharePointLookBook to take you directly to this page.
The SharePoint Look Book page on adoption.microsoft.com is our primary destination to display SharePoint site templates, including ones you can find in GitHub and provision using PowerShell.
I would like to thank two Microsoft MVPs and community members, Tracy van der Schyff and Marc Anderson – for sharing their thoughts and insights with everyone during this change. We aim to highlight the value of SharePoint site templates and improve Microsoft change management communications. Here are what Tracy and Marc published in support of adding clarity during this update:
In summary, templates serve as a blueprint for creating new SharePoint sites, ensuring that they are set up quickly, consistently, and with best practices in mind. They offer a balance between uniformity and customization, making it easier to manage and scale SharePoint environments within an organization.
We hope the above helps you get informed in all the ways SharePoint site templates help you save time and ground what SharePoint can do for you and your organization – be it through use site templates from within the service, custom site templates you create and deploy, or if you benefit from custom site templates from the GitHub repository.
Discover what’s possible, save time, and remember: Make it your own. SharePoint site templates are a map; you are the trailblazing guide!
Thanks, Mark Kashman, Senior Product Manager – Microsoft
The Microsoft 365 commercial support team resolves customer support cases and provides support to help you be successful and realize the full potential and value of your purchase. Our support services extend across the entire lifecycle and include pre-sales, onboarding and deployment, usage and management, accounts and billing, and break-fix support. We also spend a considerable amount of time working to improve the supportability of Microsoft 365 services to reduce the number of issues you experience as well as minimize the effort and time it takes to resolve your issues if they do occur.
Exchange Online Protection (EOP) and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (MDO) provide cumulative layers of email security that include multiple threat policies. Some organizations choose our quick, “set-and-forget” preset policies, while others choose to customize their email threat policies for different sets of users, groups, domains and business requirements.
In Microsoft Customer Service and Support (CSS), we often hear from administrators who create custom policies and find it challenging to determine which threat policy applied to a user or a message, especially if the recipient is part of multiple groups or policies. Consistent and effective policy management can lower administrator overhead, confusion, and even security risks, (e.g. bad emails being delivered to users due to overrides, or good emails being blocked because of aggressive blocks.) With that, we’re happy to announce two new tools to help you diagnose policy issues quickly and efficiently!
Introducing: Email Threat Policy Diagnostic for a Recipient
Run the Email Threat Policy Diagnostic as an administrator in any admin portal (Microsoft 365 Admin Center, Microsoft Defender XDR, Exchange Admin Center, Compliance portal, etc.).
Provide a Network Message ID and a recipient address for the Email Threat Policy diagnosticto show which policies applied when the message was received, and what policies covered the recipient.
Example 1: Testing Safe Links user exclusions
Your organization has three Safe Links policies defined. Joe works in the Threat Intelligence department, which commonly requires access for testing malicious links from email messages in a virtual environment. You decide to exclude Joe from Custom and Built-in policies to skip Safe Links processing.
Figure 1: Safe Links policies screen in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal
Figure 2: Safe Links policy details and exclusions in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal
Figure 3: Safe Links policy details and exclusions in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal
Upon further testing, Joe still sees Safe Links applied to email messages with malicious URLs. After you collect a Network Message ID from Joe’s last test message, run the Email Threat Policy diagnostic. In this example, we will use these two pieces of input:
Figure 4: Email Threat Policy Diagnostic in Microsoft Defender XDR portal – input
Figure 5: Email Threat Policy Diagnostic in Microsoft Defender XDR portal – results.
From the results, you’ll learn that the Standard Preset Security policy applied to this message. This is because Standard and Strict preset security policies take precedence over any custom and built-in policies and apply to your entire organization. To learn more about policy order and processing, see https://aka.ms/mdoorder.
Solution and validation:
Since your organization requires a higher degree of customizations, you decide to turn the Standard Preset Security policy Off .
Now that you only have two policies remaining (Custom and Built-in), and Joe is excluded from both, new test messages go through bypassing Safe Links.
Example 2: Testing why anti-malware policies fire on excluded attachments
You have multiple malware filtering policies that block different file attachments. The Custom malware policy is your latest policy that blocks all media file types, such as .mov,.mp4 and .mp3.
Figure 6: Anti-malware policies screen in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal
Joe stopped getting voicemail messages. You know your voicemail provider uses an .mp3 file type and upon investigation, you find these messages are quarantined unexpectedly. You collect the Network Message ID and recipient address and run the Email Threat Policy diagnostic to verify which policy is applied to the message.
Solution and validation:
Since the custom policy was recently defined to block all media file types, you decide to modify the policy and remove .mp3 from the list of restricted file types. To confirm, you can run the diagnostics using the Network Message ID from the quarantine, provide Joe’s recipient address, and find out that the “Custom Malware policy” applies.
Email Threat Policy Diagnostic in Microsoft Defender XDR portal – input and results.
Email Threat Policy Diagnostic in Microsoft Defender XDR portal – input and results.
Why Network Message ID (NMID)?
A network message ID is a unique message ID value that persists across copies of the message that may be created due to bifurcation or distribution group expansion. Here’s what one looks like in message headers:
When providing a recipient, use an Exchange Online (Microsoft 365) mailbox which received the message. If a message was sent to a group, trace the message to the individual recipient first, and then provide the recipient Network Message ID.
The diagnostic also works for outbound messages and similarly requires the Network Message ID and the recipient address.
In addition to threat policies applied to the message, this diagnostic can also be used to help you troubleshoot which inbound connector was used to receive the message. This information is available in extended message trace reports, but it is surfaced in the results for your quick reference, which is helpful if you’re using multiple connectors and inbound routing configurations.
Tip: Other self-help diagnostics are available for Exchange Online, Outlook and Microsoft Defender for Office 365. While these diagnostics can’t make any changes to your tenant without your consent, they offer insights into known issues and provide instructions to fix those issues quickly.
Introducing: Threat Policy Checker PowerShell Script Requirements: No parameters are required to perform general inclusion logic checks. Provide a recipient address for the policies scoped to a particular user.
Use the Threat Policy Checker Scriptto identify and resolve policy inconsistencies, and to ensure threat policies in your organization apply as intended. The script performs several checks to help you find inconsistencies in user membership and policy application without needing to provide a specific Network Message ID. If issues are found, the script provides guidance on how to resolve them. It can help with such questions as
Are there confusing policies with conditions that lead to unexpected coverage or coverage gaps?
Which threat policies apply to a recipient, or should have applied but did not? No actual detection or Network Message ID needed.
Which actions would be taken on an email for each policy matched?
The script only runs in “Read” mode from Exchange Online and Microsoft Graph PowerShell. It does not modify any policies, and only provides actionable guidance for administrators for remediation.
Run the script without any parameters to review all threat protection policies and to find inconsistencies with user inclusion and/or exclusion conditions.
PS C:UsersxDesktop> .MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1
MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1 script version 24.08.02.1321
Connected to EXO
Session details
Tenant Id: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
User: Joe@contoso.com
No logical inconsistencies found!
Script Output 1:‘No Logical inconsistencies found’ message if the policies are configured correctly, and no further corrections are required.
PS C:UsersxDesktop> .MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1
MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1 script version 24.08.02.1321
Connected to EXO
Session details
Tenant Id: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
User: Joe@contoso.com
Policy Custom antispam policy:
Type: Anti-spam Policy.
State: Enabled.
Issues:
-> Illogical inclusions of Users and Groups.
The policy will only apply to Users who are also members of any Groups you have specified.
This makes the Group inclusion redundant and confusing.
Suggestion: use one or the other type of inclusion.
Script Output 2: Inconsistencies found in the antispam policy named ‘Custom antispam policy‘, and consequent recommendations shown — illogical inclusions as both users and groups are specified. This policy will only apply to the users who are also members of the specified group.
-IncludeMDOPolicies
Add the parameter-IncludeMDOPolicies to view Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Safe Links and Safe Attachments policies:
MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1 script version 24.08.02.1321
Connected to EXO
Session details
Tenant Id: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
User: Joe@contoso.com
Connected to Graph
Session details
TenantID: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
Account: Joe@contoso.com
Policies applied to Joe@contoso.com…
Malware:
Name: Custom Malware Policy
Priority: 0
Anti-phish:
Default policy
Anti-spam:
Default policy
Outbound Spam:
Default policy
For both Safe Attachments and Safe Links:
Name: Standard Preset Security Policy
Priority: 0
Script Output 3: Parameters -EmailAddress and -IncludeMDOPoliciesEOP specified to validate Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Safe Attachments and Safe Links policies, on top of Exchange Online Protection policies.
-ShowDetailedPolicies
To see policy details, run the script with the -ShowDetailedPolicies parameter:
MDOThreatPolicyChecker.ps1 script version 24.08.02.1321
Connected to EXO
Session details
Tenant Id: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
User: Joe@contoso.com
Connected to Graph
Session details
TenantID: aaaaaaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaaaaaaa
Account: Joe@contoso.com
Policies applied to Joe@contoso.com…
Malware:
Name: Custom Malware Policy
Priority: 0
Properties of the policy that are True, On, or not blank:
EnableFileFilter: True
FileTypeAction: Reject
FileTypes: ace apk app appx ani arj bat cab cmd com deb dex dll docm elf exe hta img iso jar jnlp kext lha lib library lnk lzh macho msc msi msix msp mst pif ppa ppam reg rev scf scr sct sys uif vb vbe vbs vxd wsc wsf wsh xll xz z txt
QuarantineTag: AdminOnlyAccessPolicy
RecommendedPolicyType: Custom
IsValid: True
Guid: ff6ba341-625a-4a0b-b32a-65e5625a6627
Anti-phish:
Default policy
Properties of the policy that are True, On, or not blank:
Enabled: True
ImpersonationProtectionState: Automatic
EnableMailboxIntelligence: True
TargetedUserProtectionAction: NoAction
TargetedUserQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
MailboxIntelligenceProtectionAction: NoAction
MailboxIntelligenceQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
TargetedDomainProtectionAction: NoAction
TargetedDomainQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
AuthenticationFailAction: MoveToJmf
SpoofQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
EnableSpoofIntelligence: True
EnableViaTag: True
EnableUnauthenticatedSender: True
HonorDmarcPolicy: True
DmarcRejectAction: Reject
DmarcQuarantineAction: Quarantine
RecommendedPolicyType: Custom
IsValid: True
Guid: bf512d2b-bc3b-4843-a01c-433a02fd6bab
Anti-spam:
Default policy
Properties of the policy that are True, On, or not blank:
QuarantineRetentionPeriod: 15
TestModeAction: None
MarkAsSpamEmptyMessages: Test
MarkAsSpamBulkMail: On
MarkAsSpamNdrBackscatter: On
IsDefault: True
HighConfidenceSpamAction: Quarantine
SpamAction: Quarantine
BulkThreshold: 7
ZapEnabled: True
InlineSafetyTipsEnabled: True
BulkSpamAction: MoveToJmf
PhishSpamAction: MoveToJmf
IntraOrgFilterState: Spam
HighConfidencePhishAction: Quarantine
RecommendedPolicyType: Custom
SpamQuarantineTag: Notification policy
HighConfidenceSpamQuarantineTag: Notification policy
PhishQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
HighConfidencePhishQuarantineTag: AdminOnlyAccessPolicy
BulkQuarantineTag: DefaultFullAccessPolicy
IsValid: True
Guid: 191b78dc-9221-4a2c-b51c-208a186e931a
Outbound Spam:
Default policy
Properties of the policy that are True, On, or not blank:
IsDefault: True
ConfigurationType: HostedOutboundSpamFilterPolicy
ActionWhenThresholdReached: BlockUser
RecommendedPolicyType: Custom
AutoForwardingMode: On
Guid: 5a6504d0-b3e8-4dda-8060-94e03f9813c6
IsValid: True
For both Safe Attachments and Safe Links:
Name: Standard Preset Security Policy
Priority: 0
Preset policy settings are not configurable but documented here:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/recommended-settings-for-eop-and-office365#microsoft-defender-for-office-365-security
Script Output 4: Parameters -EmailAddress,-IncludeMDOPolicies, and -ShowDetailedPolicieslist all EOP and MDO policies applied to a user and their full details.
* Please read the disclaimer when running the script. The scripts are not supported under any Microsoft standard support program or service. The sample scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. Please use GitHub to report issues to the developers.
We hope these tools help you evaluate and diagnose issues related to the order and precedence of email protection policies better. Do you have questions or feedback about Microsoft Defender for Office 365? Engage with the community and Microsoft experts in theDefender for Office 365 forum.
Alex Hudish is a Senior Supportability Program Manager in the Customer Service & Support (CSS) Supportability Team focused on Security and Microsoft Defender for Office 365
Ross_Parkelis a Senior Technical Support Escalation Engineer in Customer Service & Support (CSS) focused on Security and Microsoft Defender for Office 365.
Mithun_Rathinamis a Senior Technical Support Escalation Engineer in Customer Service & Support (CSS) Beta Team focused on Security and Microsoft Defender for Office 365
Marc Nivens is a Senior Technical Support Embedded Escalation Engineer on the Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Team.
Microsoft 365 offers the cloud-backed apps, security, and storage that customers worldwide rely on to achieve more in a connected world – and lays a secure foundation for leveraging generative AI to go even further. Investing in our cloud productivity solutions and the AI-powered innovation they support will continue to be Microsoft’s priority.
Still, we know that some customer scenarios require a different approach. Some devices must never be connected to the internet; others need to remain unchanged for years at a time. We remain committed to supporting our customers and these scenarios. Earlier this year, we offered a public preview of Microsoft Office Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) 2024. Today, we’re announcing the general availability of this next perpetual version of Office for commercial and government customers.
An updated solution for specialized needs
Office LTSC 2024 offers a locked-in-time version of familiar productivity tools, updated with a subset of the features that have been added to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise over the last three years. New features for this release include Dynamic Charts and more than a dozen new text and array functions in Excel, enhanced search and meeting creation options in Outlook, and improvements to performance, security, and accessibility. Learn more about what’s new.
Office LTSC 2024 will besupported forfive yearsunder theFixed Lifecycle Policy, and – like prior versions – will be deployable alongside Microsoft 365 Apps using a common set of tools to enable customers to more easily manage hybrid environments. Learn more about how to deploy and manage Office LTSC at Overview of Office LTSC 2024.
Choosing the best productivity suite for your organization
While Office LTSC 2024 offers many significant improvements over the previous Office LTSC release, as an on-premises product it does not include the cloud-based capabilities of Microsoft 365 Apps, like real-time collaboration, AI-driven automation, or cloud-backed security and compliance capabilities. And for customers who need additional flexibility on deployment and connectivity – but not a fully disconnected solution – Microsoft 365 has options that can help. For example, device-based licensing can simplify management of Microsoft 365 Apps in settings like computer labs or hospitals where devices are shared by many users. And extended offline access can be used to maintain access to Microsoft 365 Apps on devices that need to be disconnected from the internet for up to six months at a time. Microsoft 365 (or Office 365) is also required to subscribe to Microsoft 365 Copilot; as a disconnected product, Office LTSC does not qualify.
Microsoft 365 Apps [1]
Office LTSC 2024
Apps included
Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive, Microsoft Access (Windows Only), Microsoft Publisher (Windows Only) [2], Sway, Microsoft Forms
Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneDrive, OneNote, Microsoft Access (Windows Only) [3]
Internet connection required for activation, license validation, and internet-based functionality. Extended offline access available to enable devices to stay disconnected for up to six months at a time.
No internet connection required
Embracing the future of work
Microsoft 365 offers the most secure, productive, and cost-effective solution for most organizations, and positions customers to unlock the transformative power of AI with Microsoft 365 Copilot. Especially as we approach the end of support for Office 2016 and Office 2019 on October 14, 2025, we encourage customers still using these solutions to transition to a Microsoft 365 subscription that suits their needs as a small business or a larger organization. And for scenarios where that is not possible – where a disconnected, locked-in-time solution is required – this new release reflects our commitment to supporting that need.
Learn more
Office LTSC 2024 is available to existing commercial and government volume-licensed customers today, along with new on-premises versions of Project and Visio. These products will be generally available to all customers on October 1. We will share more about Office 2024 for consumers in the coming weeks. For more information about Office LTSC 2024 and how it compares to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, please visit the Office LTSC plan comparison page. If your organization is ready to take the next step toward the AI-powered future, find out how to get started with Microsoft 365 today.
Notes:
[1] Applies to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise and Microsoft 365 Apps for business. All Microsoft 365 and Office 365 suites that include desktop apps also include everything listed here – and more. Learn about the available options.
[3] Microsoft Access is included only with Office LTSC Professional Plus.
[4] Microsoft 365 Copilot may not be available for all markets and languages. To purchase, customers must have a qualifying Microsoft 365 plan for enterprise or business.
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