Exam MS-102: Microsoft 365 Administrator

If you’re a dedicated administrator responsible for deploying and managing Microsoft 365, as well as overseeing tenant-level implementation in both cloud and hybrid environments, Exam MS-102 is tailored to validate your skills and expertise.

To excel in Exam MS-102, candidates are expected to possess functional experience across all Microsoft 365 workloads and familiarity with Microsoft Entra ID. The prerequisite includes having administered at least one of these workloads. Additionally, a solid understanding of networking, server administration, DNS, and PowerShell is crucial for a comprehensive grasp of the exam content.

Examining your capability to serve as the central integrating hub for Microsoft 365 workloads, this certification evaluates your competence in navigating the intricate landscape of cloud and hybrid environments. Mastery in coordination across multiple workloads is a key focus, emphasizing the holistic role of a Microsoft 365 Administrator.

Success in Exam MS-102 not only signifies your proficiency in current Microsoft 365 administration practices but also positions you as a valuable asset in the ever-evolving landscape of cloud and hybrid technologies. As a candidate, your readiness to tackle challenges in infrastructure, security, compliance, and more is a testament to your comprehensive skill set in Microsoft 365 administration.

Key Responsibilities of a Microsoft 365 Administrator:

As a Microsoft 365 administrator, you play a pivotal role in the seamless integration and coordination of various workloads within the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.
Your responsibilities extend to collaboration with architects and fellow administrators, covering a spectrum of areas such as workloads, infrastructure, identity, security, compliance, endpoints, and applications.

Target Audience:

This exam is for those in charge of setting up and handling Microsoft 365. If you’re the person who manages how Microsoft 365 works and deals with both cloud and hybrid setups, this is the right test for you. To take this exam, you should have hands-on experience with Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Entra ID, having managed at least one of them. Plus, you should know a bit about:

Networking
Running servers
DNS

Exam Details

The Microsoft MS-102 exam has 40-60 questions.
- These questions can be different types, like scenarios where you pick one answer, multiple-choice questions, putting things in order, dragging and dropping, and marking for review.
To pass, you need a score of 700 or higher.
The exam is available only in English and costs $165 USD.

Exam Course Outline

Getting ready for the exam involves having a good grasp of the course outline, which acts as a roadmap for mastering important skills and knowledge. Exploring the exam curriculum ensures a thorough understanding of the topics. Now, let’s look into the main parts of the MS-102 exam.

1. Deploy and manage a Microsoft 365 tenant (15–20%)

Implement and manage a Microsoft 365 tenant

Create a tenant (Microsoft Documentation: Create a new tenant in Microsoft Entra ID)
Implement and manage domains (Microsoft Documentation: Add a domain to Microsoft 365)
Configure org settings, including Security & privacy and Organizational profile (Microsoft Documentation: Add your organization’s privacy info to Microsoft Entra)
Identify and respond to service health issues
Configure and review Network connectivity insights
Monitor adoption and usage (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Adoption Score)
Configure and manage Microsoft 365 Backup

Manage users and groups

Create and manage users in Microsoft Entra, including external users and guests
Create and manage contacts in the Microsoft 365 admin center
Create and manage groups, including Microsoft 365 groups and shared mailboxes
Manage and monitor Microsoft 365 licenses, including group-based licensing (Microsoft Documentation: View Microsoft 365 licenses and services with PowerShell)
Perform bulk user management, including PowerShell (Microsoft Documentation: Create Microsoft 365 user accounts with PowerShell)

Manage roles and role groups

Implement and manage built-in roles in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Entra
Implement and manage custom roles in Microsoft Entra admin center
Manage role groups in Microsoft Defender XDR, Microsoft Purview, and Microsoft 365 workloads
Manage delegation by using administrative units
Manage roles in Microsoft Entra privileged identity management

2. Implement and manage Microsoft Entra identity and access (25–30%)

Implement and manage identity synchronization with Microsoft Entra tenant

Prepare for identity synchronization by using IdFix (Microsoft Documentation: Prepare for identity synchronization to Microsoft 365)
Implement and manage directory synchronization by using Microsoft Entra Connect cloud sync (Microsoft Documentation: What is Microsoft Entra Cloud Sync?)
Implement and manage directory synchronization by using Microsoft Entra Connect (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Entra Connect Sync: Understand and customize synchronization)
Monitor synchronization by using Microsoft Entra Connect Health (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with Microsoft Entra Connect Health)
Troubleshoot synchronization, including Microsoft Entra Connect and Microsoft Entra Connect cloud sync (Microsoft Documentation: Troubleshoot object synchronization with Microsoft Entra Connect Sync)

Implement and manage authentication

Implement and manage authentication methods (Microsoft Documentation: Passwordless authentication options for Microsoft Entra ID)
Implement and manage self-service password reset (SSPR) (Microsoft Documentation: Enable users to unlock their account or reset passwords using Microsoft Entra self-service password reset)
Implement and manage Microsoft Entra Password Protection (Microsoft Documentation: Enable on-premises Microsoft Entra Password Protection)
Investigate and resolve authentication issues

Implement and manage secure access

Plan for identity protection (Microsoft Documentation: What is Identity Protection?)
Implement and manage Microsoft Entra ID Protection (Microsoft Documentation: Configure and enable risk policies)
Plan Conditional Access policies
Implement and manage Conditional Access policies (Microsoft Documentation: Create a device-based Conditional Access policy)
Implement and manage multi-factor authentication (MFA) by using conditional access policies (Microsoft Documentation: Set up multifactor authentication for Microsoft 365)

3. Manage security and threats by using Microsoft Defender XDR (35–40%)

Review and respond to security reports and alerts generated by Microsoft Defender XDR

Review and take actions to improve the Microsoft Secure Score (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Secure Score)
Review and respond to security incidents and alerts (Microsoft Documentation: Incident response with Microsoft 365 Defender)
Review and respond to issues identified in security and compliance reports (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 Defender portal)
Review and respond to threats identified in threat analytics (Microsoft Documentation: Threat analytics in Microsoft 365 Defender)

Implement and manage email and collaboration protection by using Microsoft Defender for Office 365

Implement policies and rules in Defender for Office 365
Review and respond to threats identified in Defender for Office 365, including threats and investigations (Microsoft Documentation: Threat investigation and response)
Create and run campaigns, such as attack simulation (Microsoft Documentation: Get started using Attack simulation training)
Unblock users (Microsoft Documentation: Remove blocked users from the Restricted entities page)

Implement and manage endpoint protection by using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Onboard devices to Defender for Endpoint (Microsoft Documentation: Configure Microsoft Defender for Endpoint capabilities)
Configure Defender for Endpoint settings (Microsoft Documentation: Manage endpoint security policies in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint)
Review and respond to endpoint vulnerabilities (Microsoft Documentation: Use Intune to remediate vulnerabilities identified by Microsoft Defender for Endpoint)
Review and respond to risks identified in the Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management dashboard (Microsoft Documentation: What is Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management)

Implement, and manage Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

Configure the app connector for Microsoft 365
Configure Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps policies
Review and respond to Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps alerts
Interpret activity log
Configure Cloud App Discovery
Review and respond to issues identified in Cloud App Discovery

4. Manage compliance by using Microsoft Purview (15–20%)

Implement Microsoft Purview information protection and data lifecycle management

Implement and manage sensitive info types by using keywords, keyword lists, or regular expressions (Microsoft Documentation: Create custom sensitive information types in the compliance portal)
Implement retention labels, retention label policies, and retention policies (Microsoft Documentation: Learn about retention policies and retention labels)
Implement sensitivity labels and sensitivity label policies (Microsoft Documentation: Apply a sensitivity label to content automatically)
Monitor label usage by using Content explorer, Activity explorer, and label reports

Implement Microsoft Purview data loss prevention (DLP)

Configure DLP policies for Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams
Configure Endpoint DLP
Review and respond to DLP alerts, events, and reports (Microsoft Documentation: Get started with the data loss prevention Alerts dashboard)

Exam MS-102: Microsoft 365 Administrator FAQs

Check FAQs here!

Exam Policies

All the info about the exam, like how it works, is in the Microsoft Certification exam policies. It’s important to follow these rules during the exam or when you’re at the test center. Let’s check out a couple of them:

Trying the Exam Again: If you don’t pass the first time, wait for 24 hours before trying again. During this time, you can pick a new exam date on the certification dashboard. For the second try, there’s a 14-day wait. After the third attempt, there are 14-day waits between each try. You can only give it a shot five times a year, and the 12-month period starts from your first attempt.
Changing Exam Date or Cancelling: If you need to change or cancel your exam, make sure to do it at least 24 hours before your scheduled time. If you do it less than 24 hours before, you’ll lose the money you paid for the exam. Also, if your company got a voucher for you, they might face penalties if you change or cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice.

Study Guide for Microsoft MS-102 Exam

1. Understanding Exam Objectives

To kickstart your prep for the Microsoft MS-102 exam, it’s key to grasp the exam goals. These objectives dive into essential topics that make up the heart of what you should understand. The exam checks your technical skills in accomplishing the following tasks:

Deploy and manage a Microsoft 365 tenant (25–30%)
Implement and manage identity and access in Microsoft Entra ID (25–30%)
Manage security and threats by using Microsoft 365 Defender (25–30%)
Manage compliance by using Microsoft Purview (15–20%)

2. Microsoft Learning Paths

Microsoft provides unique learning paths with study modules to gear you up for your exams. For a complete guide and study materials for the MS-102 test, head over to the official Microsoft website. The modules in this course not only deepen your knowledge of the subjects but also ensure you ace the exams. Here’s what the learning path for the test entails:

Configure your Microsoft 365 tenant

For more: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/configure-microsoft-365-tenant/

Modules Covered:

Configure your Microsoft 365 experience
Manage users, licenses, and mail contacts in Microsoft 365
Manage groups in Microsoft 365
Add a custom domain in Microsoft 365
Configure client connectivity to Microsoft 365

Manage your Microsoft 365 tenant

For more: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/manage-your-microsoft-365-tenant/