The MS-100 exam is a certification exam offered by Microsoft that measures the candidate’s ability to manage Microsoft 365 services. This exam is designed for individuals who are responsible for managing and deploying Microsoft 365 services in their organization.
Many IT professionals who are preparing for the MS-100 exam often wonder how hard the exam is and what it takes to pass. In this blog post, we will explore the difficulty level of the MS-100 exam and provide some tips and resources to help you prepare for and pass the exam.
Whether you are a seasoned IT professional or a newcomer to Microsoft 365 services, this blog post will provide valuable insights into the MS-100 exam and help you navigate the certification process with confidence. So, let’s dive in and explore the world of the MS-100 exam!
What is Microsoft MS-100 Exam?
Microsoft 365 Identity and Services (MS-100) exam is for candidates who are Microsoft 365 Enterprise Administrators with abilities to evaluate, plan, migrate, deploy, and manage Microsoft 365 services. They are responsible for performing various Microsoft 365 tenant management tasks for an enterprise, including its identities, security, compliance, and supporting technologies.
Moreover, for every exam, there is some knowledge requirement as covered below
Microsoft MS-100 Glossary
Here is a glossary of terms related to Microsoft MS-100:
- Azure Active Directory (Azure AD): Microsoft’s cloud-based identity and access management service, used to manage user identities and access to resources.
- Conditional access: A policy-based access control feature in Azure AD that allows administrators to set conditions for accessing specific resources.
- Device Management: A feature of Microsoft Endpoint Manager that enables administrators to manage and monitor Windows 10, iOS, and Android devices.
- Directory Synchronization: The process of synchronizing on-premises Active Directory objects with Azure AD.
- Exchange Online: Microsoft’s cloud-based email and calendaring service, part of the Microsoft 365 suite.
- Federation: A mechanism used to establish trust between two different identity providers, allowing users to authenticate across different systems.
- Hybrid Identity: The combination of on-premises Active Directory and cloud-based Azure AD, providing users with a single identity across both environments.
- Identity Management: The process of managing user identities and their associated permissions across an organization.
- Intune: A cloud-based service that allows organizations to manage and secure their devices, apps, and data.
- Microsoft 365: A suite of cloud-based productivity and collaboration applications, including Office 365, Windows 10, and Enterprise Mobility + Security.
Exam preparation resources for Microsoft MS-100
Microsoft MS-100 is an exam that certifies a candidate’s skills in managing Microsoft 365 identities and services. Here are some exam preparation resources and links for MS-100:
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Learn is a free platform that provides interactive learning resources for Microsoft products and services. The MS-100 certification is included in the Microsoft Learn courses. You can access the MS-100 learning path here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/ms-100
- Exam Ref MS-100 Microsoft 365 Identity and Services: This official Microsoft exam reference guide provides information on managing Microsoft 365 identities and services. It includes exam tips, practice exercises, and exam-style questions. You can purchase it here: https://www.microsoftpressstore.com/store/exam-ref-ms-100-microsoft-365-identity-and-services-9780135565715
- MeasureUp: MeasureUp provides practice exams for MS-100. These practice exams include exam-style questions and simulate the actual exam environment. You can access the practice exams here: https://www.measureup.com/catalog/product/view/id/2668/s/ms-100-microsoft-365-identity-and-services/
- LinkedIn Learning: LinkedIn Learning is a platform that provides video courses on various topics, including Microsoft 365. The MS-100 certification is included in the LinkedIn Learning courses. You can access the MS-100 course here: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/exam-prep-microsoft-365-identity-and-services-ms-100/welcome?u=2191620
- Microsoft 365 Certified: Enterprise Administrator Expert: This certification includes MS-100 and other related exams. Microsoft provides official documentation on this certification, which includes the exam objectives and preparation resources. You can access the certification documentation here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/enterprise-administrator
- YouTube: There are many YouTube channels that provide exam preparation resources for MS-100. Some popular channels include Microsoft Mechanics and Microsoft 365. Here’s a link to the Microsoft 365 channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/Microsoft365/featured
These resources will help you prepare for the MS-100 exam. Good luck with your studies!
MS-100 Exam Prerequisites
- Firstly, you must have a working knowledge of Microsoft 365 workloads.
- Secondly, you must have been an administrator for at least one Microsoft 365 workload (Exchange, SharePoint, Skype for Business, or Windows as a Service).
- Thirdly, working knowledge of networking, server administration, and IT fundamentals such as DNS, Active Directory, and PowerShell.
Microsoft MS-100 Exam Format
Before we set our foot right, it’s important to rain-check for all exam-related details to move forward. Therefore, you must have an overview of the exam format to see what you’ll face on the exam day. The Microsoft MS-100 exam questions will range between 40-60 questions. To complete the exam, candidates will get 180 minutes. The types of questions that candidates can face in the exam include scenario-based single answer questions, multiple-choice questions, arrange in the correct sequence type questions, drag & drop questions, mark review, drag, and drop, etc. However, to pass the exam, a candidate has to score a minimum of 700 or more. To apply for the exam, the examination fee is $165 USD including taxes. And, candidates can give the exam in English and the Japanese language.
MS-100 Exam Outline
Understanding the course outline of Microsoft MS-100 exam is the next important step. It familiarises you with the exam framework. The exam course includes 4 domains. The Percentage against each domain represents its weightage in the exam. Also, these domains are divided into subtopics to provide further insights about the exam course. You should tailor your study plan around these exam topics to achieve this certification. Moreover, the Course Outline has been updated for 2023.
The course Outline for the Microsoft MS-100 exam was updated on February 3, 2023
1. Deploy and manage a Microsoft 365 tenant (15—20%)
Plan and implement a Microsoft 365 tenant
- plan a tenant (Microsoft Documentation: Plan your tenant in Microsoft 365)
- create a tenant (Microsoft Documentation: Set up your Microsoft 365 tenant)
- implement and manage domains (Microsoft Documentation: Add a domain to Microsoft 365)
- configure organizational settings, including security, privacy, and profile (Microsoft Documentation: Use policy settings to manage privacy controls)
Monitor Microsoft 365 tenant health
- create and manage service requests (Microsoft Documentation: Manage service requests in Service Manager)
- create an incident response plan (Microsoft Documentation: Incident response planning)
- monitor service health check (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 service health)
- monitor application access (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 Apps monitoring)
- configure and review reports, including Azure Monitor logs and Log Analytics workspaces (Microsoft Documentation: Create a Log Analytics workspace)
- schedule and review usage metrics, including Microsoft Viva Insights and Adoption Score
2. Plan and manage user identity and roles (30—35%)
Plan identity synchronization
- design synchronization solutions for multitenant and multi-forest scenarios (Microsoft Documentation: Topologies for Azure AD Connect)
- evaluate whether objects should be synchronized, not synchronized, or created as cloud-only (Microsoft Documentation: One or more objects don’t sync, End-to-end troubleshooting of Azure AD)
- identify which Azure AD Connect features to enable, such as writeback and device synchronization (Microsoft Documentation: Custom installation of Azure Active Directory Connect)
- identify synchronization pre-requisites, including connectivity method, permissions, and server requirements (Microsoft Documentation: Set up directory synchronization for Microsoft 365)
- choose between Azure AD Connect and Azure AD Connect cloud sync
- plan user sign-in for Azure AD hybrid identities, including pass-through authentication, seamless, and SSO (Microsoft Documentation: Choose the right authentication method, Azure Active Directory Seamless Single Sign-On)
Implement and manage identity synchronization with Azure AD
- prepare for identity synchronization by using IdFix (Microsoft Documentation: Prepare for identity synchronization to Microsoft 365)
- configure and manage directory synchronization by using Azure AD Connect cloud sync (Microsoft Documentation: Create a new configuration for Azure AD)
- configure and manage directory synchronization by using Azure AD Connect
- configure Azure AD Connect object filters (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD Connect sync: Configure filtering)
- monitor synchronization by using Azure AD Connect Health (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD Connect)
- troubleshoot Azure AD Connect synchronization (Microsoft Documentation: Understanding errors during Azure AD synchronization)
Plan and manage Azure AD identities
- plan Azure AD identities (Microsoft Documentation: Determine your cloud identity model)
- create and manage users (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 user accounts)
- create and manage guest users (Microsoft Documentation: Manage groups guest access)
- create and manage groups, including Microsoft 365 groups (Microsoft Documentation: Manage who can create Microsoft 365 Groups)
- manage and monitor Microsoft 365 license allocations (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)
Plan and manage roles in Microsoft 365
- plan for role assignments (Microsoft Documentation: Roles for Microsoft 365 services in Azure Active Directory)
- manage roles in Microsoft 365 admin center (Microsoft Documentation: admin roles in the Microsoft 365 admin center)
- manage administrative units (Microsoft Documentation: Administrative units in Azure Active Directory)
- plan and implement privileged identity management for Azure AD roles (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD Privileged Identity Management)
3. Manage access and authentication (20—25%)
Plan and implement authentication
- choose an authentication method, including Windows Hello for Business, passwordless, and tokens (Microsoft Documentation: Passwordless authentication options for Azure Active Directory)
- implement and manage authentication methods (Microsoft Documentation: authentication and verification methods)
- implement and manage self-service password reset (SSPR) (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD SSPR)
- implement and manage Azure AD password protection (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD Password Protection for Active Directory Domain Services)
- configure and manage multi-factor authentication (MFA) (Microsoft Documentation: Set up multifactor authentication for Microsoft 365)
- investigate and resolve authentication issues (Microsoft Documentation: Troubleshoot Azure Multi-Factor Authentication issues)
Plan and implement secure access
- plan and implement access reviews in Azure AD identity governance (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD access reviews)
- plan and implement entitlement packages in Azure AD identity governance (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD entitlement management)
- plan for identity protection (Microsoft Documentation: Identity Protection)
- implement and manage Azure AD Identity Protection (Microsoft Documentation: Manage Azure AD Identity Protection)
- plan conditional access policies (Microsoft Documentation: Conditional Access)
- implement and manage conditional access policies
Plan and implement application access
- plan access and authentication to application registrations and Azure AD enterprise applications (Microsoft Documentation: applications application management in Azure Active Directory)
- configure application registration in Azure AD (Microsoft Documentation: Register an app with Azure Active Directory)
- manage user permissions for application registrations (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD built-in roles)
- manage OAuth application requests in Azure AD, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, and Microsoft 365 Defender (Microsoft Documentation: OAuth app policies)
- configure Azure AD Application Proxy (Microsoft Documentation: Using Azure AD Application Proxy)
- publish enterprise applications in Azure AD (Microsoft Documentation: Submit a request to publish your application)
4. Plan Microsoft 365 workloads and applications (20—25%)
Plan and implement Microsoft 365 Apps deployment
- plan for client connectivity to Microsoft 365 workloads (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 network connectivity principles)
- plan Microsoft 365 App compatibility by using the Readiness Toolkit (Microsoft Documentation: Use the Readiness Toolkit to assess application compatibility)
- plan for Microsoft 365 Apps updates (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of the update process for Microsoft 365 Apps)
- specify initial configuration for Microsoft 365 Apps by using the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center (Microsoft Documentation: Set up Microsoft 365 Apps for business)
- implement Microsoft 365 Apps deployment and software downloads (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center)
Plan and implement Exchange Online deployments
- plan for DNS records required by Exchange Online (Microsoft Documentation: External Domain Name System records for Office 365)
- plan and implement an Exchange hybrid organization (Microsoft Documentation: Exchange Server hybrid deployments)
- plan and implement mail routing, including connectors, mail flow rules, and remote domains (Microsoft Documentation: Set up connectors to route mail between Microsoft 365)
- plan and implement organizational settings (Microsoft Documentation: Plan and manage organizational settings with Exchange Online)
Plan and implement Microsoft SharePoint Online, OneDrive, and Microsoft Teams
- specify SharePoint site types, site collections, and lists (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of sites and site collections in SharePoint Server)
- plan a migration strategy for SharePoint Online and OneDrive (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of the SharePoint Migration Tool (SPMT))
- identify hybrid requirements for SharePoint Online (Microsoft Documentation: Hardware and software requirements for SharePoint hybrid)
- manage access configurations for SharePoint Online and Microsoft Teams (Microsoft Documentation: Manage sharing settings)
- manage SharePoint Online tenant and site settings (Microsoft Documentation: SharePoint Online tenant properties)
- map Phone System features to requirements (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft 365 and Office 365 platform service description)
- plan and implement organizational settings (Microsoft Documentation: Plan and manage organizational settings with Exchange Online)
- plan, implement, and manage guest and external access (Microsoft Documentation: Guest users in Microsoft 365 admin center)
How hard is the Microsoft MS-100 exam?
The Microsoft MS-100 exam is an intermediate-level exam. It helps you bridge the gap for your dream job and reach new heights in your career. Now is the time to address the most important question- How hard is the Microsoft MS-100 exam? This questions literally translates to how hard you need to prepare to pass the exam.
It is well known that Microsoft Certifications are highly valued and therefore passing the exam is not very easy. Your preparations require a lot of extra effort, hard work, and dedication. The course is quite vast and you need to be thorough with the exam concepts. As not all topics are easy to learn you should firstly focus on your weaker areas. This will strengthen your preparations and boost your confidence. You just need the right resources to set you on the path for your exam.
We look forward to helping you achieve your certification and make it easier by providing you access to the best preparatory resources in the next section.
Microsoft MS-100 Study Guide
The resources you choose define your preparations. As a matter of fact, there are various resources to choose from. This makes it difficult to select authentic and genuine ones. But don’t worry as we have the list of the right resources you must refer to ace the exam.
Microsoft Learning Platform
The learning resource that will be beneficial during the exam preparation is the Microsoft learning platform. However, make sure to go through the official website of Microsoft. For the MS-100 exam, it would be best to first go through the Microsoft official website to get authentic information about the exam.
Microsoft Documentations
After that, you can move on to Microsoft documentation where you can easily understand the concepts. Moreover, you also get to know the different scales of different Microsoft services. Microsoft Docs consists of modules that will help you gain a lot of knowledge about Microsoft 365 and its services.
Instructor-led Training
Microsoft provides Instructor-led training that covers central elements of Microsoft 365 enterprise administration. here, you will be able to understand the key components that must be planned for when designing your Microsoft 365 tenant. Moreover, you will learn to manage tenants that include the configuration of tenant roles and managing your tenant health and services. However, this MS-100 training course will help you in your preparation includes:
MS-100 Online Tutorials
Online Tutorials are easy to digest and really helpful in your preparations. They provide in-depth information about the exam and help you in mastering the exam concepts.
Reference MS-100 Books
Those who are dedicated to passing the exam know the importance of books during the time of preparation. However, while studying for the exam books can be really helpful to understand the core of the topics. You can take the books available in the market that will help in studying for the MS-100 exam. The Microsoft Exam MS-100 Study Guide will help you to demonstrate the skills and knowledge needed to effectively design, deploy, manage, and secure Microsoft 365 services.
Evaluate yourself with MS-100 Practice Exam
Reviewing your preparations is an important step in your journey towards the exam. Through mock tests, you can gain real time experience of the exam. These timed tests help you assess your weaker areas. Moreover, they help you identify your loopholes and reduce the chances of your mistakes on the day of the exam. It is suggested that you take practice tests once you have completed the syllabus. Start practising now to boost your preparations!
