Microsoft SC-900 is a certification exam that validates a candidate’s understanding of basic cloud concepts and Microsoft’s cloud services, including Azure, Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365, and Power Platform. The exam is intended for business professionals and non-technical individuals who want to understand the fundamentals of cloud computing and how Microsoft’s cloud offerings can help their organizations achieve their goals. Successful candidates will have a solid understanding of cloud concepts such as cloud computing models, cloud security, and compliance, as well as knowledge of Microsoft’s cloud products and services.
Microsoft SC-900 Glossary
Here are some key terms and definitions that may be useful to know for the Microsoft SC-900 exam:
- Cloud computing: Refers to the delivery of computing services over the internet, including storage, processing, and software.
- Public cloud: A cloud computing environment that is owned and operated by a third-party cloud provider, such as Microsoft Azure.
- Private cloud: A cloud computing environment that is owned and operated by a single organization and is not shared with other organizations.
- Hybrid cloud: A cloud computing environment that combines elements of public and private clouds, allowing organizations to use both for different purposes.
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): A cloud computing model that provides virtualized computing resources over the internet, including servers, storage, and networking.
- Platform as a Service (PaaS): A cloud computing model that provides a platform for developing, deploying, and managing applications without the need to manage the underlying infrastructure.
- Software as a Service (SaaS): A cloud computing model that provides software applications over the internet, typically on a subscription basis.
- Microsoft Azure: Microsoft’s cloud computing platform that provides a wide range of services and tools for building, deploying, and managing applications and services in the cloud.
- Dynamics 365: A cloud-based business application platform that includes tools for managing customer relationships, financials, operations, and more.
- Microsoft 365: A suite of cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools that includes Office 365, Windows 10, and Enterprise Mobility + Security.
Microsoft SC-900 Exam Guide
Here are some official resources that can help you prepare for the Microsoft SC-900 exam:
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Learn is a free, interactive learning platform that provides a variety of resources and training modules for the Microsoft SC-900 exam. Access Microsoft Learn here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/sc-900
- Official Exam Page: Microsoft’s official exam page provides a detailed overview of the SC-900 exam, including exam topics, skills measured, and exam objectives. You can also find information about the registration process, exam format, and policies. Access the official exam page here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/sc-900
- Microsoft Community: The Microsoft Community is a platform for users to ask and answer questions related to Microsoft products and services. You can find forums dedicated to the SC-900 exam, where you can ask questions and get answers from other users and Microsoft experts. Access the Microsoft Community here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/topics/sc-900.html
- Practice Exam: Microsoft offers a practice exam that simulates the format and content of the actual SC-900 exam. Access the practice exam here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/learning/exam-sc-900.aspx
- Microsoft Official Courseware: Microsoft Official Courseware provides a range of training materials for the SC-900 exam, including online courses, e-books, and instructor-led training. Access Microsoft Official Courseware here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/learning/exam-sc-900.aspx
Microsoft SC-900 Exam Tips and Tricks
Here are some tips and tricks that can help you prepare for the Microsoft SC-900 exam:
- Understand the Exam Objectives: The first step to preparing for any exam is to understand the exam objectives. Review the exam objectives and skills measured on the official exam page to identify the key areas you need to focus on.
- Use Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Learn provides free, interactive learning modules and hands-on labs that can help you gain the knowledge and skills needed to pass the SC-900 exam. Make use of these resources to reinforce your understanding of the exam topics.
- Review the Azure Documentation: The Azure documentation provides detailed information on Azure services, solutions, and features. Review the documentation to gain a deeper understanding of the topics covered in the exam.
- Take Practice Exams: Microsoft offers a practice exam that simulates the format and content of the actual SC-900 exam. Take the practice exam to assess your readiness and identify areas where you may need to focus your study efforts.
- Join the Microsoft Community: Join the Microsoft Community to ask questions and get answers from other users and Microsoft experts. This can help you gain insights into the exam and get tips and tricks from people who have already taken the exam.
- Take Your Time: The SC-900 exam is not timed, so take your time to read each question carefully and ensure you understand what is being asked. Don’t rush through the exam, and take breaks if you need to.
Microsoft SC-900: Quick Cheat Sheet
To pass the Microsoft SC-900 exam, it is critical to begin preparing with good resources and in a step-by-step manner. This quick guide contains all of the necessary study resources that you can use to recap everything as well as identify any topics or sections that have been overlooked. So, let’s get started.
Get Familiar with Exam Objectives
The SC-900 exam objectives will provide you with in-depth information about the various concepts and topics. Furthermore, having a good understanding of the exam topics will allow you to align yourself more deeply with the exam’s major objectives. The following are the objectives for this exam –
Describe the Concepts of Security, Compliance, and Identity (10—15%)
Describe security and compliance concepts
- describe the shared responsibility model (Microsoft Documentation: shared responsibility model, Shared responsibility in the cloud)
- define defense in depth (Microsoft Documentation: What is defense in depth?)
- describing the Zero-Trust model (Microsoft Documentation: zero-trust methodology)
- Describe encryption and hashing (Microsoft Documentation: Describe security and compliance concepts)
- Describe Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) concepts
Define identity concepts
- define identity as the primary security perimeter (Microsoft Documentation: Identity as the primary security perimeter)
- defining authentication (Microsoft Documentation: Authentication vs. authorization)
- define authorization (Microsoft Documentation: Authentication vs. authorization)
- describing identity providers (Microsoft Documentation: Identity Providers for External Identities)
- Describe the concept of directory services and Active Directory
- describe the concept of Federation (Microsoft Documentation: federation with Azure AD)
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra (25—30%)
Describe the basic identity services and identity types of Microsoft Entra ID
- describing Microsoft Entra ID
- describe types of identities
- describing hybrid identity (Microsoft Documentation: concept of hybrid identities)
Describe the authentication capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID
- describing the authentication methods (Microsoft Documentation: authentication and verification methods)
- describing Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD Multi-Factor Authentication, Configure Azure AD Multi-Factor Authentication settings)
- describe password protection and management capabilities (Microsoft Documentation: password protection and management capabilities of Azure AD, Eliminate bad passwords using Azure Active Directory Password Protection, Enforce on-premises Azure AD Password Protection for Active Directory Domain Services)
Describe access management capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID
- describing conditional access (Microsoft Documentation: Define Conditional Access)
- Describe Microsoft Entra roles and role-based access control (RBAC)
Describe the identity protection and governance capabilities of Microsoft Entra
- describe Microsoft Entra ID Governance
- Describe access reviews (Microsoft Documentation: Azure AD entitlement management, Azure AD access reviews)
- Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM) (Microsoft Documentation: capabilities of Privileged identity Management)
- Describe Entra ID Protection
- Describe Microsoft Entra Permissions Management
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Security Solutions (35—40%)
Describe core infrastructure security services in Azure
- Describe Azure distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) Protection (Microsoft Documentation: Azure DDoS Protection Standard)
- describing Azure Firewall (Microsoft Documentation: Azure Firewall)
- describing Web Application Firewall (WAF) (Microsoft Documentation: Azure Web Application Firewall)
- Describe Network Segmentation with Azure Virtual Networks
- Describe Network Security groups (NSGs) Network security groups)
- describe Azure Bastion (Microsoft Documentation: Azure Bastion)
- Describe Azure Key Vault
Describe security management capabilities of Azure
- Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Defender for Cloud)
- Describe Cloud security posture management (CSPM) (Microsoft Documentation: Manage cloud platform security)
- Describe how security policies and initiatives improve the cloud security posture
- Describe the enhanced security features provided by cloud workload protection
Describe security capabilities of Microsoft Sentinel
- Define the concepts of security information and event management (SIEM) and security orchestration automated response (SOAR) (Microsoft Documentation: concepts of SIEM, SOAR)
- Describe threat detection and mitigation capabilities in Microsoft Sentinel
Describe threat protection with Microsoft Defender XDR
- describe Microsoft Defender XDR services
- describe Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (Microsoft Documentation: Office 365 Security, Microsoft Defender for Office 365)
- describing Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint)
- Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps overview)
- describing Microsoft Defender for Identity (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Defender for Identity)
- Describe Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management
- Describe Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence (Defender TI)
- Describe the Microsoft Defender portal (Microsoft Documentation: Visit the Microsoft 365 Defender portal)
Describe the Capabilities of Microsoft Compliance Solutions (20—25%)
Describe Microsoft’s Service Trust Portal and privacy principles
- Describe the Service Trust Portal offerings (Microsoft Documentation: Get started with Microsoft Service Trust Portal)
- Describe the privacy principles of Microsoft (Microsoft Documentation: Privacy overview)
- Describe Microsoft Priva
Describe the compliance management capabilities of Microsoft Purview
- Describe the Microsoft Purview compliance portal (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Purview compliance portal)
- describing compliance manager (Microsoft Documentation: Microsoft Compliance Manager)
- describe use and benefits of compliance score (Microsoft Documentation: Understanding your compliance score)
Describe information protection, data lifecycle management, and data governance capabilities of Microsoft Purview
- describing data classification capabilities (Microsoft Documentation: Know your data – data classification, data classification capabilities in the Microsoft 365 Compliance Center)
- describe the benefits of content explorer and activity explorer (Microsoft Documentation: activity explorer, content explorer)
- describing sensitivity labels and sensitivity label policies (Microsoft Documentation: sensitivity labels)
- describing Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (Microsoft Documentation: Overview of data loss prevention, Data loss prevention)
- describe Records Management (Microsoft Documentation: records management in Microsoft 365)
- Describe retention policies, retention labels, and retention label policies (Microsoft Documentation: retention policies and retention labels)
- Describe unified data governance solutions in Microsoft Purview
Describe insider risk, eDiscovery, and audit capabilities in Microsoft Purview
- describe Insider risk management (Microsoft Documentation: insider risk management in Microsoft 365)
- Describe eDiscovery solutions in Microsoft Purview
- Describe audit solutions in Microsoft Purview
SC-900 Learning Resources
Refer to these resources for the best learning experience and to ace the exam in one go!
Microsoft Learning Platform
Microsoft provides access to learning platforms for the SC-900 exam that cover a variety of resources to help you prepare for the exam. Furthermore, to pass the Microsoft SC-900 Exam, visit the Microsoft official website to obtain all of the necessary information as well as an understanding of the concepts through the provided study guide.
Microsoft Docs
Microsoft documentation is a powerful source of knowledge that has been developed to provide detailed information about all certification exams. Furthermore, by using Microsoft Documentation for Microsoft SC-900 Exam, you will learn about the various scales of this exam. This also includes modules that will help you learn a lot about the concepts covered in the Microsoft SC-900 Exam.
Online Study Groups
Microsoft SC-900 exam online study groups can be extremely beneficial to candidates during exam preparation. That is, joining study groups will allow them to stay in touch with experts and professionals who are already on this path. Furthermore, you can begin discussing your exam-related question or issue in this group and take the Microsoft SC-900 Exam study notes.
Practice Tests
Practice tests are essential for better preparation. You will learn about your weak and strong points by assessing yourself with Microsoft SC-900 practice exam tests. Furthermore, you will be able to improve your answering skills, which will save you a significant amount of time during the exam. The best way to take the Microsoft SC-900 practice tests is to first complete a full topic and then attempt the mock tests. This will also help your revision. So, look for the best practice exam tests and get ready for the Microsoft SC-900 Exam.
Bonus Tip!
After practising and consulting appropriate resources, you are now prepared to take the exam. Keep your cool and patience while taking the exam. The significance of time management in exam preparation cannot be overstated. As a result, we recommend that you prepare for the SC-900 Exam regularly. Ideally, you should study at the same time every day. Make sure there are no distractions when studying.
