This involves skills such as planning and configuring Teams settings, managing chat, meeting, and calling experiences, preparing the organization’s environment for a Teams deployment, and managing Teams and app policies. A fundamental part of efficiently managing Microsoft Teams is understanding how to plan policy assignments for users and groups. This article deep dives into the concept.
Understanding Policy Assignment in Microsoft Teams
In Microsoft Teams, policies define the features that are available to users. Teams includes a set of default policies, but you as an administrator can create custom policies and assign them to users, groups, or the entire organization.
Policy assignments can be done via the Microsoft Teams admin center or via PowerShell. There are different types of policies available such as Messaging Policies, Meeting Policies, App Setup Policies, Live Events Policies, and several others.
Assigning Policy Directly to Users
You can assign policy directly to users either individually or at a scale. When a policy is assigned directly to a user, that policy assignment takes precedence over a group policy assignment. Here are the steps to do this:
- In Teams admin center, select Users.
- Click the user to whom the policy will be assigned.
- Scroll down to Policies and click Edit, which is next to the policy type you want to assign.
- In Assign Policy, select the policy and click Apply.
Assigning Policy to Groups
Group policy assignment is a way of assigning policies to multiple users at once. This reduces the administrative overhead of managing large organizations. For this, Microsoft 365 group, security group, distribution list, or organizational unit can be used. Group policy assignment is currently available only for Teams app setup policy and Teams meeting policy.
To assign policy to a group, following steps can be taken:
- In Teams admin center, go to Groups that the policy will be assigned to.
- Select the group.
- Under Group Policy Assignment, click Edit.
- Select a type of policy and then in the Policies list, select the policy that you want to assign.
- Click Apply.
Prioritize Policies for Users
You can assign multiple policies of the same type to users, and prioritize which policy applies. To ensure this, you will create policy assignment rules. For example, the priority order might include that the policy directly assigned to a user takes precedence over the policy assigned to a group that the user is a part of.
It’s also important to remember that when you assign a policy to a group, it might take up to 24 hours for the policy to apply to all users in the group. After the policy is assigned to a significant number of users in the group, Microsoft Teams will stop assigning policies to the remaining users.
Effective Policy Management in Microsoft Teams
Effective policy management in Microsoft Teams requires balanced usage of direct policy assignment to users and group policy assignment. It depends on several factors including the size of your organization, administrative control you want to maintain, and specific requirements of your organization. A well-planned policy assignment will ensure seamless collaboration and productive work environment in Microsoft Teams.
As a Teams administrator preparing for the MS-700 exam, understanding and executing policy assignments is vital. It’s recommended to practice with real-world examples to familiarize yourself with varied scenarios that you might encounter in managing Microsoft Teams for your organization.
Practice Test
True/False: You cannot assign policies to individual users in Microsoft Teams.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: In Microsoft Teams, policies can be assigned directly to users. However, it’s more efficient to assign policies to groups or to use policy packages.
What is a policy package in Microsoft Teams?
- a) A collection of settings that can be applied to a user
- b) A type of group in Microsoft Teams
- c) A method of assigning roles to users
- d) None of the above
Answer: a) A collection of settings that can be applied to a user
Explanation: A policy package is a collection of predefined policies and settings that you can assign to users who have the same or similar roles in your organization.
True/False: You can assign multiple policies to a user in Microsoft Teams, and the settings from all the assigned policies apply to the user.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Each user can only have one policy of each type assigned. If multiple policies are assigned to a user, the user’s effective policy is the one that has the highest priority.
How can you prioritize multiple policies in Microsoft Teams?
- a) By giving them different priority numbers
- b) By assigning them to different users
- c) By assigning them to different groups
- d) All of the above
Answer: a) By giving them different priority numbers
Explanation: In Teams, you give policies different priority numbers. A policy assigned to an individual user takes priority over a policy assigned to a group that the user is a part of.
True/False: You cannot assign a policy package to a group in Microsoft Teams.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: You can assign a policy package to a group in Microsoft Teams. However, remember it’s a one-time operation and does not continuously enforce the policy package assignment.
What does the policy package status “Success” stand for in Microsoft Teams?
- a) The package was assigned successfully.
- b) The package is still being assigned.
- c) The package assignment failed.
- d) None of the above.
Answer: a) The package was assigned successfully.
Explanation: If the policy package status shows “Success”, it means that the package has been assigned successfully.
True/False: You can only assign policies in Microsoft Teams using the Teams admin center.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Policies can be assigned either through the Teams admin center or using PowerShell.
What type of PowerShell do you use to assign policies in Microsoft Teams?
- a) Windows PowerShell
- b) Teams PowerShell
- c) Azure PowerShell
- d) None of the above
Answer: b) Teams PowerShell
Explanation: Teams PowerShell is used to assign policies in Teams.
Single select: What feature is not controlled by policies in Microsoft Teams?
- a) Meetings
- b) Messaging
- c) Voice
- d) Personalization of user profile
Answer: d) Personalization of user profile
Explanation: Policies in Teams control features such as meetings, messaging, and voice, but not personalization of the user profile.
True/False: Once a policy is assigned to a user in Microsoft Teams, it cannot be changed.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Policies assigned to a user or group in Teams can be changed or updated when needed. The changes take effect within 24 hours.
In Microsoft Teams, the order of policy assignment from highest priority to lowest goes:
- a) Direct assignment, Group policy assignment, Global (Org-wide default) policy
- b) Global (Org-wide default) policy, Group policy assignment, Direct assignment
- c) Group policy assignment, Direct assignment, Global (Org-wide default) policy
- d) Direct assignment, Global (Org-wide default) policy, Group policy assignment
Answer: a) Direct assignment, Group policy assignment, Global (Org-wide default) policy
Explanation: This is the hierarchy in which policies are applied to a user or group in Teams. Policies are applied in the following order: direct assignment, group policy assignment, and then global (Org-wide default) policy.
True/False: For plan policy assignment, you cannot use PowerShell to assign policy packages to a batch of users.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: You can use PowerShell to assign policy packages to a batch of users, which can be very useful for larger organizations or for more complex plan policy assignments.
Single select: Which policy in Microsoft Teams can be used to define who in your organization is allowed to create new teams?
- a) Meeting policy
- b) Teams creation policy
- c) Live event policy
- d) Team template policy
Answer: b) Teams creation policy
Explanation: Teams creation policy in Microsoft Teams is specifically designed to control who in your organization is allowed to create new teams.
True/False: Plan policy assignment for users and groups offers the flexibility and granular control required for effective administration in Microsoft Teams.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: Plan policy assignment for users and groups is designed to offer flexibility and granular control. By assigning policies to different users and groups, IT administrators can control what features are available to which users.
Single select: What is the order in which policies are assigned in Microsoft Teams?
- a) User, global, group
- b) Global, group, user
- c) User, group, global
- d) Group, user, global
Answer: c) User, group, global
Explanation: Microsoft Teams assigns policies in the following order: policies directly assigned to the user, policies assigned to a group that the user is a part of, and the Global (Org-wide default) policy.
Interview Questions
What are the two ways to manage Microsoft Teams policies?
Policies in Microsoft Teams can be managed either via the Microsoft Teams admin center or through PowerShell.
What is a policy package in Microsoft Teams?
A policy package in Microsoft Teams is a collection of predefined policies and policy settings that you can assign to users who have similar roles in your organization.
How can you assign a policy directly to users in Microsoft Teams?
You can assign policies directly to users in the Microsoft Teams admin center by selecting the policy you want to manage, then select Manage users, adding the user’s name in the dialog box, and then selecting Apply.
Which command should you run in PowerShell to assign a policy to a batch of users?
To assign a policy to a batch of users you should use the “Grant-CsTeams” command followed by the policy type and the name of the policy.
How can you assign a policy package to a user via Microsoft Teams admin Center?
You can assign policy by going to Teams > Users, select the user, select “Policy packages” tab under Settings, select a package from the dropdown under Packages and select Apply.
When is a custom policy useful in Microsoft Teams?
A custom policy is useful when the available global (Org-wide default) policy in Microsoft Teams does not suit the specific needs of your organization.
How does policy assignment order affect the application of Microsoft Teams policies?
The policy assignment order determines which policy applies when a user has multiple policies assigned. The policy at the top of the assignment order list has highest priority.
What is the purpose of batch policy assignment in Microsoft Teams?
Batch policy assignment allows we to assign a policy to large sets of users in Microsoft Teams at once, instead of individually, making the process more efficient.
Can policy packages in Microsoft Teams be customized?
Yes, you can create custom policy packages where you can define your own set of policy settings in the Microsoft Teams admin center.
Can you remove a policy assignment from a user or group in Microsoft Teams?
Yes, you can remove a policy assignment from a user or group either through the Microsoft Teams admin center or by using PowerShell commands.
How many individuals can you assign a single policy to in Microsoft Teams?
You can assign a single policy individually to up to 20,000 users or groups in Microsoft Teams.
How long does it take for a policy change to take effect in Microsoft Teams?
After a policy is assigned to a user in Microsoft Teams, it can take up to 24 hours for the policy change to take effect.
What happens when a group a policy is assigned to gets deleted in Microsoft Teams?
When a group that a policy is assigned to gets deleted, the policy assignment for that group is automatically removed in Microsoft Teams.
Can I assign multiple policies to a single user in Microsoft Teams?
Yes, you can assign multiple policies to a single user but it’s important to set a policy assignment order. The policy with the highest priority in the order is the one that takes effect.
What permission do you need to assign policies to users in Microsoft Teams?
To assign policies to users in Microsoft Teams, you need to have the Teams Service Administrator role, the Global Administrator role, or custom role having the necessary permissions.