M365 Weekly Newsletter
Issue #214
☁️Productivity & Modern Workplace
Dragging Images in Word: Why It Can Backfire. Dragging images in Microsoft Word can disrupt your document’s layout and stability. Instead of dragging, adjust the image’s text wrapping to “Square” or “In Front of Text” for better control. Use Word’s alignment guidelines and always verify the image’s position settings to prevent unexpected shifts when editing your document.
Difference Between ‘Sync’ and ‘Add Shortcut to OneDrive’. ‘Sync’ downloads SharePoint files to your device for offline access, consuming local storage and allowing real-time updates. It’s ideal for smaller libraries or guest users. ‘Add Shortcut to OneDrive’ links files directly in OneDrive without local storage use, providing cloud access across devices. More details in the article.
The Best Way to Clean Up HTML from Microsoft Word. Copying HTML from Microsoft Word often results in bloated, messy code that complicates web formatting. AI tools like ChatGPT or Copilot simplify this by transforming Word’s cluttered HTML into clean, standard code. Prompts inside.
☁️Copilot & AI
Copilot Isn’t Becoming a Marketplace. It’s Becoming the Broker. Microsoft Copilot is evolving from a tool offering AI choices to a curated intelligence broker. It routes tasks to the most suitable AI model, like Claude, based on context, not user preference. This approach shifts focus from model selection to workflow efficiency, centralizing trust and governance within Microsoft’s infrastructure. The result? AI becomes a seamless, task-specific layer in your work environment.
Helping our employees when Microsoft 365 Copilot says, ‘No, you can’t do that’. Microsoft 365 Copilot blocks certain prompts to ensure compliance with Responsible AI principles, protecting users and content. To work effectively, avoid prompts that mislead, violate copyright, or generate unsafe content.
M365 Copilot will proactively RSVP to meetings based on your instructions. Microsoft 365 Copilot will soon handle meeting RSVPs and remove cancelled events in Outlook based on your preferences. You can set rules like accepting invites from specific people or managing after-hours meetings. Notifications and logs will track Copilot’s actions. This feature, available for new and web Outlook users with Copilot licenses, is already rolling out.
☁️Sysadmin Stuff
Updated Exchange Online SMTP AUTH Basic Authentication Deprecation Timeline.
UTCM: New Way to Monitor Microsoft 365 Tenant Config Changes. Microsoft has updated its timeline for deprecating SMTP AUTH Basic Authentication in Exchange Online. Detailed timeline in the article.
Portals for Microsoft 365 (Version 2.00). Portals started as a simple tool to manage Microsoft Teams guest accounts but evolved into a multi-tenant launcher for various Microsoft portals. After six years, it was rebuilt from scratch to address outdated technology and improve usability. The creator poured dedication into modernizing it, ensuring a faster, more reliable experience for handling multiple authentication contexts seamlessly.
☁️Security & Data Governance
10 Ways to Prevent Microsoft Teams Sprawl. Microsoft Teams sprawl arises when unchecked creation of teams, channels, and resources leads to clutter and inefficiency. Risks include duplicate content, security exposure, uncontrolled guest access, higher costs, and administrative burden.
Why Ex‑Employee OneDrive Data Never Dies in Microsoft 365 (and How to Fix It). Ex-employee OneDrive data can persist indefinitely if governance isn’t carefully designed. That’s probably something you don’t want.
☁️Noteworthy (long)reads
There’s a rash of scam spam coming from a real Microsoft address. Scammers are misusing a legitimate Microsoft Power BI email address to send deceptive emails that appear credible. These emails claim false charges and direct victims to call a number, where attackers attempt to gain remote access to devices. Microsoft has temporarily disabled the exploited feature, but the scam highlights the risks of trusted platforms being weaponized for social engineering. Stay vigilant.
☁️On a Less Serious Note
☁️ We value your feedback!
How much are you enjoying this issue? Please give us your feedback so we can improve.
If you have any suggestions, just reply and leave us your message.
☁️ Last but not least …
Here are a few things you can do if you enjoyed reading this newsletter:
- Become a subscriber: m365 Weekly Newsletter Subscribe
- Explore past issues: m365 Weekly Newsletter Archive.
- Get in touch / Share cool M365 or other stuff: matic@m365weekly.com