00 — Teams Fundamentals

Based on: Microsoft Teams Admin Documentation

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🗺 Overview

mindmap
  root((Teams Fundamentals))
    M365 Integration
      SharePoint Online
      OneDrive for Business
      Exchange Online
      Microsoft Entra ID
      Microsoft Purview
    Teams Architecture
      Client Apps
      Teams Service
      Backend Services
      Data Residency
    Licensing
      M365 Business Plans
      M365 Enterprise Plans
      Teams Phone Licenses
      Add-on Licenses
    Admin Portals
      Teams Admin Center
      M365 Admin Center
      Entra Admin Center
      SharePoint Admin Center
      Purview Compliance Portal
    Identity & Access
      Entra ID Integration
      Conditional Access
      MFA
      Guest Access

🏗️ Microsoft Teams Architecture

How Teams Fits into Microsoft 365

Microsoft Teams is the hub for teamwork in Microsoft 365. It integrates deeply with other M365 services, and understanding these dependencies is critical for the MS-700 exam.

M365 Service	Relationship with Teams
SharePoint Online	Stores files shared in channels; each team gets a SharePoint site
OneDrive for Business	Stores files shared in 1:1 and group chats
Exchange Online	Provides calendar, meeting scheduling, and mailbox for teams
Microsoft Entra ID	Identity provider — authentication, Conditional Access, guest access
Microsoft Purview	Compliance — DLP, retention, sensitivity labels, eDiscovery
Microsoft Defender XDR	Threat protection — Safe Links, Safe Attachments for Teams
Power Platform	Extensibility — Power Apps, Power Automate workflows in Teams

flowchart TD
    TEAMS["Microsoft Teams"]
    SPO["SharePoint Online\n(Channel files)"]
    ODB["OneDrive for Business\n(Chat files)"]
    EXO["Exchange Online\n(Calendar, mailbox)"]
    ENTRA["Microsoft Entra ID\n(Identity, access)"]
    PURVIEW["Microsoft Purview\n(Compliance)"]
    DEFENDER["Microsoft Defender XDR\n(Threat protection)"]

    TEAMS --> SPO
    TEAMS --> ODB
    TEAMS --> EXO
    TEAMS --> ENTRA
    TEAMS --> PURVIEW
    TEAMS --> DEFENDER

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

Teams files in channels are stored in SharePoint Online, not OneDrive

Teams files in 1:1 / group chats are stored in the sender’s OneDrive for Business

A team’s mailbox and calendar are provided by the underlying Microsoft 365 group in Exchange Online

🔑 Where Teams Stores Content

Content Type	Storage Location
Channel messages	Azure Cosmos DB (Teams service)
Channel files	SharePoint Online (team site document library)
Chat messages	Azure Cosmos DB (Teams service)
Chat files	OneDrive for Business (sender’s account)
Meeting recordings	OneDrive (non-channel) or SharePoint (channel meeting)
Voicemail	Exchange Online (user mailbox)
Wiki content	SharePoint Online (team site)
Calendar events	Exchange Online (group mailbox)
Teams app data	Varies by app (Dataverse, SharePoint, or third-party)

📜 Licensing Overview

Core Plans That Include Teams

Plan	Teams Included	Key Differences
Microsoft 365 Business Basic	Yes	Web/mobile apps only, 300-user limit
Microsoft 365 Business Standard	Yes	Desktop apps + web/mobile, 300-user limit
Microsoft 365 Business Premium	Yes	+ Advanced security (Defender, Intune)
Microsoft 365 E3	Yes	Enterprise — unlimited users, advanced compliance
Microsoft 365 E5	Yes	+ Audio Conferencing, Phone System, advanced analytics
Microsoft 365 F1/F3	Yes	Frontline worker plans — limited features
Office 365 E1/E3/E5	Yes	Legacy plans — still valid

Key Add-on Licenses

Add-on	Purpose
Teams Phone Standard	PSTN calling capabilities (auto-attendants, call queues)
Audio Conferencing	Dial-in numbers for meetings
Teams Rooms Pro/Basic	Meeting room device management
Teams Premium	Advanced meeting features (watermarks, custom branding, Copilot)
Microsoft 365 Copilot	AI-powered experiences in Teams meetings and chat
Communication Credits	Pay-per-minute for toll-free and international dial-out

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

M365 E5 includes Audio Conferencing and Phone System — no separate license needed

M365 E3 does NOT include Phone System — requires a Teams Phone Standard add-on

Teams Premium is a separate add-on even for E5 customers

🖥️ Admin Portals

Portal	URL	Primary Use for Teams
Teams Admin Center	admin.teams.microsoft.com	Teams policies, devices, meetings, calling, apps
M365 Admin Center	admin.microsoft.com	User/license management, M365 group settings
Microsoft Entra Admin Center	entra.microsoft.com	Identity, Conditional Access, guest settings, B2B
SharePoint Admin Center	admin.sharepoint.com (via M365)	External sharing settings affecting Teams files
Microsoft Purview	compliance.microsoft.com	DLP, retention, sensitivity labels, eDiscovery
Microsoft Defender	security.microsoft.com	Threat policies, Safe Links, Safe Attachments

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

Guest access configuration spans multiple portals — Entra (B2B), Teams admin center, SharePoint, and M365 admin center

External sharing for files in Teams channels is controlled in SharePoint admin center, not the Teams admin center

Conditional Access policies are configured in Entra admin center, not Teams admin center

👤 Teams Administrator Roles

Role	Scope
Teams Administrator	Full access to Teams admin center — manages all Teams settings, policies, and devices
Teams Communications Administrator	Manages calling and meeting features — voice, phone numbers, meeting policies
Teams Communications Support Engineer	Access to advanced call analytics and troubleshooting tools
Teams Communications Support Specialist	Access to basic call analytics (per-user)
Teams Devices Administrator	Manages Teams device configuration and profiles
Global Administrator	Full access to everything (use sparingly — least-privilege principle)

flowchart TD
    GA["🔑 Global Administrator\n(Full access)"]
    TA["🔧 Teams Administrator\n(All Teams settings)"]
    TCA["📞 Teams Communications\nAdministrator\n(Calling & meetings)"]
    TCSE["🔍 Teams Communications\nSupport Engineer\n(Advanced analytics)"]
    TCSS["👤 Teams Communications\nSupport Specialist\n(Basic analytics)"]
    TDA["📱 Teams Devices\nAdministrator\n(Device management)"]

    GA --> TA
    GA --> TCA
    TA --> TCA
    TCA --> TCSE
    TCA --> TCSS
    TA --> TDA

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

The exam frequently tests least-privilege — choose the most restrictive role that can complete the task

Teams Communications Support Specialist can only see per-user call analytics, NOT tenant-wide

Teams Communications Support Engineer can see all user call analytics and advanced troubleshooting

🔧 PowerShell & Microsoft Graph

Teams PowerShell Module

# Install the module
Install-Module -Name MicrosoftTeams -Force

# Connect
Connect-MicrosoftTeams

# Common cmdlets
Get-Team
Get-TeamUser -GroupId <GroupId>
New-Team -DisplayName "Project Alpha" -Visibility Private
Add-TeamUser -GroupId <GroupId> -User user@domain.com -Role Member
Set-TeamChannel -GroupId <GroupId> -CurrentDisplayName "General" -NewDisplayName "Main"

Microsoft Graph API

Endpoint	Purpose
`GET /teams`	List teams
`POST /teams`	Create a team
`GET /teams/{id}/channels`	List channels
`POST /teams/{id}/channels`	Create a channel
`GET /teams/{id}/members`	List members
`GET /communications/callRecords`	Call quality data

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

PowerShell and Microsoft Graph are both valid for bulk operations — know when each is appropriate

Creating a team from an existing M365 group uses New-Team -GroupId <existingGroupId>

Microsoft Graph is required for some advanced scenarios like reading call records

🌐 Network Fundamentals for Teams

Key Ports and Protocols

Protocol	Port Range	Purpose
HTTPS	TCP 443	Signaling, authentication, file transfer
UDP	3478–3481	Real-time media (audio, video, screen sharing)
TCP	80	HTTP fallback
STUN/TURN	UDP 3478	NAT traversal for media

Bandwidth Requirements (Per User)

Scenario	Minimum Bandwidth
Audio call (1:1)	~30 kbps
Video call (1:1, 720p)	~1.5 Mbps
Video call (1:1, 1080p)	~2.5 Mbps
Screen sharing	~200 kbps
Large meeting (video gallery)	~2.5–4 Mbps

⚠️ Exam Caveat:

UDP is preferred for real-time media — if UDP is blocked, Teams falls back to TCP, resulting in degraded quality

Microsoft 365 network connectivity test tool and Network Planner in the Teams admin center are used to assess readiness

Know the difference between Network Planner (capacity planning) and Network Assessment Tool (connectivity testing)

📚 Further Reading

Resource	Link
Teams Admin Documentation	Microsoft Teams Admin Docs
Teams Architecture Diagrams	Teams Architecture Overview
Teams Licensing	Teams Licensing Guide
Network Readiness	Prepare Network for Teams

Next → 01 — Configure & Manage a Teams Environment

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