User Profile
Allen
Community ManagerJoined Sep 09, 2016
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Re: Can we get more guidance and feedback on the moderation being done on the messages
Good afternoon everyone, Firstly, thank you m_tarler it’s clear you invest real time helping others, and it’s completely understandable that it feels discouraging when a reply appears to “vanish” with no explanation. On transparency: we can share the broad shape of how moderation works, but we generally avoid publishing the specific “signals” or thresholds that drive moderation decisions. That’s simply to help protect the community and keep the platform resilient against spam and abuse patterns. (In other words: we want to be transparent without making it easier to game the system.) Thank you Surya_Narayana for the thoughtful response — you covered the key point well: moderation is a combination of automated protections and human review, and certain content can be held briefly in a review queue before it appears. To address Hornblower409 point: the Microsoft Learn Q&A site and the Microsoft Tech Community are separate properties, with different operating models and moderation implementations — so issues seen there don’t always map 1:1 to what’s happening here. Where I completely agree with you all is the lack of feedback/visibility when something is held for review. That gap can create exactly the behaviour you described — duplicate posts, because people reasonably assume the first attempt failed. We take that seriously, and we’re actively looking at how we can improve the user experience and communication around “held for review” states in upcoming sprints. On attachments for newer accounts: this restriction is primarily a security safeguard. File upload is a permissioned capability (for example, “new community member” style restrictions can apply, and capabilities like file/link/video posting are granted via roles/permissions). We also grant file upload automatically to Microsoft employees and to community members once they’ve established some history/rank on the platform. We do keep the balance under review, and your suggestion about file size/type constraints is a reasonable one — but for now, the current approach remains in place because it reduces risk to the broader community. Finally, combating spam and security threats in online communities is a bit like keeping antivirus definitions up to date: it’s continuous, adaptive work. We’re also working on better ways to leverage AI to reduce how often legitimate posts require manual review, so that human reviewers can focus on higher-risk content and (ideally) speed up review times for everyone. Thanks again for raising this and for continuing to contribute your expertise to the Microsoft Tech Community. Allen Smith Administrator1View1like2CommentsRe: MFA reset needed - lost phone and access to account with it
Hi Straume I’m really sorry you’re experiencing this. I understand how disruptive and stressful this situation has been, especially given this is your sole Microsoft 365 business account and is critical to keeping your business running. Unfortunately, issues related to account access, multi‑factor authentication (MFA), and tenant ownership verification can’t be resolved through the Microsoft Tech Community forums. Community members and moderators don’t have access to customer accounts and aren’t able to reset authentication methods, validate ownership, or intervene in sign‑in or security‑related scenarios. In cases like the one you’ve described — where access to a Microsoft 365 Business tenant is blocked due to lost Microsoft Authenticator access, and there are no other administrators available — the only supported recovery path is through Microsoft’s official support channels. What to do next (official Microsoft support) Contact Microsoft Support directly using the Microsoft 365 support experience: Start here: https://learn.microsoft.com/microsoft-365/admin/get-help-support Or use regional phone numbers listed here: https://support.microsoft.com/topic/customer-service-phone-numbers-c0389ade-5640-e588-8b0e-28de8afeb3f2 When contacting support, clearly state that this is: A Microsoft 365 Business / work account A tenant administrator sign‑in issue A multi‑factor authentication lockout And that you are the only Global Administrator for the tenant Microsoft Support will guide you through their secure recovery process, which may include validating domain ownership and billing information before access can be restored. For security and privacy reasons, this process can only be handled by Microsoft directly. I know this isn’t the outcome you were hoping for here, but I don’t want to send you down a path that can’t actually restore access. The forums simply don’t have the ability to help with account recovery scenarios like this. I genuinely hope you’re able to get this resolved as quickly as possible through Microsoft Support. Also a word of caution, if you get any one on the community via a post or a DM requesting you send documentation or any form of payment please immediately report it. Allen Smith5Views0likes0CommentsRe: Outlook Templates Using Content Controls
Sue_G Thanks for posting, unfortunately the community lounge is for questions about the Microsoft Tech Community. I will move your post to the Outlook Community, hopefully someone there will be able to assist you with your query. You could also post in the Microsoft outlook support community, which maybe better suited to help.16Views0likes0CommentsRe: How to open a formal engineering-grade problem report?
lou1234 There are a few ways to report bugs with Access: 1. Use the in app product feedback function Assuming you can open the app then do so and click the feedback button under the file menu or the person with a speech bubble at the top right next to your profile picture 2. Provide feedback via a post in the Feedback Portal Go here: Microsoft Access · Community and post your feedback (login requird). 3. go to https://m365.cloud.microsoft and click the three dots in the top right and click send feedback. You can also reach out to support via https://support.microsoft.com but it sounds like you have already been this route.8Views0likes0CommentsBefore you post - No Product Support Questions Please
The community lounge is a place for you to you provide feedback about the Microsoft Tech Community (https://techcommunity.microsoft.com). Please use the community directory to find the correct place to post about Microsoft Products / Services. Off topic posts may not be answered and maybe removed.478Views4likes8CommentsRe: Getting to the right page to "Start a discussion"
This is a great question Hornblower409 and one I am happy to answer for you. The first link: Community Lounge | Microsoft Community Hub This is the category for the Community Lounge, it contains not only discussions, blogs, Events and KBs. We call this the community hub. Its essentially a page which provides an overview of all that is happening in that space. The second link: Tech Community Discussion | Microsoft Community Hub This is the link to the discussion board, or forum if you will. This is where normal community members can post and ask questions about the Community. That said, we hear you that its not always easy to figure out how or where to post and so we will shortly be introducing a Start a discussion button on the homepage and every category page which will help you choose where to post. Eventually we plan to augment this with AI to both help answer basic questions already answered and to help community members find the best spot to post.30Views1like0CommentsRe: Email hacked - I lost total access
fiandrade , Unfortunately account hacking or take overs can only be handled by the Microsoft Support Team, you would that that journey here: How to recover a hacked or compromised Microsoft account - Microsoft Support The problem maybe is its going to push you to the form, it sounds like, you have already filled in. There is an option on that link near the bottom to speak to a support agent. You may want to try that. Hope your able to get it sorted23Views0likes0CommentsRe: How to open a formal engineering-grade problem report?
lou1234 , Thank you for posting, unfortunately who ever advised you this was incorrect. The Microsoft Tech Community is not a bug reporting or support platform. Which product are you trying to report a bug in and I will try to see if I can suggest some next steps for you that isn't simply "Contact Support". Allen19Views0likes0CommentsRe: Entra ID hacked
junaiditd , Thank you for posting, unfortunately this is not the correct route to raise this request. The Microsoft Tech Community is not an official support channel for Microsoft and we are not equipped to be able to handle the kind of private data exchange you would need to get into this. Please follow the steps here: Find help and get support for Microsoft Entra - Microsoft Entra | Microsoft Learn and if your still stuck please make a post on Microsoft Q&A. Thanks144Views0likes0CommentsRe: Why do you allow simple user questions in TechCommunity that should be in Q&A?
Thanks for raising this — it’s a fair question and one we do look at regularly. Microsoft Tech Community and Microsoft Q&A serve different but overlapping purposes, and that overlap is where some of this confusion comes from. Why user questions appear in Tech Community Tech Community is primarily intended for discussion, announcements, best practices, and peer‑to‑peer conversation around Microsoft products. However, it is also an open community platform, and many users arrive via search engines or product links without understanding the distinction between Tech Community and Microsoft Q&A. As a result: Some users post support‑style questions in Tech Community because that’s where they landed first. Some topics (like Outlook behaviour, UI changes, or configuration quirks) sit in a grey area between discussion and support. We deliberately avoid over‑restricting posting, as that tends to block genuine community engagement and first‑time contributors. Where appropriate, posts may be guided, moved, or redirected to a more suitable forum, but this is done selectively rather than automatically. On Q&A Assist and subject‑matter moderation You’re correct that Microsoft Q&A has: Dedicated subject‑matter moderators Q&A Assist and tooling that is optimised for troubleshooting and definitive answers For clearly support‑focused questions, Q&A is often the better place to get a fast, authoritative response. That said: Tech Community relies on community expertise and visibility, and many questions do get answered quickly by knowledgeable members. Not all product‑related questions are purely “support” issues — some benefit from broader discussion or shared experiences rather than a single accepted answer. We actively encourage users (and moderators) to redirect posts to Q&A when that will lead to a better outcome. What we aim to balance Our goal is to balance: Keeping Tech Community focused on discussion and knowledge sharing Ensuring users are not blocked or discouraged from asking questions Helping questions land in the best place to get answered, rather than simply closing or deleting them We appreciate feedback like this, and it helps inform how we continue to improve guidance, routing, and education for users across both platforms. If you spot posts that would clearly be better suited for Microsoft Q&A, flagging them or suggesting the alternative forum in a reply is genuinely helpful — both to the user and to the community overall.8Views0likes1CommentRe: Power Automate question - help needed.
DJBoyTino , Thank you for your post, unfortunately this area of the community is for asking questions about the Microsoft Tech Community, not about Microsoft's Product's and Services, further we don't have any community hubs for power automate as they have their own community. You would be better to post your questions here: https://community.powerplatform.com/ Thanks59Views0likes0CommentsRe: Before you post - No Product Support Questions Please
Thanks for the report, as you can see by the fact there is no pull down next to your reply it means there are no replies to show, thus the Show More button shouldn't be there. I have added this to our bug backlog for further investigation. Thanks for posting35Views0likes0CommentsRe: How can we automate a process to insert the Purview links in Dedicated SQL pool tables
MallikarjunAppani , Thanks for posting in the Microsoft Tech Community Lounge, this is a space to ask questions about the Microsoft Tech Community and we are unable to assist you with product questions here. I am happy to move this to which ever community is the most suitable, I am unsure though if its a question for the Purview Team or, perhaps more likely, one of the SQL Communities. As your an MCT its also possible you were asking other MCTs and thus it should be in the MCT Lounge. Let me know and I will move it accordingly.25Views0likes0CommentsRe: i recently installed windows 11 pro freeze then restart after boot many times
Hi, Welcome to the Microsoft Tech Community, we are not an official support channel for Microsoft Products, that said I will move your post to the Windows 11 Community to see if anyone there can help you. If not then please contact support via https://support.microsoft.com or your PC Manufacturer for assistance.42Views0likes1CommentRe: HP Pavilion 15 Turns Off When USB Device Is Connected
johnackerman, The Microsoft Tech Community is not strictly a support community, what your describing could be caused by many things but my best guess would be the e-cig is overvaulting the port and the computer is shutting down to protect itself. If you believe you maybe have a fault then you should contact HP Support or a local repair shop. I will move your post to the windows community, incase anyone else can help you though. Allen34Views0likes0CommentsConverting Youtube to Mp3 and similar styles posts
Over the last few months we have seen an increase in posts to the Microsoft Tech Community requesting help to extract or convert media hosted on 3rd party sites to mp3 files. To help keep the Microsoft Tech Community focused, secure, and compliant, we want to clarify our position on posts that request help or advice on extracting audio or video content from commercial or third‑party websites. 🚫 Why these requests are not allowed Many commercial websites explicitly prohibit the downloading, extraction, or reuse of their audio and video content without permission. Requests for assistance with bypassing, avoiding, or undermining these restrictions typically violate the Terms of Use of those services. Examples of such terms can be found here: YouTube – Terms of Service: https://www.youtube.com/t/terms Netflix – Terms of Use: https://help.netflix.com/legal/termsofuse BBC Sounds / iPlayer – Terms of Use: https://www.bbc.co.uk/terms (This list is not exhaustive; most commercial streaming and media platforms have similar restrictions.) 🧹 How these posts are handled in Microsoft Tech Community As a result: Posts requesting guidance on extracting, downloading, or reusing audio or video from commercial sites are considered off topic. Such posts will be removed and treated as spam. Repeated or serious misuse may result in further action, including restrictions or removal of access to the Microsoft Tech Community. ✅ What is in scope for the Microsoft Tech Community The Microsoft Tech Community exists to help members: Share best practices, technical examples, and real‑world experience Learn and collaborate around Microsoft products and services Discuss supported APIs, tools, and features within the bounds of applicable terms, licences, and policies If you have questions about legitimate media handling scenarios using Microsoft technologies (for example, working with content you own rights to, or using supported Microsoft services such as Azure Media Services, Stream, or Graph APIs), those discussions are welcome. 🙏 Thank you Thank you for helping keep the Microsoft Tech Community a safe, focused, and trusted place for technical collaboration. If you are unsure whether your question is appropriate, please review the community guidelines or contact a moderator before posting.29KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Genişletilmiş Güvenlik Güncelleştirmeleri
pegasusTR Thanks for posting, this is the Community lounge section of the community which is for people who have feedback or questions about the Microsoft Tech Community itself. If you can confirm which product your question is about I will move it to the correct area. Otherwise please post this in the correct area, check https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/Directory52Views0likes0Comments
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