Level Up Your Security Skills This August with the Microsoft Defender Challenge and Learn Live
Security teams face an increasingly complex landscape. Threats span identities, endpoints, email, cloud workloads, and emerging AI environments. The best defenders aren't just reacting to threats—they're continuously building the skills needed to stay ahead. That's why we're inviting security practitioners to build practical security operations expertise while working toward their next certification goal. Running from July 20 through August 21, 2026, and focused on skills across Microsoft Defender XDR, Microsoft Sentinel, and Microsoft Defender for Cloud, this hands-on learning experience is the Microsoft Defender Challenge. Build Skills That Matter to the Modern SOC The Microsoft Defender Challenge isn't about memorizing content for an exam. It's designed to help you develop real-world security skills you can apply immediately in your organization. Through curated Microsoft Learn content, you'll strengthen your ability to: Detect, investigate, and respond to threats across Microsoft Defender XDR Manage incidents and automate workflows with Microsoft Sentinel Triage and remediate security alerts in Microsoft Defender for Cloud Secure cloud and AI workloads using modern security practices Improve operational readiness for today's evolving threat landscape Whether you're a SOC analyst, security engineer, cloud security practitioner, or IT professional looking to expand your security expertise, the challenge is an opportunity to sharpen skills that map directly to modern security operations. Complete the Challenge and Enter the Sweepstakes Learning is the real reward, but there's an added incentive. Participants who complete the Microsoft Defender Challenge and submit the official sweepstakes entry form by August 21, 2026 will have the opportunity to win one of 500 certification exam vouchers worth 50% off one of the following Microsoft Certifications: SC-200: Microsoft Security Operations Analyst SC-500: Microsoft Cloud and AI Security Engineer How to Enter Complete the Microsoft Defender Challenge on Microsoft Learn. Before the entry period closes, submit the official sweepstakes entry form. If selected, you'll receive instructions for redeeming your certification discount voucher. Challenge window: July 20 – August 21, 2026. Sweepstakes entry deadline: August 21, 2026 at 11:59 PM UTC. No purchase necessary. See official rules for eligibility and sweepstakes details. Join Learn Live: Remediating Threats Using Microsoft Defender Want a guided walkthrough of the skills featured in the challenge? Join a live, interactive event where you can learn directly from Microsoft experts, ask questions in real time, and explore security operations scenarios together. Save your spot for our August Learn Live session. Date: Wednesday, August 19, 2026 | Time: 12:00 PM PT / 3:00 PM ET You'll be guided by Scott Landry, Microsoft Security Customer Experience Engineering, as you explore practical approaches to investigating security incidents, managing and remediating threats across the Microsoft Defender ecosystem, automating investigations and response actions, strengthening security operations processes, and applying Microsoft Defender capabilities to real-world scenarios. Start Building Your Skills Today Ready to level up? Sign up today to take the Microsoft Defender Challenge, then join us for the Learn Live session on August 19. Your skilling journey doesn't end here—keep learning, keep growing, and keep building beyond August at the Security Hub on Microsoft Learn.
Scenario basic help please
Hi. I have a spreadsheet which calculates electricity usage and solar input etc. As the price keeps changing I am putting the new prices into the spreadsheet. I was thinking that I could use Scenarios or similar to be able to see what the bill would have been previously. I have looked at the Scenario instructions but I'm not quite sure how to use it (bit rusty in Excel recently). Is there a training video or similar I could watch. Any help gratefully received. Regards BlueyOffice Hours Follow-up: What does your event team look like?
We just wrapped up a MGCI Training and Office Hours session talking about this very topic. (Link to recording will be added when it's ready) How does your team break down roles and responsibilities for your event planning? Tell us in the comments!Join us at Microsoft 365 Copilot Discovery event in Huntsville, AL! - UPDATED LOCATION AND DATES!
The Microsoft 365 Copilot Discovery event in Huntsville, AL features hands-on demos, expert sessions, and real-world use cases showcasing AI-driven productivity, Microsoft Copilot capabilities, and modern workplace innovation. The event takes place on May 19th 2026 in Huntsville, AL.
combine multiple text into single line of text
Hi is there a way to combine all the cells into a single cell (of text) ignoring the duplicates/repeat values. i know concatenate but that function becomes very lengthy as ill have to define every cell into the function individually. is there any other function where i simply select the entire data (like an array) and it can do the required.
Getting started in Excel Labs Custom Modules (missing "publish" step)
First-time poster — please be gentle! Context Excel for Mac I have a large library of LAMBDA formulas and wanted to manage them using Excel Labs In particular, I wanted to organise formulas into custom Modules Issue How to actually activate functions defined in custom Modules in Excel Labs I recently discovered Excel Labs and was very excited to use it to manage and structure a large library of LAMBDA formulas. My goal was straightforward: create custom Modules to organise formulas by purpose, and then use those formulas in the workbook. However, it took several hours of experimentation and debugging — even to get a trivial example like: ABC() = 12 to work when defined in a custom Module. The missing piece (which Copilot, Google searches, and the README all missed) is this: Functions defined in custom Excel Labs Modules are inert until the module is imported into the special Workbook module. Until that import step occurs, functions in custom Modules: do not appear in Excel Labs → Names do not appear in Formulas → Name Manager are not callable from the grid According to Copilot this behaviour is not currently documented, and the UI strongly suggests that custom Modules are “active” by default — which they are not. Working workflow (for others who hit the same issue) This is the workflow that finally made things work for me (possibly sub‑optimal, but reliable): Create and maintain functions in custom modules (e.g. Transformations) Explicitly import the required functions into the Workbook module, e.g.: TransformAtoB = Transformations.TransformAtoB Workbook module now publishes to: Excel Labs → Names Formulas → Name Manager This makes conceptual sense — maintain a large structured library of formulas (or import libraries from GitHub), only activate the formulas required by a particular workbook. But without documentation, it’s very easy to assume custom Modules are active by default. Why I’m posting this When I finally asked Copilot “Why didn’t you say this up front?”, the answer was essentially: This publish step is not documented in the README or the UI, and users are easily led to assume Modules are active by default. So I’m posting here to save others from repeating the same debugging journey. Documentation request It would help enormously if the documentation (README / FAQ) stated explicitly that: Custom Modules are source-only Importing into the Workbook module is the publish step Only the Workbook module is wired to Name Manager and the Excel grid Even a short note would remove a major stumbling block for new users. I’m not a GitHub user, otherwise I would also raise this there — if someone from the community is able to mirror this feedback on GitHub, that would be much appreciated.Explore curated Microsoft Partner Digital Skilling Journeys
Partners like you understand that skilling isn't optional—it's foundational for success in an AI-first market. Keeping up with evolving technologies and capabilities will better position you with the skills needed to succeed in an ever-changing market. Explore Microsoft Partner Digital Skilling Journeys (PDJs), curated presales, sales, and tech skilling experiences designed to enhance your knowledge aligned with partner strategic wins. First-time users may need to register—use your work email credentials to sign up. Curated journeys include: Microsoft Security Copilot Drive Business Transformation with Microsoft Copilot 365 Innovate with Azure AI Platform Drive Windows in the Cloud with Windows 365 Cloud Endpoints Modern Security Operations Data Security for AI Migrate to Azure Drive Business Collaboration and Teamwork with Microsoft Teams Accelerate Data Analytics Journey with Microsoft Fabric Cloud Security These journeys are tailored to your interests, needs, and role within your organization. Select the link relevant to the journey you're interested in, register today on the Skilling Hub using your organizational login, answer a few questions, and you'll receive tech and sales-ready skilling experiences customized to your interests and goals. Register now
