Microsoft 365 glossary

An agent is a configured AI assistant — instructions plus knowledge sources, topics, and actions — published to a channel such as Teams or a website where users converse with it.

Move agents across Dev, Test, and Production with Power Platform solutions instead of live-editing — so changes ship safely with reviewable, testable releases.

AvePoint is a third-party Microsoft 365 software vendor whose portfolio spans migration, governance, backup, and data protection — usually evaluated for larger or multi-workload programs.

Canvas apps give makers pixel-level UX control; model-driven apps generate a structured interface from the Dataverse data model.

Connection references let flows and apps point at a named connection slot instead of a hard-coded account — so the same solution binds to Dev, Test, and Production connections at deploy time.

Copilot Studio can integrate with actions and Power Automate processes to retrieve information, update systems, or start workflows.

Partly: Dataverse stores data like a database, but it is a business application platform — tables ship with security roles, business logic, APIs, auditing, and Power Platform ALM attached.

Dataverse security layers security roles (privilege sets) over record ownership (user- or team-owned) inside business units — so access follows the org chart plus the role, down to individual records.

A Dataverse table is a structured business entity — like Account or Case — with typed columns, relationships to other tables, and security, logic, and auditing attached.

Dataverse fits structured business-application data with relational, security, and ALM needs; SharePoint fits collaboration, documents, and simpler list-based apps.

Choose Dataverse when the app needs table relationships, row-level security, auditing, solution ALM, or Dynamics 365 integration. Stay on SharePoint for simple team tools with flat data and list-level permissions.

Dataverse is a business application platform for Power Platform; SQL Server is a relational database engine for custom database-centric systems.

Dynamics 365 is Microsoft’s family of cloud business applications: customer-engagement apps (Sales, Service, Field Service) running on Dataverse, plus finance, supply-chain, and commerce apps on their own stores.

Yes for customer-engagement apps — Sales, Customer Service, and Field Service run on Dataverse natively. Finance and supply-chain apps use their own stores with Dataverse integration, so verify per application.

Yes — through the Dataverse connector: trigger flows on row create, update, or delete in CE apps, and read or write records with the maker’s or service identity permissions.

Yes — in ladders: no-code configuration (tables, forms, views, business rules), low-code Power Platform extension (apps, flows, Copilot agents), then pro-code (plug-ins, custom APIs) for CE apps.

Dynamics 365 provides packaged business applications; Power Apps is the low-code platform for building custom apps, often on Dataverse.

Environment variables store configuration outside solution logic — URLs, IDs, thresholds, switches — with a default value plus a per-environment current value, so Dev, Test, and Production differ without code changes.

Microsoft 365 is Microsoft’s cloud productivity platform — Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange Online, and Microsoft 365 Apps — combined with identity (Entra ID), security, compliance, and administration.

Microsoft 365 migration moves users, documents, collaboration workloads, and related configuration into Microsoft 365 services.

Check eight things before moving data: source inventory, permissions and sharing, file/path restrictions, ownership, target information architecture, security and retention needs, migration tooling plus pilot scope, and communication with a validation plan.

Microsoft Copilot Studio is Microsoft’s platform for creating and managing custom agents with knowledge, actions, and instructions.

Microsoft Dataverse is Microsoft’s cloud data platform for business apps on Power Platform and Dynamics 365 — tables, relationships, role-based security, and solution ALM travel with the data, which is what separates it from lists or raw SQL.

Microsoft Entra ID — the renamed Azure Active Directory — is Microsoft’s cloud identity service: it signs users into Microsoft 365 and connected apps and enforces access with Conditional Access, MFA, and role controls.

Microsoft Graph is the unified API for Microsoft 365: one endpoint model to read and manage users, groups, Teams, SharePoint, mail, calendars, and more — governed by explicit permissions and consent.

Office 365 names the productivity-services subscription line (Exchange, SharePoint, Teams, Office apps); Microsoft 365 is the broader platform bundle that adds Windows, Entra ID, Intune device management, and security depending on the plan.

Power Apps is Microsoft’s low-code app platform with three paths: canvas apps for pixel-perfect task screens, model-driven apps generated from Dataverse data models, and Power Apps Code for pro-code React development.

Yes — SharePoint lists and libraries are first-class Power Apps data sources via the SharePoint connector, ideal for departmental apps. Plan for delegation limits on large lists and graduate to Dataverse when relational needs grow.

Yes — the SQL Server connector reads and writes tables and views, including stored procedures. On-premises databases need an on-premises data gateway; verify premium-licensing implications per scenario.

Power Automate is Microsoft’s cloud automation platform for creating workflows between apps, services, data, and APIs.

Yes — prefer a purpose-built connector first, use the HTTP action for direct REST calls, and package repeated integrations as custom connectors. Authenticate with Entra ID identities and handle errors explicitly.

Enterprise flows should use structured error handling with scopes, run-after rules, logging, notifications, and retries where appropriate.

First check three things: the flow is On, the connection owner still has access, and no trigger condition is filtering the event out — those cover most silent no-trigger cases.

Power Automate shines at approvals, notifications, SharePoint and Dataverse data sync, scheduled jobs, and Microsoft 365 glue work — repeatable processes owned by business teams, not integration platforms.

ShareGate is a third-party Microsoft 365 migration and administration product, popular for SharePoint and Teams moves, pre-migration assessment, reporting, and ongoing management tasks.

ShareGate is a focused, admin-friendly migration and management tool; AvePoint is usually evaluated as a broader Microsoft 365 governance and data management portfolio.

SharePoint can replace many document-management scenarios — libraries, metadata, versioning, permissions, search, retention, and approval workflows — but regulated records or specialized imaging needs deserve individual evaluation.

Yes. Copilot Studio can use supported SharePoint content as knowledge, subject to setup, permissions, and available capabilities.

Use a shallow folder structure for familiar browsing and metadata columns for filtering, views, search, and automation. Many well-managed libraries combine a few folders with consistent metadata.

A SharePoint list tracks structured records such as tasks or requests; a document library stores files with versioning, check-out, and document-focused metadata.

There is no universal duration: a small library moves in days while enterprise programs run weeks to months. Data volume, item count, versions, permissions, remediation, throttling, and validation depth set the timeline — not copy speed alone.

Validate counts, failures, metadata, versions, permissions, sharing, folder structures, links, and business-critical functionality.

SharePoint Online is Microsoft’s cloud service for team sites, document libraries, lists, pages, and intranets — shared content with permissions, metadata, and Microsoft 365 integration, without on-premises servers.

SharePoint decides who can open each site, library, folder, or item by inheriting permissions top-down from the site, with narrowly scoped exceptions where a business need requires them.

SPFx (SharePoint Framework) is Microsoft’s client-side development model for extending SharePoint, Teams, and Viva Connections with modern web technologies such as TypeScript and React.