Microsoft has revealed guidance around prerequisites for Copilot ahead of its much-anticipated launch.

In a blog post aimed at admins, the vendor revealed information about licensing, security, permissions and adoption.

We’ve rounded up the highlights here.

Licensing and technical

Before using Copilot, organisations need to ensure they meet the necessary technical requirements.

Users must possess either a Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 license, as well as an Azure Active Directory account. These licenses provide access to a range of Microsoft 365 apps and services that seamlessly integrate with Copilot, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Outlook, and Loop.

To access Copilot, users should be on either the Current Channel or the Monthly Enterprise Channel for Microsoft 365 apps.

To optimise the Copilot experience, it is recommended to align network connectivity principles with Microsoft 365’s network to minimise latency and ensure optimal network quality of service (QoS).

Additionally, unblocking WebSockets from user endpoints is crucial to enable certain Copilot experiences, Microsoft said.

If organisations leverage Teams for cross-app intelligence experiences, enabling plugins using the Teams Admin Center is essential.

Managing Copilot Licenses

Administrators can efficiently manage Copilot licenses using the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

From the Billing > Licenses section, licenses can be assigned to individual users or groups.

Azure Active Directory group membership can also be utilised for license assignment, and PowerShell can be used to assign Microsoft 365 licenses to user accounts. As Copilot evolves, additional admin controls will be introduced in the future to enhance license management, Microsoft said.

Security, Privacy, and Data Residency

Copilot relies solely on organisational content within the Microsoft 365 compliance boundary and does not utilise customer data or user prompts for training. Copilot services utilise Azure OpenAI services within the Microsoft network to further enhance security and privacy.

Data is never written outside the user’s home region. The Early Access Program for Microsoft 365 Copilot also aligns with regional regulations, such as the EU Data Boundary, to ensure compliance.

The effectiveness of the Copilot experience depends on the comprehensive data indexed by Microsoft 365. Organisations with abundant data across Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams will benefit the most from Copilot’s capabilities, Microsoft said.

By leveraging this data, Copilot provides personalised and contextually relevant content tailored to each user’s preferences. Readers can explore available resources to learn more about the Semantic Index, a key component of Copilot.

Staying Up-to-Date with Changes and Announcements

Organisations can stay informed about the latest Copilot features, changes, and announcements by following existing processes and leveraging the Message Center in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

Accessing Health > Message Center allows administrators to stay up-to-date on important information. Granting dedicated adoption specialists the Message Center reader role ensures they receive the latest Copilot-related posts.

Microsoft is also providing updates via its Microsoft 365 roadmap, where users can filter relevant updates by searching “copilot”.

What is Copilot?

Microsoft 365 Copilot is a new AI assistant and productivity tool that, as the name suggests, works across the Microsoft 365 portfolio to help users with their daily work.

The AI can pull from Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, Office emails, and other Microsoft 365 apps to gather real-time data, using natural language processing to understand and execute tasks.

The Copilot System, which powers the AI, is a processing and orchestration engine that uses Large Language Models, data in the Microsoft Graph (which contains data like a user’s emails, files, and chats), and the Microsoft 365 apps, all through natural language processing. (While Microsoft has invested heavily in ChatGPT, that’s only a piece of what makes Copilot work.)

Microsoft states that Copilot is built with a comprehensive approach to security, compliance, privacy, and responsible AI to ensure it’s secure and ready for enterprise use.

 

 



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