Microsoft Community Frequently Asked Questions

Joining the Community

You can explore the community and search for solutions without joining. If you want to post or receive email notifications, you'll need to sign up.

1. Click Sign in at the top of any Community page. You will be taken to the Sign in page.
2. Select how you would like to sign into the community.
   

   • Sign in with a Microsoft account: If you already have an Outlook.com account, a Hotmail account, a Messenger account, or an Xbox Live account, you already have a Microsoft account. Just sign in with your account name and password.

     If you do not already have a Microsoft account, click Sign up now. You will be taken to the Create an account page.

   • Sign in with a Microsoft 365 or Office 365 account: If you have Microsoft or Office 365 account provided by your work or school, you may select this option. Just sign in with your account name and password.

3. In the Create Profile window, type a community display name.
4. If you agree, click I accept the Code of Conduct, and then click Finish. You are now a member of the community!

Microsoft Support Community supports you, our end customers, with issues you might have with our products. We focus on personal, family, and small to midsize business support.

If you’re a small to midsize business, you might also want to check out general resources to help you set up your small business or view our resources around remote working.

If you’re a medium size or enterprise business customer, we recommend you check out the Microsoft Tech Community or use the support plan that comes with your product or subscription.

All Microsoft’s support options are listed on our support site.

Searching the Community

Search first. There's a good chance that someone has already written about the topic you have in mind.

1. In the search box, type your question, keyword, or topic.

   

2. Click the search button , and then look through the results for your solution.

Absolutely. There are a number of ways to narrow your search:

• At the top of the screen, click Categories, and then select a product or technology to search in that category.
• Use the drop-down menu in the Search bar to refine your search by product or category.

• You can also select the radio buttons to see all the results or see just results from the community or just results from Microsoft Support.

  

If you find the same question you wanted to ask in the forum, but it hasn't been answered yet, click the I have the same question button. That way you'll be notified via email when your question has been answered. Make sure you add an email address to your profile to receive notifications.

Note: You can click I have the same question even if the question is answered, to get updates on that thread.

Posts that contain an answer to the question will be marked as an answer by the original poster or a moderator and will be denoted by A: or Answer: depending on the language.

You can also look for posts with a high number of Helpful votes, even if they haven't been marked as answers yet.

Asking a Question or Starting a Discussion

If you've searched the community and you can't find a question or topic that is the same or similar to yours, it's time to post your own.

1. Click the Get Started menu and then click Ask a Question.
2. Select the Post a question  or  Start a discussion  as appropriate.
3. Type in any details about your question or discussion topic that you think would be useful. Include details like what you are trying to do, what you have already tried, and your computer type if you are asking a question.
4. From the Category dropdown list, select the product or service you're asking about. This may generate other dropdowns. Use these to make your post as specific as you can.
5. Select "Notify me when someone replies to this post," in order to get an email notification when others respond to your question or discussion.
6. Click Submit. Your question or discussion has been posted.

Note: You must be signed in to post a question or a discussion.

Question posts are used to get an answer or solution to a specific question or issue.

Discussion posts are used to share opinions, discuss tips and tricks, and chat about Microsoft technologies.

Both types of posts have the same formatting and similar options. The most noticeable exception is that no answer-marking is needed or available on discussion posts.

When you are composing a post or typing a reply, you can either copy and paste an image or screen shot into your post, or you can upload an image using the add image button on the editor menu.

To upload an image to your post:

1. In the Details field, place the cursor in the area where the image is to be inserted. Then on the toolbar, click the add image button.
2. Click Choose File to browse to the image, click Open to select the image, and then click Upload to embed the image in the area where the cursor was placed in step one.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to insert multiple images.
4. Complete the remaining fields to finish your post.
5. Submit your post.

1. Go to your post.
2. Click the Edit option and make your changes.
3. Click Submit.

Yes, if no one has replied to it.

1. Go to your post.
2. Click the Edit option. The "Edit" screen opens.
3. Click the Delete button. The "Are you sure you want to delete your post?" window opens.
4. Click OK.

If other users have replied to your post, you can't delete the post unless the other users delete all their replies first.

Try editing your question or discussion to make the title more specific or add more information to your post that might help others understand your issue and how to help you.

Yes. Click the Subscribe option and select Subscribe or Subscribe to RSS. If you didn't provide an email address at sign-in, you'll have the opportunity to provide one when you click Subscribe.

Go to the original post. Click the Subscribe option and then select Unsubscribe.

If you posted the original question, you can mark the question as answered yourself. Just click Yes to Was this reply helpful? on the bottom of the reply post.

If you didn't post the original question, you can still mark Yes to Was this reply helpful? to mark the reply as helpful.

Go to the response. Click Unmark as Answer.

No one can mark their own post as an answer. Only the person who posted the original question (if it is someone else) or a moderator can mark a post as Answered.

You can follow the discussion and let others know it’s worthwhile by clicking Yes to Was this discussion helpful?

If you like a specific reply in a discussion, click Yes to Was this reply helpful?

Contributing to the Community

1. Click the Reply option.
2. Type in your reply.
3. Select "Notify me when someone replies to this post," to get an email notification when others respond to your reply.
4. Click the Submit button.

Note: You must be signed in to post a reply.

When you check the Reply with quote box, your reply will be posted with the content of the post you are replying to

1. Go to your response.
2. Click the Edit option and make your changes.
3. Click Submit when you are done.

1. Go to your response, click the Edit option. The "Edit" window opens.
2. Click the Delete button. The "Are you sure you want to delete your post?" window opens.
3. Click OK.

Yes. Please read our Code of Conduct for using the community.

If someone has posted content that is abusive, offensive, threatening, or otherwise violates the Community Code of Conduct, you can report it.

1. Click the the Report abuse option.
2. Complete all required information.
3. Click Submit.

A moderator will review your report and decide how to proceed.

Note: You must be signed in to report abuse.

Yes. Use the topic filters and calendar thread list filters to find threads that were posted within a defined timeframe. These filters appear in addition to other forum filters. You can use sorting options as well.

Only a Microsoft moderator can start a private message. If you receive a private message, it means that the moderator needs to address your question or issue in private or requires information that may be more personal (such as an email address or account details). Only you and Microsoft moderators can see the contents of the private message - other community members cannot see it.

1. Open the private message:
   • From an email notification, click the link provided.
   • From a thread, click the Private Message icon in the Question Info section.

     

   • From anywhere else on the community, click on your profile name in the top right corner of the screen. Click the ellipsis and click View Private Messages

     

2. If the moderator has asked for a response to the private message, type your response in the send new message box.
3. Click Reply.

Participating in Forum Articles

Yes, forum articles accept comments so that you can share your thoughts on the article.

• Click Comment.
• Type your comments.
• Click Submit.

Yes. Click Subscribe. If you didn't provide an email address at sign-in, you'll have the opportunity to provide one when you click Subscribe.

You can follow the article and let others know it’s worthwhile by clicking Upvote.

Note: You must be signed in to participate.

Your Profile

Click your screen name anywhere it appears in the community (for example, in one of your posts or questions, or at the top of any page) to get to your profile page.

The personal profile information that you choose to share will appear to all users on the Profile tab.

• Your username
• Your picture (if you decide to upload one)
• Your title, if you have one (for example, Volunteer Moderator)
• Your introduction (if you decide to write one for your profile)
• Bonus links (if you are eligible)

The totals displayed on your Statistics section represent the actual number of actions you performed since you joined the community.

• Thread statistics. This is summary of thread activity in Question and Answer threads and Discussion threads combined.

Note: Totals do not reflect any posts that were deleted by you or by a moderator.

All the threads and forum articles that you participated in, voted for, or are subscribed to appear on your Activity section.

• You can use filters to filter by types of content, by forums, by language and by date.

From the Edit profile view, you can:

• Change your profile picture
• Change your display name
• Write or edit your bio
• Add a signature that will be displayed with your posts
• Update your email address
• Choose to get email notifications or not

Click the Edit profile button on your profile page. Change your publicly facing profile information, subscribe to email notifications. When you've finished editing your profile, click Save.

You can delete your profile from this community, but keep in mind that it will also be deleted on all communities that use this profile. The communities that use this profile are Microsoft Support Community, Microsoft Training Support Community

When you delete your profile, all of your posts, awards, votes, and subscriptions will be permanently disassociated from your profile. The profile name will become “A.User” and the profile details and signature line will be removed.

Note: Once a profile has been deleted, it cannot be restored.

1. Click the Edit profile button on your profile page.
2. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Delete My Profile.
3. Confirm that you want to delete your profile and click OK.

No. You can use a picture that you own (for example, a picture of your cat or dog) or a picture in the public domain, like license-free clip-art or photographs.

Please read our Code of Conduct to make sure your profile picture is appropriate.

Yes. There are two ways to view another community member's profile.

• Browse to a profile page. Whenever a profile name appears as part of thread activity, forum article activity, you can click on it to open the profile page.
• Search for a profile page. Enter the exact profile name in the search box and select Search community member in the dropdown. Click the search icon. If an exact match is found, the profile page will appear.

Who's Who in the Community

Volunteer Moderators are community leaders who share their experience by answering questions and keeping the community healthy and fun. Volunteer Moderators are members of the community, not Microsoft employees. People who make extraordinary contributions to the community may be asked to be Volunteer Moderators.

Microsoft Agents are experts who are engaged by Microsoft to answer your questions.

Moderators are experts engaged by Microsoft to mark the best answers, manage abuse, and maintain community health.

Independent Advisors are freelancers in the community who use their proven skills and experience to answer technical questions in defined categories.

Microsoft Employees participating in the community have a badge that says Microsoft. These community members may work in the community, or they may be general employees who choose to participate.

Forum Owners are Microsoft employees or Microsoft agents in charge of a particular category. Forum Owners are ultimately responsible for the health of the category.

Article Authors are community members who have demonstrated outstanding written and technical skills. Article Authors have the ability to create and manage their own forum articles in Community.

Most Valuable Professionals (MVPs) are technology experts who’ve demonstrated a commitment to helping others by sharing their passion, knowledge, and expertise with the community. Find out more about the Microsoft MVP program and the Xbox MVP program.

Registered members of the Windows Insider Program are technology enthusiasts who have early access to releases in order to help improve the features and functionality of Windows. Learn what you can do as an Insider.

Xbox Ambassadors are loyal and passionate fans of Xbox gaming who are recognized for helping create a positive, inclusive, and enjoyable experience for all gamers in the community.

Supported Browsers

To take advantage of all Community features, use a supported browser.

• Microsoft Edge
• Firefox
• Chrome

In general, Community supports the current and previous major releases of each browser. This enables us to provide new features made possible by modern browser technologies.

Yes, the community uses responsive web design to scale the webpage to the right size for your device. To expand a menu in the tablet or mobile device experience, simply tap on it. Some advanced features might not be available in the tablet or mobile device experience due to space constraints.

Community Code of Conduct

This Code of Conduct applies to all users of the Community.

The Community includes forums, blogs and other community features.

The community is designed for individuals 13 years of age or older.

As a participant of these forums you agree that you will uphold this Code of Conduct, and are responsible for all activities and content you post/upload.

In addition to upholding this Code of Conduct, you are responsible for adhering to all applicable local and national laws.

This is your community. Help us to keep it safe, friendly, fun and helpful.

• Be polite and respectful in your posts, and in your replies to other people.
• Keep conversation threads on track. It's okay to disagree with another user's post, but don't take the thread off track to do so.
• Always address your comments to the person who asked the initial question, not the other posters.
• Cite the source of anything you post or upload, if it isn't your own original content. Be honest about your sources.
• Keep it clean. No profanity, obscenity, insulting or bigoted comments please. No name-calling.
• Search to see if a question you'd like answered has already been posted by somebody else. Posting the same question repeatedly and starting multiple threads on the same subject can be confusing.
• Report any kind of abuse you find in the community. You will find "Report abuse" links in every post and in every profile.

• Divert or change a thread for your own purposes; just start a new thread with the subject you want to discuss.
• Post questions that are the same or similar to questions you have already posted. When someone has an answer or a reply, that person will respond to you.
• Threaten, stalk, insult, victimize or intimidate anyone or any group of people for any reason; including on the basis of age, gender, disability, ethnicity, nationality, physical appearance, sexual orientation, immigration status, language, political affiliation, race or religion.
• Incite other users to threaten, stalk, insult, victimize, or intimidate another person or group of people.
• Post political or religious content as it is considered off-topic and not appropriate for this community.
• Harass, insult, tease, or correct other users about the grammar used in their posts. Good or bad grammar isn't the point-the community is about getting questions answered and technical discussions.
• Post content depicting nudity of any sort, including full or partial photographic human nudity, or nudity in cartoons, fantasy art or manga.
• Post chain letters.
• Link to websites that require payment to access information.
• Post links to external sites that violate this Code of Conduct.

• Posting content that is intended to harm or exploit minors in any way, including collecting the personally identifiable information (PII) of any minor (anyone under18 years old), including, but not limited to: name, email address, home address, phone number, or the name of the minor's school.
• Invading anyone's privacy by attempting to harvest, collect, store, or publish private or personally identifiable information, such as passwords, account information, credit card numbers, addresses, or other contact information without that person's knowledge and willing consent.
• Posting content or links to content that is illegal or violates any applicable local or national laws.
• Posting threats of hacking or violence or intent to organize hacking or violence.
• Posting or spreading viruses, worms, malware, or other software intended to harm another user's computer.
• Impersonating a Microsoft employee, agent, manager, host, administrator, moderator, another user, MVP, or any other person through any means.
• Pirating Microsoft software or products, or offering pirated software or products for sale, including posting product keys.
• Specifically violating Microsoft licensing or terms, such as posting content or links that will install a 3rd party kernel or evade security measures built into the software.
• Promoting or otherwise facilitating the purchase and sale of ammunition or firearms.
• Posting 'spam,' 'pyramid schemes,' 'affiliate marketing,' or unsolicited commercial advertisements of any kind, including advertising for money making schemes, discount cards, credit counseling, online surveys or online contests.
• Attempting to manipulate the forums, or other community features, including ranking and reputation systems, by violating any of the provisions of this Code of Conduct, colluding with others on voting, or using multiple profiles.
• Offering to make international money transfers for amounts exceeding the asking price of an item, with intent to request a refund of any portion of the payment.
• Using any form of automated device or computer program that enables the submission of postings without the express written consent of Microsoft Corporation.

• Be very cautious about accepting direct help from another user. If that user suggest he use Remote Assistance to help you, be aware that he will have access to your computer, and that your computer could be hacked.
• Beware of scammers posting fake support numbers in the Community forum. Microsoft representatives have Microsoft agent or Microsoft employee affiliation displayed next to their names.
• If you volunteer to help another user through Remote Access, be very careful not to harm their computer in any way, or to access information that is not openly made available to you. Abuse of Remote Access will not be tolerated and will result in your being banned from the community.
• Please be careful with your personal information. If you post your email address in a post, it may be used for any purpose by the general public, as this is a public community.
• Don't post information that could be used by others to steal your identity, such as your street address, your phone number, your social security number, or your credit card number.

Microsoft reserves the right, at its sole discretion, and without any obligation to do so, to review and remove user-created services and content at will and without notice, and delete content and accounts. Microsoft reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to permanently ban participants or terminate access to the community.