Microsoft Account Basics
What is a Microsoft Account
Website: https://account.microsoft.com
A Microsoft account lets you access all of the various products and services that Microsoft offers such as Office, OneDrive, Skype, and more.
All you have to do is make a free account!
Microsoft Products and Services
The following images are a list of some of Microsoft products and services with brief descriptions.
How do I make a Microsoft Account?
If you don’t have a Microsoft account making one is simple!
Do I already have a Microsoft Account?
One way of knowing if you already have a Microsoft account is if you use an email address, Skype ID, or phone number, and a password to sign into other Microsoft services like Office 365, Xbox consoles, or Windows 10 PCs, then you already have an account.
Making an Account
1. First go to the Microsoft account website using the following link: https://account.microsoft.com. This will take you to the screen that you see above.
2. Look for the “sign in to your account” icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen and click it. (The icon will look like the image down below)
3. Once you have clicked “sign in to your account” you will be redirected to the “Sign in” screen.
-If you have an account you can go ahead and sign in using your email, phone, or Skype information.
4. If you do not have an account, look for the line in the middle that says “No account? Create one!” and click it. You will then be redirected to the following “Create account” screen.
5. Once you arrive at the “Create account” screen you have the following 3 options:
-You can use your own email. Simply type your email on the line where it says “[email protected]”
-You can use a phone number instead of using an email. Simply click the line that says “use a phone number instead.”
-You can also allow Microsoft to make a new email address for you. Simply click the line that says “Get a new email address.”
Once you have selected the option that you want to use for your account, hit the big blue “Next” button on the bottom right hand corner to continue.
6. On the next screen you will be asked to create a password. Once you have made your password hit the big blue “Next” button on the bottom right hand corner to continue. (Make sure to write down/remember the password you create)
7. Continue filling out the information for your Microsoft account until you get the confirmation stating that your account has been created.
-Once you’ve gone through all of these steps your account should be successfully created!
How do I use my Microsoft Account?
Once you have finished setting up your account, your screen might look a little like this. This is the “My account screen” for your Microsoft Account. This is typically the first page that pops up when you go to your account.
On the right side of the screen you will see the toolbar.
Here is a closeup image of what the toolbar looks like:
My account: Here you can check your Microsoft Office apps as well as see which of your devices have Microsoft Office installed. With your Microsoft account you can install Office on up to 5 PCs or Macs, 5 tablets, and 5 smartphones. You can also check your subscriptions here as well, adjust privacy settings, and check which apps have access to your data.
Personal info: Here you can change the profile picture for your account. You can also edit your personal information as well as your contact information.
Subscriptions: Here you can see what products and licenses you can use.
Security & privacy: Here you can change your password, edit your contact preferences, as well as view Microsoft’s privacy statement.
App permissions: Some apps use customer data to tailor their user’s experience. Here you can select which apps you want to grant permission to use your data.
Apps & devices: From here you can install Microsoft Office as well as Skype onto your devices. You can also see which devices you have installed these applications on. (Remember: With your Microsoft account you can install Office on up to 5 PCs or Macs, 5 tablets, and 5 smartphones.)
Tools & add-ins: Here you will find various tools/add-ins that can be used to help you with some of Microsoft’s products. For example: Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant for Office 365 or the Language Accessory Pack for Office can be found here.
In the upper left hand corner of the screen you will see a cluster of 9 little “squares” these squares are known as the “App Launcher.” From here you can access your Office 365 apps. When you open the “App Launcher” it will look like the image down below.
As you can see you will be able to open all of your Office 365 apps from here. You can also see the most recent documents that you have been working on.
Other important tools you might need will be found on the upper left hand side of the screen as show in the image down below. These are the notifications, settings, and help icons.
Notifications: Here you can check on any notifications or reminders that you have received.
Settings: From the “settings” icon you can change the theme for your account, which changes the way your account looks. You can also change your password, update notification settings, install software, or look at the settings for your various apps.
Help: From the help icon you can get, as you may have guessed it, help. Simply type what you need help with into the search bar, and Microsoft will try and find a similar solution to the issue you are experiencing. Here you can also find the link labeled “community.” By clicking the “community” link you will be redirected to Microsoft’s community page where you can post about the issue you may be having, as well as look at problems and solutions from other Microsoft users.