How to pass the Microsoft SC-200
- Jv Cyberguard
- Feb 5
- 7 min read
Hey guys, welcome to my review and tips and tricks on preparing for the SC-200.
The SC-200 exam is one that I've been putting off for a few years as I've been working with Defender XDR for sometime, but I finally decided to tackle it. As of yesterday, February 04, 2026, I am now a Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst.
Prep for this cert started around mid December 2025. I told myself I was going to get it in 2 weeks, but ended up rescheduling four times (yikes!)... yes we severely underestimated this one. Additionally, I took a two week hiatus end of Dec - early Jan (family time is a must), then ramped up to finish the material shortly after.
Microsoft Learn docs are not my favorite style of study material so it required more discipline and patience than other certs that I have taken...a lot more. I don't recall there being much days where I "wanted" or felt "motivated" to read the modules as it just didn't fit my learning style, so this is a reminder that sometimes in life we have to do what we don't necessarily enjoy to achieve what we want. (Say NO to instant gratification). Anyway on to the Gameplan!
I'll break this review into 2 sections: My Approach which will cover:
Learning Strategies and Notetaking
Labs and KQL
Final thoughts
The approach
Things you will need:
More Labs. (For this one you'd have to have your own subscriptions. I didn't use them even though I have my own subscription.)
E5 Developer Subscription(if you can get one)
Learning Strategies and Note Taking
Now this exam covers the below 10 modules. The UI below is from Notion. For each Module I have a page which I can drill down in further.
Let me tour you through my layout. Let's say for example we click the Configure Your Microsoft Sentinel Environment module, it drills down into the subtopics in that module. I also paste the objectives below each module so I get cues regarding what it covers. Let's click the Create and manage Microsoft Sentinel Workspaces.
In the below image, you would see that it takes us to where all the work happens. So essentially my 'Note Tree' mirrors the structure of the Microsoft Learn Document. The headings and subheadings are underlined because they are all links to the actual page in Microsoft Learn for me to reference.
For example, if I click on the Plan for the Microsoft Sentinel Workspace page. It takes me to that page in the docs.
Now when it comes to what to know from each page, I think the key here is to understand everything and memorize what you can(RBAC, config options etc). You will seldom get questions that asks you, "what does this solution or button do?" However, I observed that Microsoft appears to test more on how knowledgeable you are of every solution covered in the content and your ability to determine the best solutions and features in each solution for the most common and most nuanced business scenarios.
If you remember nothing else from this article, please remember what I just wrote that is highlighted in bold above. This alone will help you filter through the verbose notes that exist in each module LOL.
So using this same topic as an example, while there is much you can learn about the various facts about Sentinel, costs, log analytics workspaces etc. The questions you should be trying to answer would be the one that is mentioned in the introduction that we normally would skip.
So after completing this module let's say you are invited to speak on the very topic covered in this module what would you need to know to help your company make an informed decision about how they would move forward with MS Sentinel?
Given that I'm still fresh of the exam, I'll tell you what I think would be relevant from this module in this scenario.
I would be highlighting that Sentinel is a Cloud SIEM solution which is used to collect, normalize, and analyze logs from virtually any system or solution in our corporate environment. The advantages it has is the reduced administrative overhead due to the seamless cloud native integration possibilities with the help of Data connectors. Also, maybe reduced CapEx considerations since we have no physical servers to setup or maintain to host our SIEM on.
In terms of architecture, Sentinel sits on top of a Log Analytics Workspace which is a logical storage unit or repository where all the logs that are collected are stored. Also, in line with potential data and privacy regulatory concerns, Sentinel can be deployed in a Single Tenant-Single Workspace, Single Tenant Multi-workspace, or Multitenant Single/MultiWork-space configuration. Knowing where each one is best suited is also important.
If an MSSP wanted to deploy Sentinel across their customer environments how would their setup be architected. What features of Sentinel exist for this? This also aligns with the scenario and as you work through the module you would realize that features such as Azure Lighthouse are designed for scenarios like this to enable analysts to authenticate between tenants without having separate accounts for each one. What about analytics(detections), workbooks (dashboards/reports) how do those get pushed if we are managing separate tenants? With the help Microsoft Sentinel Workspace manager we'd have a Central workspace from which we can publish detects, workbooks, etc to other customer Sentinel workspaces.
What table plans, log tiers, retention options are available? Being familiar with 2 state, 3 table, 2 log tier model helps here.
For example, Analytics and Long-term retention determine whether our data is stored hot and ready (ideal for monitoring and querying etc) and how long it stays in that state or opting for long-term retention(ideal for logs that are only occasionally needed for IR or troubleshooting) where we have to restore our data/run search jobs.
At table in your Sentinel Workspace is essentially what your logs are stored in and what you query. For example, DeviceProcessEvents, SecurityEvents table etc. Now the 3 table plans, you can think of it like a subscription that affects what your table can do.
Analytics table is straight up for monitoring and DIFR, this table that will be used by built-in and custom detection rules, since it is the only table plan that is optimized for multi-table queries and is always in analytics retentions (for 30 or 90 days by default but can be extended up to 2 years at a cost.)
The Basics table plan is optimized for single table queries and are restricted from using the following kql operators: summarize, join, and union. These tables may be good for data that is needed for troubleshooting on occasional IR.
The auxiliary table is the most basic one and is severely limited. They are not optimized for query at all in terms of performance. However, single table queries are possible with basic operators.
The above was done without reviewing my notes and honestly, that is the level of familiarity you will have to have with this exam if you are going to pass and ACE it.
We can go on, but what I am trying to drive home for person interested in sitting this exam is that it helps when you can build your knowledge to address a scenario. That is the trick for this exam. Understanding and contextualizing everything you learn instead of trying to remember them as topics. Otherwise it will be very painful. Event this method is painful, because Sentinel is sooo robust but it's the only way. The exam covers a breadth of material and it dives deep into each one.
KQL and MS Learn labs
Another item of importance is knowing KQL really well. I didn't focus on this at all, but to be fair I've been using KQL daily for the past few years. What you need to know though is that MS Learn notes on KQL is not enough. Get some hands-on practice, and a good way to do so would be doing KC7's KQL101 and KQL201 free KQL hands on investigation labs linked below.
Also do all the labs that are suggested (at least once, but twice if possible) this would improve your familiarity with the interfaces. A lot of the concepts are more easily understood if you can interact with the portals and spin up some configurations.
From a practice test perspective, do all the assessments at the end of each module and do the MS Learn Practice tests. Do them a couple of times as it takes a while before the question bank repeats itself. Do note that the MS Learn practice assessments pale in comparison to the exam, but it makes sure you cover all the data points and highlights your weak points.
I would also recommend doing Tutorial Dojo SC-200 practice tests, in my opinion the questions were slightly harder than the exam, and I found they try to trip you up. However, I think the difficulty of those exams and the complexity of the wordings in the questions better prepared me for the actual SC-200 questions. They also have mock case-studies and questions that are formatted similarly to the exam.
Final thoughts
I felt like the SC-200 exam was challenging and only having 100 mins for 50 to 60 questions doesn't leave much time to linger on any question. When it comes to this exam there is no shortcut, be prepared to do the work. To conclude this blog post, I'll leave you with a few tips:
Go on Reddit and read people's SC-200 experiences and how they prepared for the exam.
Learn how to search efficiently with Microsoft Learn Documentation. You can use it in the exam but you don't have much time. Aim to use this on no more than 5 questions. Here's an article to help you get started but there's more to know. Learn how to leverage double quotes("") and the plus (+) signs in your searches!
I recommend paying for legit practice tests as I have mentioned before Tutorial Dojo is a good example. I see the reps you'd get from those questions helping you to score an additional 10% on your exam.
Until next time guys.
Comments