Skip to content
← Back to the guide

Microsoft Graph API basics

6slides. Screenshot a slide, download it as a PNG, or use your browser's Print → Save as PDF for a LinkedIn-ready multi-page carousel — each slide becomes one page.

M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
1 / 6

Microsoft Graph API basics

An introduction to the Microsoft Graph API — what it is, how to authenticate, the day-to-day query patterns, and the gotchas that bite every new integration.

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 1Download PNG
M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
2 / 6
01

The shape of the API

Every Graph request looks roughly like:

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 2Download PNG
M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
3 / 6
02

Authentication

Graph requires an OAuth 2.0 access token from Microsoft Entra ID, with one of two permission types:

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 3Download PNG
M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
4 / 6
03

The SDKs

Microsoft publishes SDKs for .NET, JavaScript / TypeScript, Java, Python, PHP, Go, and PowerShell. They handle token acquisition, retry, pagination, and typed responses. For admins, the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK (C…

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 4Download PNG
M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
5 / 6
04

Change notifications

Polling is not the only option. Graph change notifications (webhooks) push events — new messages, group membership changes, file updates — to an endpoint you host, with subscriptions you renew on a schedule. Combined wi…

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 5Download PNG
M
solvingmicrosoft365.com
6 / 6
05

Common gotchas

For any non-trivial Microsoft 365 integration — provisioning users, exporting data, automating tasks, building Copilot agents — Microsoft Graph is the right starting point, and the habits above (least privilege, $select…

Solving Microsoft 365 · www.solvingmicrosoft365.com/guides/microsoft-graph-api-basics

Slide 6Download PNG

Auto-generated from Microsoft Graph API basics. This page is not indexed and isn't part of the guide itself.