Module 0: Course Introduction
This module is not optional. It contains the lab setup instructions you need for every hands-on exercise in the course, the SC-200 exam strategy that frames everything you will learn, and the learning approach that makes a text-only course work at expert depth.
If you skip this module and jump to Module 1, you will hit exercises you cannot complete, references you do not understand, and a lab environment that does not exist. Invest 45 minutes here. It pays back across 15 modules.
Microsoft changes portal interfaces 3-4 times per year. A video recorded in January shows a Defender XDR layout that does not match what you see in April. Written content with annotated diagrams updates in minutes. Every KQL query in this course runs against live data in your environment — your results are always current, even when a portal redesign moves a button. This is a deliberate design choice for durability, not a limitation.