Outbound Anti-Spam Policy Limits

MS-102 By islever Editorial Last updated

Short answer

B The hourly limits of 10 external and 20 internal messages restrict the user to 720 messages per day.

Question

You have a Microsoft 365 E5 subscription that contains a user named User1. You create an outbound anti-spam policy named Policy1 as shown in the following exhibit. You assign Policy1 to User1. What is the maximum number of email messages that User1 can send in a 24-hour period? - Exhibit: Outbound Anti-Spam Policy Limits
  1. 30
  2. 720 Correct Answer
  3. 1000
  4. 1030

Key Takeaways

This question tests the ability to calculate the effective daily limit by recognizing that hourly recipient caps can aggregate to a total lower than the explicit daily limit.

This page explains how to calculate the effective daily email limit when hourly and outbound anti-spam policy constraints conflict. It establishes why the hourly caps determine the maximum volume rather than the daily limit setting.

Common mistake: Choosing 1000 (Option C) because it is the labeled 'daily message limit' in the policy, failing to account for the restrictive nature of the hourly limits.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

The outbound spam policy restricts the user to 10 external and 20 internal recipients per hour, totaling 30 recipients per hour. Over a 24-hour period, this results in a maximum of 720 messages (30 recipients x 24 hours). Since 720 is less than the configured daily limit of 1000, the hourly limits act as the binding constraint, making 720 the true maximum.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

Option A (30) represents the hourly limit rather than the total for a 24-hour period. Option C (1000) is the configured daily limit, but it is unreachable because the hourly restrictions prevent sending that volume within a single day. Option D (1030) is a calculation error that does not correspond to any valid aggregation of the policy limits.

Community Comment Notes

Learners correctly identified the calculation by summing the hourly limits, as 'hwoccurrence' noted that 'the stricter hourly caps prevent reaching 1000'. While some users pointed to the daily limit definition in documentation, they missed the practical bottleneck created by the per-hour settings.

Official Reference

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/outbound-spam-policies-configure

This link opens the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Exam Strategy

When calculating maximum email volume, always aggregate the hourly limits to see if they result in a lower total than the daily limit; the lower number is the effective maximum.

Community Votes

B
82%
C
18%

82% of anonymous learners picked answer B. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 4 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 4

  1. HelloItsSam 👍 14
    10x24=240 20x24=480 240+480 = 720
  2. hwoccurrence 👍 6 Answered B
    Because 10 + 20 = 30 messages per hour is the maximum the user can send without triggering the hourly block, over 24 hours that totals 30 × 24 = 720. Although the daily limit is set to 1000, the stricter hourly caps prevent reaching 1000. Therefore, the maximum number of messages User1 can send in a 24-hour period is 720.
  3. justITtopics 👍 2 Answered C
    I added my vote C. 1000 https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/outbound-spam-policies-configure Set an external message limit: The maximum number of external recipients per HOUR. Set an internal message limit: The maximum number of internal recipients per HOUR. Set a daily message limit: The MAXIMUM total number of recipients per DAY.
  4. justITtopics 👍 1
    C. 1000 https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/outbound-spam-policies-configure Set an external message limit: The maximum number of external recipients per HOUR. Set an internal message limit: The maximum number of internal recipients per HOUR. Set a daily message limit: The MAXIMUM total number of recipients per DAY.

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