Copilot in OneDrive is a powerful tool that helps you with a range of tasks. This guide shows practical ways you can take full advantage of this feature, whether it's for business use, educational purposes, or everyday needs at home.
File content summary
If you need an overview of a file's contents, but don't have the time or inclination to study it in detail, Copilot can give you a quick summary.
All you need to do is hover over the file in OneDrive, click the Copilot , and select “Summary.” Copilot will analyze the content and create a concise summary that will save you time.
You can, if you wish, copy the summary by clicking on the “Copy” option at the bottom of the window to paste it into a Word file or elsewhere.
The tool's capabilities are not limited to Office documents. You can download content (e.g. in PDF) from a site, upload it to OneDrive, and have Copilot summarize it in the same way.
See also: Microsoft expands bug bounty program for Copilot (AI)
If you're working with a large document divided into thematic sections, such as an election manifesto, Copilot in OneDrive will present the information organized by headings, giving you a clear view of the key content by topic — such as health, economy, or environment.
Copilot supports a wide range of file types: DOC, DOCX, TXT, RTF, ODT, PPT, PPTX, ODP, XLS, PDF, even HTML files or Loop files.
Ask questions to extract targeted information
While the summary mode is ideal for an overall look, there are times when you want to glean something more specific from a file.
Simply hover over the file in OneDrive, click the icon Copilot , and select “ Ask A Question .” Then, in the line that appears on the side, type your question and hit the send button .
Copilot will analyze the file content, identifying relevant references based on keywords , and return a comprehensive, targeted answer almost instantly.
Creating Standard and Custom FAQs
Copilot in OneDrive lets you automatically create two types of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Standard and Custom FAQs.
Standard FAQs
Let's say you've just finished your thesis in Microsoft Word. As presentation day approaches, you can leverage Copilot to better prepare.
Simply locate the file in OneDrive, hover over it, click the Copilot , and select “Create An FAQ.” The tool will analyze the content and suggest a series of questions with corresponding answers, geared toward potential questions from the examination committee.
See also: Microsoft launches Copilot Chat to businesses
Custom FAQs
In addition to the automatic FAQ generation system, Copilot can also be used for more specialized needs. You have the ability to define specific points of interest and ask questions that focus on them, thus creating a fully customized set of FAQs that respond exactly to what you want to prepare or explain.
Let’s say you just installed a new printer in workplace and you want to put up a poster that guides your colleagues on how to print and scan color documents. The problem is that the user manual is 140 pages long. Save the PDF file with the instructions to your OneDrive. Hover over the file, click the Copilot icon, and select “Ask A Question.”
In the sidebar that appears, type something like: “Create an FAQ that covers scanning and photocopying color documents” and hit the submit button. Copilot will process the file content and create a set of simple and targeted Q&A based on the functionality you requested.
Simply click “Copy” at the bottom of the Copilot response, paste the information into a new Word document, format it to your needs, and print the final poster.
Compare multiple files at once
In addition to the above features, Copilot in OneDrive also lets you compare up to five files with each other—without having to open them individually.
Select the relevant files by checking their checkboxes. Then, click on the “Copilot” button at the top of the page and select “Compare Files”. The tool will examine the similarities and differences of the documents and present you with a concise, comparative analysis, saving you time and effort.
Within seconds, Copilot creates a comparison table, where the files you selected appear as column headings, while each row offers concise comparisons between them. When the files being compared are thematically related or have a similar structure, the resulting analysis goes into substantial detail.
It's also worth noting that Copilot can analyze and compare files of different types. For example, you can compare a large PowerPoint presentation with a short piece of text in Word, identifying similarities and differences in content, despite the different file formats.
Content improvement with targeted suggestions
Another valuable feature of Copilot in OneDrive is its ability to suggest changes to a file to make it more practical and understandable. To make the most of this feature, it’s important to give it clear and limited commands – otherwise, the response can be too general and difficult to manage.
See also: Microsoft 365 Copilot brings enhanced AI capabilities
Let’s say you have an Excel with nine worksheets full of statistics for your favorite football team. You want to organize it better for easier editing and analysis. To do this, locate the file on OneDrive, click the Copilot icon, and select “Ask A Question.” In the sidebar that opens, enter a specific instruction, such as: “Suggest three ways to merge this worksheet into fewer sheets,” and press Enter.
Since you limited the command to three sentences, Copilot will give you short and practical ideas that are easy to evaluate.
Copilot transforms OneDrive from a simple storage space into a powerful productivity and knowledge tool, making document work smarter and less time-consuming. It's ideal for students, professionals, researchers, and everyday office needs.
Source: www.howtogeek.com
