> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.datarm.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart Guide

> Get started with AVA in under 5 minutes

## Welcome to AVA!

This quickstart guide will walk you through your first AVA experience—from signing in to having your first conversation with connected data. You'll be productive in minutes.

<Info>
  **Prerequisites:** You need a Microsoft work account with access to AVA. If you don't have access yet, [contact your IT administrator](mailto:avasupport@datarm.ai) or [get in touch with us](https://datarm.ai/contact).
</Info>

## Step 1: Sign In

AVA uses your Microsoft work account (same credentials you use for Office 365):

1. Navigate to your AVA URL (provided by your administrator)
2. Click **"Sign in with Microsoft"**
3. Enter your work email and password
4. Complete multi-factor authentication if prompted
5. Grant AVA delegated permissions when asked

<Check>
  Once signed in, you'll see AVA's three-panel interface: Session History (left), Chat Area (center), and Workspace (right).
</Check>

<Tip>
  **First time?** AVA may show you a quick tour of the interface. We recommend taking it!
</Tip>

## Step 2: Your First Chat

Let's start with a simple conversation to get familiar with AVA. Remember: **AVA is AI that works**—it can take action, not just answer questions!

### Try These Examples

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Check Your Calendar">
    **Type in chat**:

    ```
    @Microsoft 365 Apps what meetings do I have today?
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Connects to your Microsoft Calendar
    * Retrieves your meetings
    * Displays them in an organized list

    **You'll see**: All your meetings with times, attendees, and locations

    **Try follow-up**: "Send me details on the 2pm meeting"
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Search Your Email">
    **Type in chat**:

    ```
    @Microsoft 365 Apps show me unread emails from this week
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Queries your Outlook inbox
    * Filters to unread emails from last 7 days
    * Summarizes the messages

    **You'll see**: List of unread emails with senders, subjects, and snippets

    **Try follow-up**: "Summarize the most important ones"
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Find a File">
    **Type in chat**:

    ```
    @Microsoft 365 Apps find my Q4 budget spreadsheet
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Searches your OneDrive and SharePoint
    * Finds files matching "Q4 budget"
    * Returns relevant files

    **You'll see**: Matching files with locations and modified dates

    **Try follow-up**: "Open it in the workspace"
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Search the Web">
    **Type in chat**:

    ```
    @Web what are the latest news on AI developments?
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Searches the web in real-time
    * Finds current information
    * Summarizes results with sources

    **You'll see**: Up-to-date information with source links

    **Try follow-up**: "Find recent articles about GPT-5"
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Query Business Data">
    **If your organization has Salesforce connected**:

    ```
    @Salesforce show me my open opportunities
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Queries Salesforce with your permissions
    * Retrieves opportunities assigned to you
    * Formats the results

    **You'll see**: Your opportunities with stages, values, and close dates

    **Try follow-up**: "Which ones are closing this month?"
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Take Action (AI That Works!)">
    **AVA doesn't just answer—it acts!**

    **Schedule a meeting**:

    ```
    Schedule a 30-minute meeting with [colleague name] tomorrow at 2pm
    to discuss Q4 planning
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Checks availability
    * Creates calendar event
    * Sends invitation
    * Sets up Teams link

    **Create a task**:

    ```
    Create a task to review the budget by Friday
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Creates task in Microsoft To Do
    * Sets due date
    * Adds it to your list

    **Upload and analyze an image**:

    ```
    [Upload a screenshot] What's in this image?
    ```

    **What AVA does**:

    * Analyzes the image
    * Describes contents
    * Answers questions about it
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

### Understanding @ Mentions

The `@` symbol is how you access connected data sources:

* **@Microsoft 365 Apps** - Calendar, Mail, Files, OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams messages and meetings
* **@Web** - Real-time web searches for current information
* **@Salesforce** - CRM data (if configured)
* **@Jira** - Issues and projects (if configured)
* **@GitHub** - Repositories and code (if configured)
* **@NetSuite** - Business records (if configured)

<Tip>
  Start typing `@` and AVA will show you all available data sources!
</Tip>

## Step 3: Try the Workspace

The Workspace panel on the right has three tabs. Let's explore them:

### Search Tab

1. Click **"Search"** tab in workspace
2. Select **"Microsoft Files"**
3. Search for a document (try "meeting notes")
4. Click a file to preview it
5. Click **"Add to Conversation"** button

Now ask AVA: **"Summarize the key points from this document"**

<Check>
  AVA reads the document and provides a summary!
</Check>

### Notes Tab

1. Click **"Notes"** tab
2. Type some notes:
   ```
   # My First AVA Session

   Today I learned:
   - How to use @ mentions
   - How to search for files
   - How to add files to conversations
   ```
3. Use the formatting toolbar to style your notes
4. Notes are automatically saved

<Tip>
  You can export notes to PowerPoint! Try adding more content and clicking **"Export to PowerPoint"**
</Tip>

### File Viewer Tab

1. Ask AVA: **"@Microsoft 365 Apps find the employee handbook"**
2. When AVA returns results, click a file
3. File opens in **File Viewer** tab
4. Toggle between **View** and **Edit** modes
5. Make changes if needed (saves automatically to SharePoint)

## Step 4: Create Your First Task

Tasks are perfect for multi-step workflows. Let's create a simple one:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Tasks">
    Click **"Tasks"** in the main navigation
  </Step>

  <Step title="New Task">
    Click **"New Task"** button
  </Step>

  <Step title="Name Your Task">
    Enter: "Meeting Summary and Follow-Up"
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add Steps">
    Create three steps:

    **Step 1: Get Meeting Info**

    ```
    @Microsoft 365 Apps show details of my last team meeting
    ```

    **Step 2: Summarize**

    ```
    Create a bullet-point summary of key discussion points
    and decisions from the meeting
    ```

    **Step 3: Generate Follow-Up**

    ```
    Draft a follow-up email to send to attendees with:
    - Summary of key decisions
    - Action items
    - Next meeting date
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Run Task">
    Click **"Run Task"** and watch AVA execute each step sequentially!
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Check>
  After the task completes, you'll have a meeting summary and a drafted follow-up email!
</Check>

<Tip>
  Save successful tasks as templates by clicking **"Save as Template"** after completion
</Tip>

## Step 5: Try Knowledge Search

If your organization has set up Knowledge Search corpora, try this:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Navigate to Knowledge Search">
    Click **"Knowledge Search"** in main navigation
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select a Corpus">
    Click **"@ Connected Data"** and choose a corpus (e.g., "HR Policies")
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask a Question">
    Try: "What's the remote work policy?"

    Or: "How much PTO do employees get?"
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review Results">
    AVA searches documents and returns:

    * AI-generated answer
    * Source document citations
    * Relevant excerpts
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Info>
  If you don't see any corpora available, Knowledge Search hasn't been set up yet. Ask your administrator to create corpora from your SharePoint document libraries.
</Info>

## Step 6: Customize AVA

Make AVA work better for you with custom instructions:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Settings">
    Click your profile icon (top right) → **"Settings"**
  </Step>

  <Step title="Custom Instructions">
    Click **"Custom Instructions"** tab
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add Your Preferences">
    Example:

    ```
    I'm a sales manager in the enterprise segment.

    When showing opportunities:
    - Always include ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue)
    - Highlight deals over $100K
    - Show sales cycle length

    My working hours: 8am-6pm Pacific Time
    Format currency in USD with commas
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **"Save"** - AVA will remember these preferences!
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Common Questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What data can AVA access?">
    **Only what you can access.** AVA uses your Microsoft credentials and operates with your permissions. If you can't see a file in SharePoint, AVA can't either.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Is my data secure?">
    **Yes!** AVA runs entirely within your organization's Azure tenant. Your data never leaves your environment. All processing happens in your tenant.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can others see my conversations?">
    **No**, unless you explicitly share them. Your chats are private by default.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I add more data sources?">
    Data source connections (Salesforce, Jira, GitHub, etc.) are configured by your administrator. Contact your IT team to request additional integrations.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What if AVA doesn't understand me?">
    Try:

    * Being more specific
    * Using @ mentions explicitly
    * Breaking complex requests into simpler questions
    * Checking that you have access to the data source
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I use AVA on mobile?">
    AVA is a web application that works in any modern browser, including mobile browsers. There's no dedicated mobile app yet.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Tips for Success

<Info>
  **AI That Works™**: Remember, AVA doesn't just answer questions—it takes action! Schedule meetings, create tasks, share files, generate images, and export to Office formats. The possibilities are nearly endless with Microsoft Graph API.
</Info>

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Use @ Mentions" icon="at">
    Explicitly reference data sources with @ for faster, more accurate results
  </Card>

  <Card title="Ask Follow-Ups" icon="comments">
    AVA remembers context—refine answers with follow-up questions
  </Card>

  <Card title="Take Action" icon="bolt">
    Schedule meetings, create tasks, share documents—let AVA do the work for you
  </Card>

  <Card title="Save Useful Prompts" icon="bookmark">
    Create reusable prompts in the Prompt Library for frequent tasks
  </Card>

  <Card title="Explore Features" icon="compass">
    Try Chat, Tasks, and Knowledge Search to find what works best for your workflow
  </Card>

  <Card title="Add Files & Images" icon="file-circle-plus">
    Upload documents and images to add context to your conversations
  </Card>

  <Card title="Copy to Notes" icon="copy">
    Copy AVA responses to Notes to build comprehensive documents
  </Card>

  <Card title="Share Conversations" icon="share-nodes">
    Share your conversations with teammates for faster collaboration
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Example Workflows to Try

Now that you're familiar with basics, try these real-world scenarios:

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Meeting Prep">
    1. **@Microsoft 365 Apps** find tomorrow's client meeting
    2. **@Salesforce** get account history
    3. **@Microsoft 365 Apps** find recent email threads
    4. **@Web** search for latest company news
    5. Ask AVA to create a meeting prep document
    6. Export to Notes → PowerPoint
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Weekly Status">
    1. **@Salesforce** show opportunities closing this week
    2. **@Jira** show completed issues
    3. **@GitHub** show merged PRs
    4. Ask AVA to create status report
    5. Export to Word document
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Document Research">
    1. Go to Knowledge Search
    2. Select relevant corpus
    3. Ask: "Find all mentions of \[topic] in contracts"
    4. Review results with source citations
    5. Ask follow-up questions to refine
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Content Creation">
    1. Open Notes tab
    2. Create outline
    3. Ask AVA to draft each section
    4. Copy good content from chat to notes
    5. Iterate until satisfied
    6. Export to desired format
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Explore Core Features" icon="star" href="/essentials/key-features">
    Learn about all AVA capabilities
  </Card>

  <Card title="AVA Chat Deep Dive" icon="comments" href="/features/ava-chat">
    Master conversational AI
  </Card>

  <Card title="Use Cases by Role" icon="briefcase" href="/essentials/use-cases">
    See how your team can use AVA
  </Card>

  <Card title="How AVA Works" icon="gears" href="/essentials/how-it-works">
    Understand the technology
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Get Help

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Technical Support" icon="life-ring" href="mailto:avasupport@datarm.ai">
    **[avasupport@datarm.ai](mailto:avasupport@datarm.ai)**

    Our team typically responds within 4 business hours
  </Card>

  <Card title="Request a Demo" icon="calendar" href="https://datarm.ai/contact">
    **[Contact Sales](https://datarm.ai/contact)**

    For new customers and product demonstrations
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

**Congratulations!** 🎉 You've completed the AVA quickstart. You now know how to:

* Have conversations with connected data using @ mentions
* Use the Workspace (Search, Notes, File Viewer)
* Create multi-step Tasks
* Search documents with Knowledge Search
* Customize AVA with custom instructions

Start exploring and make AVA work for you!