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Microsoft Ignite 2015 summary – #MSIgnite, #EnvokeIT, #Azure, #Office365, #OneDrive, #EMM, #PaaS, #IaaS
Hi all,
We at EnvokeIT participated and collaborated at Microsoft Ignite 2015 in Chicago. And it was one of the most intense events I’ve visited in years with a lot of happening in the business and Microsoft really showed that they are the leading innovator in many areas!
I hope that you enjoy my report and that it gives you a condensed overview of what happened and please contact us at EnvokeIT if you want assistance within any area below! And thank you Microsoft for such a great event and also all you bloggers out there that I’ve linked to in this material.
I must say that this event was positive and a bit scary at the same time. Microsoft is for sure pushing as visionairies and innovators in a lot of areas, and I think that competitors will have a hard time competing in the coming years.
These are the areas where A LOT have been released already and where Microsoft according to my oppinion will increase its market share significantly:
- Cloud and Mobile services, and with this I don’t mean IaaS service for just running a VM in their public Azure cloud or building a hybrid cloud with connectivity to on-premise datacenters. They are delivering so many capabilities now as PaaS and SaaS services. Just look at the sections below, it’s everything from Enterprise Mobillity Management (EMM), Business Intelligence, Database, Storage, Web Apps/services, Service Availability services (DR, Monitoring/Reporting, Backup etc.), Development, Source Control, Visual Studio Online etc. It’s amazing!!
- Open Source/Linux support – It’s so cool how much Microsoft have shifted to become an adopter to support more open source technologies and way of thinking than just a couple of years ago! Just have a look at all the Linux support they have in Azure, the Linux support they now have in System Center, Docker support to deliver more DevOps capabilities and all the other services in Azure. It’s amazing and so fun! So now both Microsoft have opened their eyes and realized that they can’t ignore this anymore just like Citrix has with their addition of XenDesktop for Linux with SuSE and RedHat support!
The first day kicked off and was a bombarding of product announcements aimed at helping IT pros secure and manage the new Universal Windows Platform.
CEO Satya Nadella presided over a three-hour keynote, which focused on how Microsoft’s new wave of software and cloud services will enable IT and business transformations that are in line with the ways people now work. Nadella talked up Microsoft’s focus on “productivity and platforms” and how it’s tied with the shift to cloud and mobility. He also highlighted the need for better automation of systems and processes, and better management of the vast amounts of data originating from new sources such as sensors and other Internet-of-Things-type nodes.
As mentioned there where a lot of updates and below I’ve tried to gather these and I hope it gives you a good insight on the infromation we received and also guidance on how you can get more information about the topics.
Included below are links to detailed overviews of each of the demos (from Microsoft blog post) – including information about how to use them, where to learn more, and what you’ll need to get started.
- The New Outlook App: A Modern Standard for Secure E-mail
- Enhanced Data Protection with Windows 10
- Windows 10 Device Guard
- Azure RemoteApp
- Document Tracking & Secure Collaboration with Azure RMS
- SaaS Management with Cloud App Discovery
- Detecting Anomalous Sign-Ins with EMS
- Microsoft Advanced Threat Analytics
- Deploying Azure in Your Datacenter
- The Microsoft Operations Management Suite (OMS)
- Power BI in SCCM
The following picture is a sketch of the keynote and is also quite good at summarizing the message of Mobile and Cloud first!
vNiklas also created a great powershell script that automates the downloading of all MS Ignite content with PowerShell and Bits from Channel 9 that you can find here!
Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) – MDM, MAM, MCSM/MIM etc…
Microsoft’s next chapter in Enterprise Mobility, great blog post on where Microsoft is going etc. http://blogs.technet.com/b/enterprisemobility/archive/2015/05/04/ignite-microsofts-next-chapter- in-enterprise-mobility.aspx …
Windows 10 Continuum – this is cool, think about docking your smartphone to your external screen, keyboard and mouse! That’s try mobility of youre device, this looks really cool and something that I’d like to try out once released!
Have a look at the feature demo at Ignite in the video below.
What’s New and Upcoming with Microsoft Intune and System Center Configuration Manager | Microsoft Ignite 2015
This session outlines the latest enhancements in enterprise mobility management using Microsoft Intune and System Center Configuration Manager. See the newest Microsoft Intune improvements for managing mobile productivity without compromising compliance, and learn about the futures of Microsoft Intune and Configuration Manager, including new Windows 10 management scenarios.
Microsoft Intune and Configuration Manager, including new Windows 10 management scenarios.
In the Cloud – Enterprise Mobility Management table of content:
- Enterprise Mobility Vision
- The Evolution of Enterprise Mobility
- Moving Forward in a Mobile-first, Cloud-first World
- Mastering Mobility: A How-to Guide
- Today: Integration into Broader Systems
- Tomorrow: Mobile Productivity
- Empowering SCCM Admins
- Our Plan to be Your Long Term Vendor of Choice
- Extra: The “Master of Mobility” Video Series
Office 2016 public preview available!
Over the last 12 months, we’ve transformed Office from a suite of desktop applications to a complete, cross-platform, cross-device solution for getting work done. We’ve expanded the Office footprint to iPad and Android tablets. We’ve upgraded Office experiences on the Mac, the iPhone and on the web. We’ve even added new apps to the Office family with Sway and Office Lens. All designed to keep your work moving, everywhere. But that doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten where we came from. While you’ve seen us focus on tuning Office for different platforms over the last year, make no mistake, Office on Windows desktop is central to our strategy.
In March we introduced an IT Pro and Developer Preview for the 2016 release of our Office desktop apps on Windows, and now—as a next step—we’re ready to take feedback from a broader audience. Today we’re expanding the Office 2016 Preview, making it available to Office users everywhere in preparation for general availability in Fall 2015.
Office 2016 previewers will get an early look at the next release of Office on Windows desktop, but more importantly they’ll help to shape and improve the future of Office. Visit the Office 2016 Preview site to learn more about the Preview program and if it’s right for you.
New in Office 2016
Since March, we’ve shared some glimpses of what’s to come in Office 2016. Today, we’d like to give a more holistic view of what customers at home and work can expect in the next release. In Office 2016, we’re updating the Office suite for the modern workplace, with smart tools for individuals, teams, and businesses.
It’s here! #Citrix #Receiver for Win 8/RT 1.2
The first official release for your touch-enabled Win RT tablet or Windows 8 Pro device now on the Windows Store! It adds the ability to connect to XenApp Services and XenDesktop Services sites for Web Interface deployments, not just StoreFront enabled sites. Connections can be direct or through Access Gateway Enterprise Edition. We also added the ability to open ica files if you’re using browser access. And we shouldn’t overlook the ability to save your password, if allowed by server policy.
This version will be useable in more configurations.
Click here to try this version. It is still a good idea to ask your IT department if it can be used in your environment. IT managers can find details on configurations supported and settings at Citrix eDocs.
Here is what it provides:
- Secure access to virtual desktops and enterprise apps
- Secure access to Web and SaaS apps (requires CloudGateway Enterprise)
- Work anywhere on any Windows 8 computer or tablet
- Account configuration using your email address, a server URL, or a provisioning file
- Auto-provisioned applications
- Use one published app at a time, along with multiple Web and SaaS apps
- Automatic display of the keyboard when needed
- Use of native controls for selecting an item from a list
- Option to save your Receiver password if allowed by server
And more functionality is coming
Look for updates every few months. Among other improvements, we’ve started work on multi-touch, audio, session sharing (support for multiple sessions)…
Continue reading here!
//Richard
#Microsoft to Ship #Surface Windows 8 Pro Tablet on Feb. 9
Microsoft will ship the Surface Windows 8 Pro tablet with an Intel Core i5 processor on Feb. 9, with prices starting at $899.
Microsoft will ship the Surface Windows 8 Pro tablet with an Intel Core i5 processor on Feb. 9, with prices starting at US$899.
The tablet has a 10.6-inch screen and comes in models with 64GB and 128GB of storage. The tablet will include the Type Cover keyboard dock that doubles as a case.
The tablet will initially be sold in the U.S. through Microsoft retail stores, Best Buy and Staples, and also through retailers in Canada. The tablet will also be available at Microsoft’s retail site.
Microsoft already offers the Surface RT tablet, which runs on Windows RT. That OS is for the ARM processor, while Windows 8 Pro in the new Surface tablet is for x86 processors from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices. Although both operating systems have the same look and feel, there are substantial differences in functionality and application compatibility.
While Surface RT was designed to be more of a tablet-only product, the Surface Windows 8 Pro tablet is intended to double as a laptop with the ability to run a full Windows OS and support for applications running on older Microsoft operating systems.
Continue reading here!
//Richard
Why Windows RT will die – #Windows, #RT
I have to agree with this blog post a lot! I don’t see a future for RT, sorry Microsoft!
It should be no surprise that Microsoft’s Windows RT Surface tablet sold only a million units in the fourth quarter, about a half of what analysts expected. Windows RT is an operating system without a future. Here’s why it will die.
UBS analyst Brent Thil said that a million Surface tablets sold That’s about half of what he expected. Computerworld says that in a note to investors, he said that people were buying the iPad rather than the Surface.
Plenty of other reports have found that the Surface is selling poorly. Even Steve Ballmer admits that Surface sales have been modest.
You can attribute sluggish sales to plenty of factors, such as poor distribution. But there’s a deeper reason: Windows RT has no future. It’s an operating system so rife with problems, it’s hard to imagine it succeeding.
One big issue is confusion about exactly what it is. It looks like a Windows 8 tablet, but it isn’t. It can’t run Windows 8 apps unless they’ve been specifically modified to run on Windows RT. It won’t run the Desktop or Desktop apps.
Despite that, it sells for $500, as much as an iPad. Because of all this,Samsung has cancelled plans for selling an RT tablet in the U.S. Mike Abary, Samsung senior vice president in charge of the PC and tablet businesses in the United States, explained the decision this way to CNet:
“There wasn’t really a very clear positioning of what Windows RT meant in the marketplace, what it…
Continue reading here!
//Richard
Win RT jailbroken to run 3rd party Desktop apps – #Windows, #RT, thx @brianmadden
It was only a matter of time: Windows RT has been hacked to allow non-Microsoft applications to run in Desktop. Prior to this hack, your Windows RT tablet (such as the Surface RT) could only run Metro apps, a special, touch-oriented version of Office… and that’s it. Now, in theory, you can run any Desktop app on Windows RT [See: What is Windows RT?]
The hack, performed by Clokr, exploits a vulnerability in the Windows kernel that has existed for a long time — since before Microsoft ported Windows from x86 to ARM, in fact. Basically, the Windows kernel on your computer is configured to only execute files that meet a certain level of authentication. There are four levels: Unsigned (0), Authenticode (4), Microsoft (8), and Windows (12). On your x86 Windows system, the default setting is Unsigned — you can run anything you like. With Windows RT, the default, hard-coded setting is Microsoft (8); i.e. only apps signed by Microsoft, or parts of Windows itself, can be executed.
Continue reading here!
//Richard
The IT Melting Pot! 