Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast

Welcome to Episode 390 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast, live from Microsoft Ignite 2024! In this episode Ben sits down for a chat with Melissa Grant, head of product marketing for Windows 11 Enterprise, Windows 365, and Azure Virtual Desktop at Microsoft. Melissa discusses her tenure at Microsoft and the evolution of cloud-based Windows offerings, starting with the launch of Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) five years ago and transitioning into Windows 365. They also discuss Windows 365 Link, Microsoft’s new dedicated endpoint device, designed for seamless, secure connections Windows 365 Cloud PCs. This device reduces the need for extensive IT management and resources by simplifying deployment process, and providing security benefits based on feedback from some of Microsoft’s customers.

Melissa Grant**

– Melissa on LinkedIn

Windows in the Cloud leadership spotlight: Melissa Grant, Windows Marketing

Windows 365 Link—the first Cloud PC device for Windows 365

Windows 365 Link Preview

Demo: Introducing Windows 365 Link

Windows 365 Link Documentation

What is Windows 365 Link?

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource** for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 389 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this special episode, we recap the game-changing announcements from Microsoft Ignite, Microsoft’s premier conference unveiling innovations across Microsoft 365 and Azure.We explore advancements in Agentic AI and multi-modal models that seamlessly accept and produce text, voice, and graphics. Discover how Copilot is evolving with features like reasoning over on-screen content (coming to Teams in CY25) and enhanced capabilities in tools like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel—bringing automated summaries, dynamic graphics, and effortless data analysis to the forefront.

Learn how Copilot Pages enable collaborative editing, while Copilot Extensibility and Agents allow businesses to create customized AI-powered helpers with ease. Imagine every SharePoint site having a built-in agent by default, making tasks more intuitive than ever.

We also cover new updates in edge AI—a “distributed computing fabric” blending Azure Local bare-metal solutions and Windows 365 Link thin clients. Innovations in AI-ready silicon underpin these transformative changes.

Microsoft Ignite 2024 Book of News

Introducing Copilot Actions, new agents, and tools to empower IT teams

Redefine development: AI-first innovation with agents and Microsoft Copilot in Power Platform

What’s new in Microsoft 365 Copilot in PowerPoint at Ignite 2024

Copilot in Excel: Transforming Data Analysis

What’s new and coming to Microsoft Outlook – Ignite 2024

Microsoft Ignite 2024 | Microsoft 365 Copilot Innovation in Your Go-To Apps

Ignite 2024 – What’s new for Microsoft 365 and Copilot admins

Introducing Copilot Analytics to measure AI impact on your business

New Copilot Prompt Gallery helps you discover, save, and share your favorite prompts

Introducing the AI-Powered Workplace: Technology solutions for flexible work

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 388 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we dive into Azure Bicep, Microsoft’s streamlined language for defining cloud infrastructure. If you’re new to Infrastructure as Code (IaC) or looking to simplify your Azure deployments, listen in to learn how easy it is to get started with Azure Bicep. We walk through the essentials, from setting up the necessary tools such as Visual Studio Code and the Azure Bicep extension, to exploring the intuitive features that make Bicep so powerful. Discover how Bicep’s functions, objects, and simplified syntax improve your workflow, offering a more readable and maintainable alternative to traditional ARM templates.

Whether you’re an Azure admin or a developer, this episode provides a clear path to building and managing Azure resources effectively with Bicep. Tune in and start coding your infrastructure with confidence!

Microsoft Ignite

What is Bicep?

Bicep functions

Quickstart: Create Bicep files with Visual Studio Code

Azure/azure-quickstart-templates

˚Decompiling ARM template JSON to Bicep

Learn modules for Bicep

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 387 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, Scott and Ben dive into a discussion around Ben’s newly purchased Surface Pro 11th Edition – a Copilot Plus PC running on an ARM processor. Ben gives his takes on the state of the hardware and how Windows 11 runs on a native ARM processor. Scott also gives his experience running Windows 11 daily for work on Parallels Desktop on Apple Silicon. Scott’s hot take – virtualizing Windows 11 on a Mac is better than running it on native hardware. Listen in as Ben and Scott talk through Windows on ARM, whether a virtual machine might be best for you to try out Windows on ARM, pitfalls of application compatibility, and when you might just want to consider a remote desktop session instead to get your Windows work done from a Mac.

Meet the Surface Pro 11th Edition

Microsoft announces Copilot Plus PCs with built-in AI hardware

The Ultimate Solution: Windows 11 in a virtual machine + Parallels Desktop + Mac Computers with Apple silicon

Azure Cobalt 100-based Virtual Machines are now generally available

Unified inbox in Outlook for Mac

MMR Call Redirection for Azure Virtual Desktop, Windows 365 now available

How emulation works on Arm

Exploring Windows on ARM: The Future of Computing

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 386 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we explore three powerful tools designed to improve automation, testing, and security in modern development and operations workflows: Maester, Pester, and SCUBA. Whether you’re a DevOps engineer, PowerShell enthusiast, or security professional, this episode is packed with valuable insights on how to streamline your processes and strengthen your infrastructure using these powerful tools. Tune in to level up your automation and security game!

Installation guide

Maester Tests

Entra ID – Security Config Analyzer Tests

Writing custom tests

Pester

Use the What If tool to troubleshoot Conditional Access policies

Secure Cloud Business Applications (SCuBA) Project

https://github.com/cisagov/ScubaGear

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 385 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we dive into deploying, managing, and optimizing Microsoft’s leading cloud-native SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) solution. Whether you’re new to Microsoft Sentinel or looking to deepen your expertise, this episode is packed with actionable insights to help you secure your Azure environment effectively.

What is Microsoft Sentinel?

Deployment guide for Microsoft Sentinel

Plan costs and understand Microsoft Sentinel pricing and billing

Log retention plans in Microsoft Sentinel

Prepare for multiple workspaces and tenants in Microsoft Sentinel

Centrally manage multiple Microsoft Sentinel workspaces with workspace manager (Preview)

Sentinel Content Packs

Free data sources

Automate threat response with playbooks in Microsoft Sentinel

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 384 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we tackle a wide range of essential topics to help you monitor, secure, and streamline operations across your Azure estate. From access control strategies to virtual machine agents and everything in between, this episode gives you a high-level overview of Microsoft Defender for Cloud and the suite of Azure services it protects.

Episode 382 – Securing the Modern Workplace: Exploring Microsoft Entra ID Security Defaults, Conditional Access Policies, and Microsoft Secure Score

Episode 383 – Securing Azure: Monitoring and observing your Azure estate

What is Microsoft Defender for Cloud?

Common questions about Defender for Cloud?

Common questions about data collection, agents, and workspaces

About Azure Update Manager

Align responsibilities across teams

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 383 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode we continue our discussion on security, transitioning from Microsoft 365 to Azure (Episode 382 – Securing the Modern Workplace: Exploring Microsoft Entra ID Security Defaults, Conditional Access Policies, and Microsoft Secure Score) to Microsoft Azure. We begin with Azure security logging and auditing, discussing the importance of capturing and analyzing security logs to detect and respond to potential threats. Next, we delve into Azure Monitor data sources and data collection methods. Azure Monitor provides a comprehensive set of tools to collect, analyze, and act on telemetry data from your cloud and on-premises environments. Finally, we discuss how the components of Azure Monitor can be used for managing and analyzing the vast amounts of data generated in your Azure environment. We’ll explore how this platform supports advanced analytics, helps you identify trends and anomalies, and enables proactive threat detection.

Whether you’re a cloud architect, security professional, or IT admin, this episode offers practical advice and strategies for leveraging observability to enhance your security posture in Azure. Tune in to discover how you can better protect your organization by implementing effective observability practices.

Announcing mandatory multi-factor authentication for Azure sign-in

Azure security logging and auditing

Azure Monitor data sources and data collection methods

Azure Monitor data platform

Extend Azure with Azure Native ISV Services

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 382 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode, we dive into three essential tools for safeguarding your organization in the cloud-first world: Security Defaults in Microsoft Entra ID, Conditional Access Policies, and Microsoft Secure Score. Join us as we talk through and rationalize each solution, including when and why you might want to use each depending on your maturity with the Microsoft Cloud.

Whether you’re an IT administrator, security professional, or just someone keen on understanding how to secure your digital workspace, this episode is packed with valuable insights and practical tips to help you leverage these security tools. Tune in to stay ahead of the curve and ensure your organization is protected against the evolving threat landscape!

Security defaults in Microsoft Entra ID

Microsoft Secure Future Initiative

Every Microsoft employee is now being judged on their security work

What is Conditional Access?

Conditional Access policy templates

Episode 256 – Conditional Access All The Things?

Microsoft security portals and admin centers

Track your Microsoft Secure Score history and meet goals

Assess your security posture with Microsoft Secure Score

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!

Welcome to Episode 381 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast. In this episode we discuss Microsoft Graph Data Connect, a service that allows organizations to access and manage data from Microsoft 365 in a secure, scalable, and efficient manner.

Elgato’s New Stream Deck POWER-UPS make streaming even easier

USB Hub – Multiport adapter for Stream Deck +

Helping our customers through the CrowdStrike outage

Azure status history

Update on the SharePoint Files dataset

Datasets, regions, and sinks supported by Microsoft Graph Data Connect

microsoftgraph / dataconnect-solutions

MGDC for SharePoint: New, Updated and Upcoming Datasets

Step-by-step: Gather a detailed dataset on SharePoint Sites using the Microsoft Graph Data Connect

Would you like to become the irreplaceable Microsoft 365 resource for your organization? Let us know!