Microsoft kicks off Skills Week Today marked the launch of more than 175 partner-led events in North America designed to help IT professionals and developers develop and validate their skills, network with industry leaders and achieve Microsoft...

Another milestone was reached yesterday on the timeline for the Windows Vista Service Pack 2 and Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 release. The release candidate (RC) was made available to the general public as part of the Customer Preview Program (CPP...

As previously reported, Fast Track Data Warehouses offer a solid roadmap to large-scale enterprise data warehousing on SQL Server. Data warehouses built on Fast Track configurations today can be fully integrated SMP “spokes” in a hub-and-spoke architecture...

Find a new Exchange Server 2007 tip every business day. TechNet Magazine has kicked off its next monthly theme for its Tip of the Day. Discover useful tips like how to Use the Exchange Management Shell to Create New Mail Users and Mailboxes , Quickly...

Here’s a topic on everyone’s mind when it comes to preparing for Windows 7: application compatibility. Every time Microsoft begins rolling out a new version of Windows, this is huge for our enterprise customers, and I’m happy to report that it is huge...

Once again, big props to Gavriella Schuster for her level of detail on Windows 7 development for enterprise customers. In her latest post on the Windows Team Blog , she explains exactly how our enterprise customers and partners have helped us focus on...

If you haven’t dropped by the Windows Sysinternals site recently, there are a couple updated utilities to check out. First off, version 1.6 of the Sigcheck utility adds checking for .NET signatures, among other extensions. Sigcheck verifies that images...

Just noticed over on the MDOP Blog that Microsoft App-V is now available for use with Windows 7. That means subscribers of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP ) can now test their applications and prepare for enterprise deployments by downloading...

TechNet Plus subscribers can now get their hands on the Release Candidate bits for Windows Vista Service Pack 2 and Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2. According to the TechNet Pus Blog , SP2 contains changes focused on supporting new types of hardware...

The Infrastructure Planning and Design team has released a new guide, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 . When used in conjunction with product documentation, this guide will help companies confidently plan the implementation of a SQL Server 2008 infrastructure...

See how one company was able to save more than $200,000 last year by deploying Microsoft virtualization and infrastructure software. Lionbridge, a a $461 million (U.S.) translation, development and testing services company, created and deployed...

Microsoft has joined with hardware partners Bull, Dell and HP to provide a new set of reference architectures for data warehousing that increases Microsoft SQL Server 2008 scalability up to 32 terabytes, and helps reduce the time and effort necessary...

Do you know someone whose tech skills could use a little updating? Microsoft yesterday unveiled the Elevate America program where it will provide technology training to up to 2 million people over the next three years. This can benefit people throughout...

TechNet Flash readers are being offered a special deal on a TechNet Plus subscription . Get 12 months for just $297 (Reg. $349). Just use the promo code TNF10 to get the special price. Through TN Plus you can still get your hands on the Windows 7 Beta...

TechNet Magazine is continuing its month of Windows 7 tips. Here are a few of the latest tips you’ll find on the TechNet Magazine site : · Easily Install Windows 7 Alongside Windows Vista for a Dual Boot System · Turn Off Security Messages and Other...

Since we live in the real world—a world where many of you will most likely be managing desktop and laptops with different versions of the Windows operating system, including Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7, this Springboard Series article will...

The IIS team has released the beta for the Dynamic IP Restrictions Extension for IIS, which provides IT Professionals and Hosters a configurable module that helps block Denial of Service attacks or cracking of passwords. It does so by temporarily blocking...

Tap into our MVPs’ knowledge and connections. Take a look and be inspired by some of their great work. Through our new MVP Award Program blog , we now share some of the amazing activities of Microsoft’s Most Valuable Professionals across the world. You...

In response to customer feedback during this global economic downturn, the Help and Support team announced yesterday that it would hold the line on pricing for Custom Support in 2009. Pricing for Custom Support includes an annual enrollment fee that normally...

Those who’ve played with the R2 beta release of Windows Server 2008 might have noticed a new tool, the Best Practices Analyzer , designed to help administrators reduce best practice violations by automatically scanning the roles in use and reporting the...

For those of you using, evaluating or considering Office Communications Server , get on over to the TechNet Magazine site . The March issue is now up and it’s all about OCS 2007, including the new OCS 2007 R2 release. And when the magazine covers a technology...

The Windows Blog posted a gem yesterday by Gavriella Schuster, senior director for the Windows Enterprise team. This is probably the most succinct job yet of explaining to business users why deploying Windows Vista now will make the future transition...

Microsoft has released the security bulletins for February 2009 . For information about how to receive automatic notifications whenever Microsoft security bulletins are issued, visit Microsoft Technical Security Notifications . You can also join a webcast...

Here’s an update on the great results from Microsoft’s acquisition of enterprise search developer FAST Search & Transfer last April. As you may recall, the plan was to bring together FAST’s deep search expertise with the widely used SharePoint Server...

OK, if you haven’t realized it yet, your company’s carbon footprint could be costing it money. And that’s money you don’t want to waste these days. Here’s a way to capture the data needed to measure key indicators related to energy consumption and greenhouse...