Microsoft TechNet Ireland Blog : news items

Windows 7 Release Candidate is now available!

will.craddock — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 19:39:00 GMT

Gentlemen (and ladies), start your downloads: Windows 7 RC is now available on MSDN and TechNet. (Remember how I keep telling you the reasons why you want that subscription!). Here is the public announcement from Microsoft Ireland. What I like about this announcement is some of the Partners I am responsible for in my role are called out for their internal adoption of the Beta.

Dublin: April 30, 2009: Microsoft has reached a significant milestone with the Release Candidate (RC) of the highly anticipated Windows 7 operating system, now available for download to MSDN and TechNet subscribers. Broader, public availability will begin May 5, and will be accessible from www.microsoft.com/windows7 site. Based on feedback from millions of customers and partners around the world, the Windows 7 RC is on track to provide customers the quality and value they want and need.

“We’ve been listening to what our Partners and Customers have been saying,” says Ronald Dockery, Business Manager, Client, Microsoft Ireland. “With Windows 7 we focused on what customers told us they liked, and we made improvements to what they didn’t like. “

More than 32,000 participants from approximately 10,000 companies have signed up to have access to a breadth of helpful tools and resources needed to prepare for Windows 7. Irish Partners such as Novosco, Brandon Consulting Ltd, Maxima Ireland and Nitec Solutions have already invested significant time and resources to preparing for Windows 7, demonstrating their support and excitement.

The RC milestone is an important step on the path to final delivery for Windows 7 as it indicates the operating system is entering the final phases of development and is ready for thousands of partners to test, evaluate, and develop new applications, device drivers, and services. As a result of this work, customers will have access to the broadest array of software and hardware options the industry has to offer. The milestone also indicates now is the time for IT pros to evaluate Windows 7, put it through its paces, and examine how it will operate in their environment.

Novosco is a leading provider of virtual infrastructure services in Ireland. The Microsoft® Gold Certified Partner specializes in helping its customers solve business challenges with emerging technologies and offers services across a broad range of areas: infrastructure optimization, disaster recovery, compliance and security, productivity and performance, managed services. With Windows 7 Novosco users have experienced improved system performance. “Everything is faster,” explains Colin Rainey, Technical Manager at Novosco. “From the boot-up sequence to finding files on the corporate network to connecting to the domain, our employees have noticed phenomenal improvements in performance.”

“What’s even better is that by eliminating performance-related calls to the help desk, which also supports external customers, those support employees are free to help our customers and keep their systems running efficiently.,” says Rainey.

Gary Melvin, Sales Director of Brandon Consulting Ltd said, “Having deployed Windows 7 internally and with selected customers we have noticed sizeable performance gains on the same hardware running previous versions of windows , in particular boot times , extended battery life and ease of use around mobility.”

According to an independent report by Forrester Research: “…The beta of Windows 7 shows significant promise, and most IT operations professionals are looking forward to its availability and eventual enterprise deployment.”

In the same report, Ben Gray notes “start preparing for it now, and the best way to prepare for Windows 7 is by deploying Windows Vista. Short of that, begin testing your applications and hardware for compatibility against Windows Vista; It will pay off with greater compatibility with Windows 7.” (“Get Ready for Windows 7”, Forrester Research, Inc., April 2009).

Designed to improve workforce effectiveness and productivity, Windows 7 delivers advanced capabilities driving maximum value from IT investments. IT professionals and small and medium businesses will find that Microsoft is committed to delivering tools and support that enhance software compatibility as well as ease deployment and migration concerns. For IT professionals in enterprise environments, Windows 7 along with the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, an add-on subscription, helps enterprise customers make people productive anywhere, enhance security and control, streamline IT management, and reduce costs. Some key features for IT professionals include:

· Direct Access: This feature enables IT Managers to provide the mobile user with reliable and secure access to the corporate network resources when user is on the Internet, without having to initiate a VPN connection. It also allows servicing and updating of remote PCs, even when they are on the road. This helps to ensure that all mobile PCs are always up to date and Powershell means IT Pros can automate many standard tasks, to help reduce helpdesk costs, minimize user disruption and ease PC management. Direct Access is delivered by Windows 7 with Windows Server 2008R2.

· BranchCache: Delivered jointly by Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008R2, this feature enables IT pros to decrease time branch office users spend waiting to download files from remote servers by caching the previously accessed content locally in a branch’s network.

· BitLocker™ and Bitlocker To Go Drive Encryption: This helps ensure that sensitive data is protected across PCs and removable storage devices.

Windows 7 RC builds upon the beta version with a focus on simplifying everyday tasks, working the way customers want and making new things possible. The latest version of Windows was designed to ensure the highest level of device and application compatibility with software and devices that worked with Windows Vista. New to the RC are advancements, such as Remote Media Streaming, Windows XP Mode (beta) and Windows Virtual PC:

· Remote Media Streaming: Enables secure, remote Internet access to home-based digital media libraries from another Windows 7 PC outside the home.

· Windows XP Mode: Utilizing Windows Virtual PC, Windows XP Mode allows small and medium business users of Windows 7 users to run many Windows XP productivity applications, launched right from the Windows 7 desktop. Windows XP Mode will be available to Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate customers via download or, for the best experience, preinstalled directly on new PCs. As part of today’s announcement, Microsoft is releasing the beta of Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC. For larger businesses where management is important to reduce the total cost of ownership, Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V) within the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) adds management to Windows Virtual PC including centralized policy, administration experience and deployment.

In addition, some innovative features were enhanced for Windows 7 RC based on feedback received during the beta period:

· Refined navigation: Several minor enhancements to the Windows Taskbar, Jumplists, and search make navigation and finding exactly what you want much easier

· Internet Explorer 8: InPrivate Browsing in Internet Explorer 8 prevents browsing history, temporary Internet files, form data, cookies and usernames/passwords from being retained by the browser. With Windows 7, you can start an InPrivate session straight from the Jump List. You can also open a new tab from the Jump List.

· Windows Touch: Controlling the computer by touching the screen is a core Windows 7 user experience. Improvements in the RC includes several Windows Touch updates, including the ability to drag, drop and select items with touch, even inside Web sites that scroll both horizontally and vertically.

For those interested in previewing Windows 7 and experiencing the new features first-hand, the Windows 7 RC will be publicly available in the coming week on the Microsoft Download Center (http://microsoft.com/downloads). For customers who want to take advantage of Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC, there will also be a download available on the site.

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Talking about Windows

will.craddock — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:48:00 GMT

, you heard of it?

Unless you live under a rock or don’t work in IT (in which case why are you reading this blog) you should by now have figured out that Microsoft has a new desktop OS coming soon. So if you are an ITPro and you have a new OS, then you have to be thinking about how am I going to deploy it, how am I going to secure IT and what benefits is it going to have for my business and users. Every business situation requires different deployment strategies, every business requires different security strategies and to make the right choices you need to hear about your options.

www.TalkingAboutWindows.com offers IT professionals genuine insight on Windows 7 from the Microsoft engineers who helped build the product such as Jon DeVaan, Gabe Al, Sharif Farag, and Mark Russinovich. Additionally, you will hear real world commentary from IT Pro Managers direct from the trenches; there is even a video from my good friend Mitch Garvis, Canadian MVP for EBS on his deployment experiences.

When you combine Talking About Windows and the Springboard Series – IT Professionals have a great deal of resources to help them consider their options and learn more about Windows 7!

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This site is about shared experiences. I am a very big promoter of the IT Community experience through online communities, local user groups and networking sessions like TechNet events. The best way to learn about new solutions is from people who have already experienced it. My recommendation is to get involved in any of the 3 community types mentioned, and start making contributions.

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(Note the 7-11 Big Gulp cups, this is based on my life and desk!)

Be sure to come back to www.talkingaboutwindows.com as they will be adding more engineering and customer videos in lead up to general availability of Windows 7 and keep in mind that the Release Candidate experience starts very soon :)

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Tech Days: Galway March10, Cork March12 (7pm-9.30pm)

endaf — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:29:00 GMT

Tech Days, a joint effort between Microsoft and the IT Pro community, is bringing exceptional up-to-date technical content to Galway and Cork. Register and learn more about these evening events @ http://www.microsoft.com/ireland/technet/techdays.aspx

Galway will cover Windows 7 and Client Deployment Tools, a session for the 'accidental' (or involuntary) DBAs and a great Integrated BI Solutions session.

Cork will look at Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (Live Migration!) as well as excellent technical demos and best practice sharing on Unified Comms and SharePoint.

There is no cost for attending the event and what's more, the TechNet team have sweeeeet prizes for give-away on the evenings: an Xbox elite and two TechNet Plus Subscriptions in each city.

Enda

Microsoft Community Tech Days

ieitpro — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:47:00 GMT

The countdown is on for MS Community Tech Days!...only two weeks until Galway and Cork at the time of posting this (Galway 10th and Cork 12th March). Blindingly good technical content to be caught! Learn more and register @ http://www.microsoft.com/ireland/technet/techdays.aspx.

Tech Days are a collaborative effort between Microsoft and the IT Pro community to re-deliver the highlights of Tech Ed Conference to IT Pros across Ireland. Register now to avoid disappointment! The core content will focus on Infrastructure, BI and Unified Comms & Collaboration. Most of the sessions will be delivered by a combination of Microsoft and Community technical presenters and we promise they will involve as much time spent demoing the technology, as possible.

March will see the four-city tour stop for evening events in Galway and Cork, with full day events in Dublin and Belfast. Our special guest speaker in Galway, Dublin and Belfast is Rhonda Layfield, who was voted one of the best technical presenters @ Tech Ed Europe and North America. Don’t miss this amazing opportunity to get up-to speed on the latest Microsoft technology (technical level 300) at no cost! We hope to see you there. Learn more and register here.

We are also running ‘Microsoft @ Home’ sessions in Dublin and Belfast in March, the timing of which line up nicely with the Tech Days. These sessions will look at Home Networking, Windows 7, Securing your Home and Digital Photography. So if you’re someone who has even thought about, using your Xbox 360 as a media extender for example, then you’ll certainly like this session. Learn more and register here.

Enda

Subsidised Microsoft Technical Training – February/March 2009

ieitpro — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 18:32:00 GMT

Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft® Exchange Server 2007
16-18 February 09, Cork, PFH

At the end of this three-day course, students who are new to Microsoft Exchange Server will learn how to configure and manage a messaging environment in accordance with technical requirements. Students will learn how to install Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and manage routing, client access, and the backup and restore of databases. They will also learn how to manage addressing and recipient objects such as mailboxes, distribution groups, and contacts.

€600. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V Virtualization in Depth
18-19 February 09, Dublin, Global Knowledge

This deep hands-on course trains Microsoft partners to design, implement and consolidate their physical infrastructure into a flexible and dynamic Microsoft virtual datacenter, which consist Microsoft Windows 2008 Hyper-V and Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager vNext. This training course focuses on backup, recovery secure and monitoring of critical business applications inside the virtual machines. "In Depth" covers high availability, scripting and data protection of Microsoft virtual environment. At the end of the course the attendees will be able to successfully install and secure MS Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V and manage it with System Center Virtual Machine Manager vNext. With Microsoft System Center Operations Manager they will be able to monitor the Microsoft virtualization products. They will have the ability to setup System Center Data Protection Manager for backup and recovery and update the virtual machines and the hypervisor-based virtualization server.

€400. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 Applications
23-24 February 09, Dublin, New Horizons

This two-day course explores the Microsoft Dynamics CRM application from a user's perspective. Application functionality covered in the course includes: Sales Management; Marketing Automation; Service Management; Service Scheduling

€267. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Installing and Configuring the Windows Vista Operating System
23-24 February 09, Galway, New Horizons

This two-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to install and configure Windows Vista desktops. It will focus on four main areas: installing, securing, networking, and browsing. By the end of the course, the student will have installed and configured a Windows Vista desktop that is secure, on the network, and ready for browsing.

€183. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Managing and Maintaining Windows Server 2008 Servers
24-27 February 09, Belfast, New Horizons

This four-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to implement, monitor, and maintain Windows Server 2008 servers.

€533. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Customization and Configuration in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0
25-26 February 09, Dublin, New Horizons

This two-day instructor-led course provides students with the tools to configure and customize Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0. Configuration topics include setting up business management functions such as: Business units; Users; Teams; Security privileges and roles; System Settings; Multilingual User Interface Language Packs; Currency Exchange Rates; Multiple Organizations

€267. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Implementing System Center Data Protection Manager 2007
2-5 March 09, Dublin, BT

This deep hands-on course trains Microsoft partners to design, implement and consolidate their physical infrastructure into a flexible and dynamic Microsoft virtual datacenter, which consist Microsoft Windows 2008 Hyper-V and Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager vNext. This training course focuses on backup, recovery secure and monitoring of critical business applications inside the virtual machines. "In Depth" covers high availability, scripting and data protection of Microsoft virtual environment. At the end of the course the attendees will be able to successfully install and secure MS Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V and manage it with System Center Virtual Machine Manager vNext. With Microsoft System Center Operations Manager they will be able to monitor the Microsoft virtualization products. They will have the ability to setup System Center Data Protection Manager for backup and recovery and update the virtual machines and the hypervisor-based virtualization server.

€599. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Advanced SharePoint 2007 Development
02-06 March 09, Cork, PFH

This five-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to become a top-notch SharePoint 2007 Developer. From AJAX to Event Handlers and Features, you will gain important insight into the internal workings of SharePoint 2007. This course is intended for experienced SharePoint developers and students and will guide them through the process of architecting and developing SharePoint applications and customizations.

€999. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Developing Web Applications Using Microsoft Visual Studio 2008
9-12 March 09. Dublin, New Horizons

This four-day instructor-led course will teach introductory-level Web developers the fundamentals of Web application development and best practices for Microsoft Web development technologies, including ASP.NET 3.5, ASP.NET AJAX Extensions, and Silverlight. This course focuses on using the Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 development environment and the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 to create a Web application that delivers dynamic content to a Web site.

€533. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Managing System Center Operations Manager 2007
10-13 March 09. Dublin, Global Knowledge

Elements of this syllabus are subject to change.
This three-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to managing a Systems Center Operations Manager 2007 management group. This course is intended to develop the necessary skills to install and manage Operations Manager 2007 management servers and supporting roles.

€400. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Managing and Maintaining Windows Server 2008 Servers
10-13 March 09, Cork, PFH

This four-day instructor-led course provides students with the knowledge and skills to implement, monitor, and maintain Windows Server 2008 servers.

€800. Register Your Interest Here (registration will close 2 weeks in advance of the course date)

Mark Russinovich Chat on Windows 7

ieitpro — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 08:38:00 GMT

With every new OS release comes some new features, changes to old features, fixes, kernel updates and more. While you might have read about some of these new features you probably have questions and now is your chance to find out more about Windows 7.

On Thursday, February 12th, Mark Russinovich will host a virtual roundtable for IT pros worldwide to discuss Windows 7 Beta. This is your chance to learn all about the new Windows 7 Beta and get answers to any deployment and management questions that you might have. As part of the “virtual” experience,you will be able to submit your questions about Windows 7 Beta to the panel live during the event—or submit questions in advance to vrtable@microsoft.com.

So save the date and join Mark on Thursday, February 12 at: https://ms.istreamplanet.com/springboard.

Virtualisation Unplugged - access to content

ieitpro — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 15:08:00 GMT

Thanks to those who made it to the 'Wellie' in Belfast yesterday and Douglas in Cork today for Virtualisation Unplugged.James and Dave really know Microsoft Virtualisation inside-out, so I'm glad you tested them with a few tough questions.

Even though James claims to be a bit of a sell-out, by buying into the whole blogging habit, his blog is still definitely worth keeping an eye on. It can be found @ http://blogs.technet.com/jamesone/. Also, his Virtualisation Unplugged slides can be found here.

Dave Northey's is back blogging these days, so you will see his Windows 7 deck here in the coming days.

Windows Vista Performance - check out this video!

ieitpro — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 22:29:00 GMT

Nigel Mulholland, MD of Microsoft partner Nitec, discusses Vista performance - 'warts and all' - with TechNet's Dave Northey.

After an initial bumpy ride with Vista, Nitec are now happily running the operating system in-house and strongly recommending it to their customers.

View the video interview here.

Come and get the Windows 7 Beta!

ieitpro — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 12:20:00 GMT

Finally, the Windows 7 Beta is available for public download! I am about to download it myself and I have heard lots of positive reports from my colleagues, so I’m very encouraged!

Windows 7 Beta Has Officially Launched! After much anticipation, Microsoft has now made Windows 7 Beta available for evaluation and testing to IT professionals! For TechNet subscribers, you can download Windows 7 Beta today here. Since January 9th, the beta is open to all IT professionals on the Springboard Series for Windows 7.

In fact the Springboard Series website is a real gem and you can find loads more IT Pro resources on Windows 7 like Windows 7: A First Look for IT Pros, Windows 7 Feature Walkthroughs, Mark Russinovich Goes Inside Windows 7 as well as great resources and information on Windows Vista.

Good video to watch: Mark Russinovich on virtualization, Sysinternals and the cloud

ieitpro — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 13:48:00 GMT

Here's some more interesting footage from TechEd that I missed before...

Mark Russinovich, technical follow, about Windows 7, WS08 R2, virtualization and Vista. It's about 8 minutes long. You can watch Mark's interview here.

In this interview from Microsoft Tech-Ed EMEA 2008 in Barcelona, author and Microsoft technical fellow Mark Russinovich sits down with SearchWinIT.com senior news director Margie Semilof to discuss several topics that are on the horizon for Windows administrators, such as cloud computing, client virtualization, and the release of Windows 7 Server. He also provides insight on the fate of WinFS, what's new with Sysinternals and the controversy surrounding Windows Vista.

IMPORTANT: Deploy October Critical Microsoft Security Update Immediately!

ieitpro — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 19:50:00 GMT

You will recall that on the 23rd October we released the out-of-band update MS08-067. Deployment of this update has been high, but a worm, Worm:Win32/Conficker, has been detected across the world with increasing frequency. If you have not done so already, please protect yourself by installing the update MS08-067 as soon as possible - both on home machines and in the office.

Please do not hold off on installing the update for fear of issues with it – the Microsoft Security Teams are unaware of a single case, which when investigated, was a regression issue with MS08-067.

Please see more information on Microsoft Security Response Center blog, the Microsoft Malware Protection Center blog, or via our encyclopaedia write up. Microsoft continues to encourage customers to install MS08-067 immediately to protect their systems from possible exploitation. For customers who believe they have been affected and want to scan their computers, Microsoft recommends using its free full scanning service. Microsoft will continue to monitor the situation and will post updates when necessary.

SQL Server Ireland User Group: Kimberly Tripp presents SQL Server 200x: Optimizing Procedural Code

ieitpro — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 11:56:00 GMT

Incredible!!...lightning does actually strike twice! Kimberly Tripp is visiting Ireland for the second time in three months and Niall Flanagan was not going to let an opportunity like this pass the SQL Server Ireland User Group. Those of you who attended her presentation last September will appreciate why she is constantly called out as the world's #1 speaker in SQL Server today. See the presentation abstract here.

6pm-8pm Dec 4th, Microsoft Atrium - Block B, Carmanhall Road, Sandyford Industrial Estate
Register here (you will have to sign up to the user group first - free of course)

First Look at Windows 7

ieitpro — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:38:00 GMT

See the 'Spingboard Series' to learn about some of the highlights of Windows 7 for the IT professional including improvements in manageability, security and compliance, and deployment.

SharePoint User Group Kick-off in Dublin: a forum for IT Professionals interested in SharePoint

ieitpro — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:50:00 GMT

Wahoooo!...Last night saw the inaugural meeting of the SharePoint User Group in Ireland and it got off to a flying start! The meeting took place in Sandyford in Dublin and the introdcutory topic was 'Setting up a MOSS Farm'. Stephen Cummins (local SharePoint User Group Lead and SharePoint MVP) presented for the kick-off sesion but attendees from customers, partners and MS all contributed to open discussion.

You can expect to see SharePoint UG meetings taking place in Dublin on a monthly basis, the next topic is planned to be 'SharePoint Governance'. A meeting is also planned for Belfast on January 16th and watch this space (or http://www.sugie.org/) also for details of a meeting taking palce in Munster.

Here's some of the useful resources that were mentioned by the Microsoft Consultants last night (thanks Aidan and Donal):

þ Patterns and Practices SharePoint Guidance: http://www.codeplex.com/spg

þ Best Practices Resources Center: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb736746.aspx

þ Governance Resource Center: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb507202.aspx

þ Interactive Road Map: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-gb/office/bb497969.aspx

þ Application Templates for WSS 3.0 (Fab 40): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/sharepoint/bb407286.aspx

þ The same Fantastic 40 but deployed on a MOSS site so potential users can try them before downloading: http://www.wssdemo.com/application/default.aspx