The public preview of SQL Server on Linux has arrived!

 

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The public preview of SQL Server on Linux has arrived!

As written on info.microsoft.com
The public preview of the next major release of SQL Server brings the power of SQL Server to both Linux and Windows.  SQL Server enables developers and organizations to build intelligent applications with industry-leading performance and security technologies using their preferred language and environment.  With the next release of SQL Server, you can develop applications with SQL Server on Linux, Windows, Docker, or macOS (via Docker) and then deploy to Linux, Windows, or Docker, on-premises or in the cloud.
You’ll find native Linux installations made easy with familiar RPM and APT packages for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Ubuntu Linux, and a package for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server will be coming soon as well.  Finally, the public preview for SQL Server is also available on Azure Virtual Machines on Windows and Linux and as images available on Docker Hub, offering a quick and easy installation within minutes.
Tooling on Linux
We have also released updated versions of our flagship SQL Server tools including SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)Visual Studio SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) and SQL Server PowerShell with support for the next release of SQL Server on Windows and Linux. We are also excited to announce the new SQL Server extension for Visual Studio Code that is available now on the Visual Studio Code marketplace. Developers can use the SQL extension for VS Code on macOS/Linux/Windows with SQL Server running anywhere (on-premises, on Linux and Windows, in any cloud, in virtual machines, Docker) and with Azure SQL DB and Azure SQL DW. Native command-line tools are also available for SQL Server on Linux.
Get started today
Try the SQL Server on Linux Public Preview today! Get started with the public preview of the next release of SQL Server on Linux, macOS (via Docker) and Windows with our tutorials that show you how to install and use SQL Server on macOS, Docker, Windows, RHEL and Ubuntu and quickly build an app in a programming language of your choice.

 

What's changed in System Center Configuration Manager from System Center 2012 Configuration Manager

Microsoft

What's changed in System Center Configuration Manager from System Center 2012 Configuration Manager

By Brent Dunshire as written on docs.microsoft.com
Applies to: System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch)
System Center Configuration Manager current branch introduces important changes from System Center 2012 Configuration Manager. The information in this topic identifies the more significant changes and new capabilities found in the baseline version 1511 of System Center Configuration Manager. To learn about additional changes that are introduced in subsequent updates for System Center Configuration Manager, see What’s new in System Center Configuration Manager incremental versions.
The December 2015 release of System Center Configuration Manager (version 1511), is the latest product release of Configuration Manager from Microsoft. It is typically referred to as System Center Configuration Manager current branch. Current branch indicates this is a version that supports incremental updates to the product and can be an important distinction between this and past releases of Configuration Manager.
With this release System Center Configuration Manager:
In-console updates for Configuration Manager
System Center Configuration Manager uses an in-console service method called Updates and Servicing that makes it easy to locate and then install recommended updates for Configuration Manager.
Some versions are only available as updates for existing sites (from within the Configuration Manager console), and cannot be used to install new Configuration Manager sites.
For example, the 1602 update is only available from within the Configuration Manager console and is used to update a site that runs a baseline version of 1511 to version 1602.
Periodically, an update version will also be released as a new baseline version (like update 1606) which can be used to install a new hierarchy without the need to start with an older baseline version (like 1511) and upgrade your way to the most current version.
For more information about using updates, see Updates for System Center Configuration Manager.
Service connection point replaces Microsoft Intune connector
The Microsoft Intune connector is replaced by a new site system role that enables additional functionality, the service connection point. The service connection point:
This site system role supports both an online and offline mode of operation that can affect its additional use. For more information see About the service connection point in System Center Configuration Manager.
Usage data collection
System Center Configuration Manager collects usage data about your sites and infrastructure. This information is compiled and submitted to the Microsoft cloud service by the service connection point (a new site system role) and is required to enable Configuration Manager to download updates for your deployment that apply to the version of Configuration Manager you use. When you configure the service connection point you can configure both the level of data that is collected, and whether this is submitted automatically (online mode) or manually (offline mode).
For more information see Usage data levels and settings.
Support for Intel Active Management Technology (AMT)
With System Center Configuration Manager, native support for AMT-based computers from within the Configuration Manager console has been removed.
The removal of integrated AMT for System Center Configuration Manager includes:
Deprecated functionality
With System Center Configuration Manager, some capabilities, like native Support for Intel Active Management Technology (AMT) based-computers is removed from the Configuration Manager console, while other capabilities like Network Access Protection are removed entirely. Additionally, some older Microsoft products like Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and SQL Server 2008, are no longer supported.
For a list of deprecated features, see Removed and deprecated features for System Center Configuration Manager.
For details about supported products, operating systems, and configurations, see Supported configurations for System Center Configuration Manager.
Client deployment
System Center Configuration Manager introduces a new capability for testing new versions of the Configuration Manager client before upgrading the rest of site with the new software. This new capability gives you the opportunity to set up a preproduction collection in which to pilot a new client. Once you are satisfied with the new client software in preproduction, you can promote the client to automatically upgrade the rest of the site with the new version.
For more information on how to test clients, see How to test client upgrades in a preproduction collection in System Center Configuration Manager.
Operating system deployment
Application management
Software updates
Compliance settings
Protect data and site infrastructure
Mobile device management with Microsoft Intune
System Center Configuration Manager introduces improvements to the mobile device management experience including:
For more information about mobile device management capabilities with Configuration Manager and Intune, see Hybrid mobile device management (MDM) with System Center Configuration Manager and Microsoft Intune.
On-premises Mobile Device Management
With System Center Configuration Manager, you can now manage mobile devices using on-premises Configuration Manager infrastructure. All device management and management data is handled on-premises and is not part of Microsoft Intune or other cloud services. This type of device management doesn't require client software since the capabilities that Configuration Manager uses to manage the devices are built into the device operating systems.

5 ways to boost your professionalism over email

5 ways to boost your professionalism over email

Every day, inboxes are packed with more than one billion emails. For small businesses, the challenge to set yourself apart and establish what your business represents in a single email can feel daunting, but it’s easier than you think.

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Follow these five simple—yet highly effective—strategies to convert the customer, close the sale, build your brand and continue to build your small business through effective use of business email.
1.Create a custom email address for your business— Show you mean business, and get taken seriously with a properly formatted email address. If you use your personal email, you’re not communicating all the potential your business has to offer. Instead, format your email as yourname@yourcompany.com.
2.Use the To, CC, and BCC lines strategically— Eliminate the risk of unnecessary replies or over-filling inboxes. Ask yourself a few questions to determine if a BCC or CC line is the right choice. Do the contacts know each other (or need to)? Does every recipient need to read every response? Respect recipients’ privacy by placing contacts in the BCC line and add people in the BCC field to eliminate the opportunity for “reply all” blunders. While you’re at it, consider waiting to fill all To, CC, and BCC lines once you’ve drafted and proofread your email. This eliminates the risk of an email “misfire” and gives you a chance to think about what you’ve written before pressing send.
3.Write smart subject lines— A catchy or motivating subject line enhances the chance your email will be read. Create a subject line that’s focused, personal and shows the value or urgency of reading. To create click-worthy subject lines, combine a few action-based and topical subject line elements with an added value to readers.
4.Include a clear next step— Include clear calls to action with precise next steps. Whether you want readers to follow a link, call a number, reply to your email or something else, state it clearly and make it easy for them to follow through. Need a question answered? Don’t dance around it. Ask the question in the beginning of your email, and prompt your recipients to answer toward the end.
5.Proofread— Spellcheck will only get you so far. Don’t just proofread for spelling and grammar; check that your tone is appropriate to the subject matter. Be careful of jokes and sarcasm, as humor can easily be mistaken and misunderstood. And check for one of the most common email errors: referring to an attachment but forgetting to include one.
It’s amazing how impactful simple email strategies are, and you will see the results as you implement them into your small business email communication plan. Once you’ve implemented these strategies (and proofread one more time, for good measure), you’re ready to send.

Enhancing information rights management in Word, Excel and PowerPoint mobile apps

Enhancing information rights management in Word, Excel and PowerPoint mobile apps

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Finding the balance between protection and productivity is critical to any organization. With the increased distribution of data, organizations need sensitive data to be born protected. This is why we invest in Azure Rights Management to help you protect information in today’s mobile-first, cloud-first world.
Information rights management (IRM) is now supported everywhere in Office Mobile as we are pleased to announce that we are extending Azure Rights Management to the Word, Excel and PowerPoint mobile apps for Android. You are now able to open, read and review rights-protected emails and Office documents on any device—whether it runs Windows, Mac, iOS or Android.
Other upcoming enhancements
We are hard at work building several other new features and enhancements to make the IRM experience even better for Office 365 subscribers in future updates.
These planned updates include:
Visit the Azure Rights Management website and read the product documentation to learn more. If you already use Azure Rights Management, make sure you update your Android devices with the latest versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint today so you get all the new functionality we have released.

Managed Solution is a full-service technology firm that empowers business by delivering, maintaining and forecasting the technologies they’ll need to stay competitive in their market place. Founded in 2002, the company quickly grew into a market leader and is recognized as one of the fastest growing IT Companies in Southern California.

We specialize in providing full Microsoft solutions to businesses of every size, industry, and need.

Technology can help bridge the gap as cures are sought for ALS

Technology can help bridge the gap as cures are sought for ALS

On Friday, GLEASON, the critically acclaimed documentary about former NFL player Steve Gleason, will open in select theaters across the U.S. GLEASON tells the incredibly powerful story of Steve’s life both leading up to and after his diagnosis in 2011 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease. I’ve been fortunate to see the documentary a few times over the last few months and I’ll be honest, you’ll need tissues and strong stomach muscles. It is real, gritty, warm, humbling and hilarious. The Gleasons have a relentless drive to empower others with ALS to ‘live’ and live a life that is worth living, and I know I’m not the only one who feels unbelievably lucky to partner with Team Gleason on technology to help support that goal.
Microsoft’s work with Team Gleason got ignited two years ago this week at //oneweek, our annual hackathon where thousands of Microsoft employees spend days poring over projects that have a real impact. Steve had issued a challenge to Microsoft to develop technology to help people with ALS, specifically to help him communicate more easily, play with his son and move his wheelchair independently. The 2014 //oneweek Ability EyeGaze hackathon team came together to tackle that challenge and ended up winning the whole hackathon that year.
Two years on, Team Gleason and Steve continue to work on these goals with the Microsoft Enable team in Microsoft Technology and Research, producing technology that enables people to move their wheelchairs and communicate through their keyboards using nothing more than the movement of their eyes. The passion and dedication of everyone that has touched this project has been overwhelming; it’s been a remarkable experience in which to participate. In that time, the project has evolved from an early stage hack into technology that helps Steve do exactly what he asked: be more independent. Steve is regularly using the technology to get around and to communicate with friends and family, just as he had envisioned at the beginning.
The technology may now be real and have a lot less duct tape involved than when we first started, but the work is far from done. We are still in the research phase and are continuing to improve it – even here at //oneweek this week – with the goal of making it available to everyone who can benefit from it.
We have learned so much along the way from many families impacted by ALS and we are humbled by their generosity. We know that technology has the power to change lives and we are fired up at the chance to work with so many amazing people to help make that possible.
To stay up to speed on the latest developments in accessibility, visit the Microsoft Accessibility website. You can also read more about exciting new research projects like this on the Microsoft Enable team’s website. And follow us on Twitter at Microsoft Accessibility (@MSFTEnable), Microsoft Research (@MSFTResearch) and Team Gleason (@TeamGleason).
Lastly, please, go see this documentary, and you’ll see why we’re so passionate.
As Steve says, ‘Until there is a cure for ALS, technology is the cure.’

7 simple calendar tricks that will level-up your team’s productivity

7 simple calendar tricks that will level-up your team’s productivity

What’s the secret to maximizing productivity and efficiency? There’s no single silver bullet, but one sure-fire way to make gains is with calendar tricks that will keep you organized and focused. From scheduling “no meeting” time blocks to integrating mobile so you never miss a meeting—the art of calendar optimization is crucial.

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Here are seven simple calendar tricks you can use to bring your productivity to the next level:
1.Schedule “no meeting” time blocks—Instead of multitasking, set aside time without interruptions. “When people multitask, often they do multiple things badly,” says David Sanbonmatsu, University of Utah professor of Psychology. “A lot of times, the people who multitask the most are the worst at it…it’s individuals who lack impulse control.” (From Forbes.)
2.Set out-of-office (OOO) time—Identify blocks of time on your calendar as “unavailable,” “not working” or “OOO” if you’re not working a certain day or are traveling.
Pro hack: If you have a regular non-work appointment or commute time when you’re unavailable, schedule it as recurring OOO time. To do this in Outlook, just open the meeting you want to set as recurring and on the Meeting tab (in the Options group), click Recurrence. Select your desired frequency, set options for the frequency and click OK.
3.Connect your calendar on your mobile—It happens to everyone: You’re not on your laptop and a meeting runs late, you forget when and where your next meeting is and you end up shuffling in with a flurry of apologies five minutes after the next meeting begins. Integrate your calendar on your mobile device to stay up-to-date on all your meetings.
4.Install buffer time—Whenever possible, schedule an extra 10 minutes on either side of every meeting, so that you have enough time to clean up from the current meeting and then prepare and set up for the next meeting. This will also help you avoid the feeling of “running” from meeting to meeting.
5.Schedule breaks—When you’re completing tasks like a do-it-all, it’s easy to plow through and work till you’re fried. “Getting up for a few minutes and getting our blood flowing and some more oxygen to the brain is a necessary piece of the work day,” according to the Huffington Post’s Healthy Living team. Schedule breaks into your calendar to avoid burnout and boost creativity and let your calendar reminders hold you accountable.
6.Set check-in reminders—As major deadlines approach, schedule check-ins with reminders for benchmarks along the way. This avoids end-of-project stress and ensures you’re checking off tasks before they’ve passed. Include team members on your calendar reminders to encourage team check-ins as well.
7.Integrate business contacts—Simplify inviting business contacts by integrating your calendar with your contact list.
Pro hack: You can add a contact from an email message in Office 365. Open the message so that the person’s name is shown in one of these lines: From, To, Cc or Bcc. Right-click the appropriate name and click Add to Outlook Contacts. A new window opens, where you can fill in the details you want and then OK when done.
Use your calendar to stay on top of your day by optimizing organization and ultimately making you more productive. For more productivity tips learn how to work smarter in the cloud. To ensure you and your team are more connected get the eBook: “Collaborate, Anytime, Anywhere.“

Is your company’s data secure?

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Is your company’s data secure?

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Keeping data secure is pivotal to the success of all organizations. Office 365 Enterprise E5 Plan is Microsoft’s most secure productivity solution ever—offering industry-leading security and compliance features. Microsoft’s cybersecurity intelligence and machine learning capabilities help protect against unknown malware and detect anomalies quickly to allow a rapid response.
In addition, Office 365 meets many industry and regulatory requirements and helps organizations respond to legal issues with machine learning that quickly identifies relevant content for eDiscovery.
Organizations improve visibility and control with Office 365. Administrators can set control policies, discover “shadow” IT, control data access and gain critical insights into threats.

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Introducing Microsoft Stream

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Introducing Microsoft Stream: the secure destination to manage and share videos for businesses of all sizes

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Video is one of the most powerful ways we connect, communicate and learn today – breaking down geographic boundaries and bringing a distinctly human element to digital interactions. Myriad platforms exist in the consumer space to upload and share live or on demand in a matter of seconds. As one of the most consumed and shared content types on the internet, video is increasingly an important part of our personal lives. We believe video can – and should – be just as impactful in the workplace.
Today we are announcing the free preview of Microsoft Stream, a new business video service that democratizes access to and discovery of video at work. Starting today, anyone with a business email address can sign up for the preview in seconds and begin uploading, sharing and tagging videos in their organization. By taking the “work” out of managing video storage and security, Microsoft Stream enables organizations and their employees to communicate and collaborate with video more easily.
Earlier this year we announced our new approach to business apps and our ambition to remove barriers, encourage innovation and ultimately empower everyone in an organization with better ways to get work done. Microsoft Stream builds on this vision, enabling business users to harness the power of video to achieve more at work.
Today at preview we are delivering the following features and capabilities that make video management and sharing within an organization easy, collaborative and social:
•Sign up in seconds: Get started with Microsoft Stream in as few as five seconds with easy signup and no credit card requirements.
•Easily upload and organize your video: With easy drag and drop capabilities, upload your videos and organize them by either starting a channel or contributing to a channel based on team, group, topic etc.
•Discover relevant content: Enhanced content discovery through “trending” videos powered by machine learning, as well as search by hashtag, most liked videos and other key search terms.
•Watch anywhere, on any device, anytime: View videos in Microsoft Stream on all your devices from anywhere, anytime.
•Secure video management: Manage who views your video content by determining how widely to share within your organization, and to what channels. Secure application access is enabled by Azure Active Directory, a recognized leader in identity management systems, to protect sensitive corporate content.
•Follow what matters: Follow channels to see content you want in your Microsoft Stream homepage.
•Engage with content: Socialize videos by sharing via email, “Like” your favorites and embed videos to webpages within your organization.
Many Microsoft customers have already started to embrace the power of video for their business using Office 365 Video. Microsoft Stream builds upon the learnings and success of Office 365 Video, and over time the two experiences will converge, making Stream the de facto video experience in Office 365. During the preview of Microsoft Stream, there will be no changes to the Office 365 Video experience. We will share more details on future enhancements closer to general availability of the Microsoft Stream service. Learn more about what Microsoft Stream means to Office 365 customers here.
This is only the start. We believe video is going to be truly transformative in the workplace. We see video being a core content type across all solutions we use at work today. We want to share a sneak peek about how we imagine Microsoft Stream evolving:
•Deliver corporate broadcast seamlessly: Increasingly the way organizations are communicating and connecting is through live video. We believe that Microsoft Stream portal should be the destination for both live and video on demand.
•Intelligent video search: We believe true power of video will be realized once we are able to search within the video. Leveraging capabilities such as audio transcription and face detection, we can enable deep search, empowering employees to find relevant content faster.
•Make video part of your business apps and workflows: With the ability to integrate Microsoft Stream with other business apps like PowerApps, Microsoft Flow, SharePoint and other line of business applications, we see great opportunity to leverage the richness of video across apps.
•IT management capabilities: We recognize the critical role IT plays in managing content and user access to internal content. We plan to enable IT to manage access and settings like granting and assigning channel and video access, remove and monitor content and manage what is viewable to specific groups in the organization.
•Microsoft Stream App Ecosystem: We believe our partners will take Microsoft Stream experiences to the next level. Using Microsoft Stream APIs, partners will be able to create custom applications and make them available in AppSource, Microsoft’s marketplace for business applications we announced earlier this month.
We hope you share our excitement for the possibilities in video Microsoft Stream can open up for you and your businesses.

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