Author: Russell Smith

Managing Windows Update with PowerShell has until recently only been possible using a third-party module. But starting in Windows Server 2019, Microsoft's WindowsUpdateProvider PowerShell module is included out-of-the-box and it allows you to perform simple Windows Update management tasks, like starting a scan and installing updates. In this article, I will look at both Microsoft's… Read More

The technology that underpins Known Issue Rollback first appeared in Windows 10 version 2004. Known Issue Rollback, or KIR for short, lets Microsoft and IT administrators quickly roll back non-security fixes that are causing functionality issues in Windows. Known Issue Rollback is designed to help Microsoft and organizations keep Windows devices secure but make sure… Read More

Before you can install Windows Server 2019 on physical hardware, you'll need boot media that contains all the files necessary to install Windows Server. Boot media generally comes in two forms: as a DVD or USB drive. As most modern server hardware comes without a DVD drive, in this article, I'll show you how to… Read More

This month Microsoft patches 7 zero-day flaws in Windows, 6 of which are being exploited in the wild. And there are also important updates for SharePoint Server, Microsoft Office, and Adobe Acrobat and Reader. Windows and Windows Server If you haven't already started testing and deploying June's updates for Windows and Windows Server, then it's… Read More

If you are in the market for a new notebook or PC, there are two choices consumers have in Windows 10 SKU: Home and Pro. You might be purchasing a device for your own business or buying one to use with your company's "Bring Your Own Device" (BYOD) program. In the case of the latter,… Read More

Microsoft recently announced that its Defender for Endpoint solution can now detect when unmanaged network devices may pose a threat. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is an enterprise antimalware solution that builds upon the free Microsoft Defender software that's built into Windows 10 and Windows Server. Defender for Endpoint helps enterprises prevent, detect, investigate, and respond… Read More

Satya Nadella announces there will be significant changes coming to Windows, Microsoft starts rolling out the Windows 10 May 2021 Update, and Edge 91 makes it to the Stable channel. And there's a whole load more this month, so let's get started. Windows 10 May 2021 Update (21H1) is now generally available Microsoft made the… Read More

Microsoft announced at Build that Windows Package Manager (WPM) v1.0 is now generally available. First announced in May 2020, WPM has been in development for over a year. But now it's finally ready for you to use. In this Winget Guide, I'll show you how to get it and how it works. How to get… Read More

Last week Microsoft announced improvements to its cloud-native SIEM product, Azure Sentinel. In an effort to make Sentinel more efficient for Security Operations (SecOps) teams, Microsoft has improved the quality of rules and includes more innate intelligence out-of-the-box. There's also built-in support for SAP in preview. Plus, other features like UEBA and entity pages, which… Read More

Microsoft Search is now integrated with Windows Search in Windows 10. Microsoft had been talking about this capability since 2018 but recently went quiet on the subject. So, I did a little digging and found that according to the Microsoft 365 roadmap, which you can find here, Microsoft Search for Windows 10 launched April 2021… Read More

Looking to install Active Directory in Windows Server 2019? Here's how to accomplish that task with PowerShell.

12th May 2021, ahead of RSA 2021, Microsoft announces improvements to its security products for better-protecting organizations in a post-pandemic world. The future of work is hybrid Hybrid work refers to a post-pandemic work pattern where employees spend more time working from home but some time working in the office. Employees will move between home… Read More

This month Microsoft has released quite a low number of security patches for Windows. But there are still some nasty bugs that need your attention. Including a wormable bug in http.sys, a vulnerability in IE11, and a wireless networking flaw that could let an attacker disclose encrypted information. Windows and Windows Server This month's cumulative… Read More

Windows 10 includes all the software you need to set up a virtual machine (VM). Using a feature called Hyper-V, a hardware-based hypervisor for virtualization, you can install Windows 10 and other operating systems in VMs running in Windows 10. You can think of it like running a computer inside a computer; where the host… Read More

Windows Server 2019 is almost as easy to install as Windows 10. And in this article, I'm going to take you step-by-step through the process for installing Windows Server 2019 in a Hyper-V virtual machine (VM). First, I will show you how to install Hyper-V in Windows 10 or Windows Server. Then we will move… Read More