Russell Smith profile picture

Follow Russell

Russell Smith

Editorial Director

Russell Smith, the Editorial Director at Petri IT Knowledgebase, has over two decades of hands-on experience in IT, in both small business settings and government IT infrastructure projects.

Russell started writing for Windows IT Pro Magazine in the early 2000s. Since then, he has contributed insights to various IT publications, including Petri and CDW. His authoritative voice has resonated across industry blogs, where he dissects complex topics into an ‘easy read’.

Russell has authored over a thousand articles, each a testament to his depth of knowledge. His expertise doesn’t stop there: he wrote a book on Privilege Management and co-authored another for Microsoft’s MOAC series. Moreover, Russell’s commitment to education shines through in the courses he crafted for Pluralsight.

He is also presenter on his own YouTube channel, This Week in IT, and the current presenter of Petri Dish.

LATEST

Microsoft 365 Copilot

Microsoft 365 Copilot Pricing Revealed

Last Update: Jul 24, 2023

When Microsoft 365 Copilot was announced earlier this year, it generated a lot excitement. And now we know how much it’s going to cost. But will organizations be ready to pay? Plus, all the top news stories from the past week. Transcript When Microsoft 365 Copilot was announced earlier this year, it generated a lot…

View Podcast Episode
Security

macOS Malware – ShadowVault Surfaces on the Dark Web

This week in IT, security firm Guardz uncovers new macOS malware called ShadowVault, available on the Dark Web, which steals personal information like credit card details and logins – so I’ll look at what you can do to protect your devices – plus, is it farewell to Azure AD as we know it? And, Microsoft…

View Podcast Episode
Artificial intelligence

Can AI Outsmart Hackers? Experts Debate the Future of Cybersecurity

Last Update: Aug 30, 2023

In this week’s special edition of the show, I’m joined by Rod Trent, Edward Walton, Brodie Cassell, from the Microsoft Security Insights show, and Thijs Lecomte where we discuss the impact of AI on IT security. Including, how AI will integrate with security tools and services, whether it really is intelligent and could completely replace…

View Podcast Episode
This Week in IT ep70 thumbnail

Netflix, HBO, and Windows!? Microsoft Wants to Stream Its OS

Imagine a world where you never have to worry about updating Windows. Or where you access it from. Microsoft wants you to sign up to stream Windows. But are you ready to pay for Window-as-a-Service? Today I look at Microsoft’s latest subscription plans for Windows 365. Plus, Windows 11 Moment 3 is now available as…

View Podcast Episode
Intel Core Ultra Meteor Lake CPU

Intel Loses an ‘Eye’ – Inside Meteor Lake CPUs

Intel is shaking things up BIG TIME! We look into Intel’s next-gen tech revolution! Plus, Teams is about to make collaborative note taking a whole lot easier and Microsoft Edge gets a useful new feature.

View Podcast Episode
Security

The Role of Identity Threat and Detection Response in Zero Trust Security

Last Update: May 10, 2024

I recently spoke to Sean Deuby, who is Principal Technologist at Semperis and an Identity expert. Sean told me about the importance of protecting identities in the current landscape and how Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) is a critical component of the Zero Trust security model. The emergence of cloud computing and the shift…

View Article
Hero approved Microsoft 365

Stephen L Rose Joins Petri.com as Chief Technology Strategist

Last Update: May 31, 2023

I’m delighted to announce that Stephen L Rose has joined Petri.com as Chief Technology Strategist. For those who don’t know Stephen, for fourteen years he led Microsoft deployment, adoption, and usage of Windows, Office, OneDrive, and Teams and Co-Pilot for IT professionals worldwide. And Stephen currently holds over 15 Microsoft and CompTIA technical certifications. As…

View Article
Build 2023 hero

First Ring Daily – Stephen Rose Talks Build 2023

In this episode of First Ring Daily, Stephen Rose, Petri’s Chief Technology Strategist, talks to Paul and Brad about the most interesting news from Build 2023.

View Article
Windows Dev Blog Windows Copilot

Build 2023 – AI Hype or Should You Adopt Early?

This Week in IT, Stephen Rose meets Richard Campbell, host of RunAs Radio, to discuss all the major AI announcements at Microsoft Build 2023. Including, Windows Copilot, Microsoft Fabric, AI plugins, privacy and security, and the AI hype cycle.

View Article
Windows 11 approved hero 3

Windows Copilot Brings AI Personal Assistant to Windows 11

Last Update: Sep 11, 2024

Today at Build 2023, Microsoft announced Windows Copilot for Windows 11. As the first PC operating system to include integrated artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, like those found in ChatGPT and Bing Chat, Microsoft is centralizing AI features already available in Bing Chat as a new capability in Windows 11. It will also allow users to…

View Article
Windows 11 approved hero 3

Windows 11 ‘Moment 3’ Brings Important Quality of Life Updates

Last Update: Jun 15, 2023

Windows 11 Moment 3 is just around the corner and I look at 3 of the most important changes. Plus, RHEL is getting AD domain auto join and Microsoft is scanning your password protected zip files. Transcript Windows 11 Moment 3 is just around the corner and I look at three of the most important…

View Podcast Episode
Google I/O conference 2023

Google Announces Duet AI But Can It Compete with Microsoft 365 Copilot?

Google shows off its competitor to Microsoft 365 Copilot, Duet AI, at its I/O conference this week. I look at what Google announced and what Microsoft also revealed about its own AI tech recently as it enters wider testing. More Google I/O news on Petri: Google Introduces Duet AI With Generative AI Features for Workspace…

View Article
Go to page