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Backup and replication are common data protection concepts, but they serve different purposes. Learn more about their differences and how they can benefit your data management strategy, especially how the backup vs replication argument relates to Active Directory (AD) and protecting it. What are backup and replication? Although backup and replication are both methods of…

Microsoft announced this morning some important updates for its Copilot for Security solution. The new AI assistant that launched in preview last year will become generally available for commercial customers starting on April 1. Microsoft Copilot for Security is a new AI-powered service that can assist organizations in improving their security posture. Security professionals can…

Microsoft released yesterday the March 2024 Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 11 and Windows 10 devices. The latest update includes fixes for two critical vulnerabilities in the Windows Hyper-V virtualization technology. This month’s Patch Tuesday updates address 60 security flaws in Windows and other components. There are 18 remote code execution (RCE) vulnerabilities and several…

Microsoft has recently shared more details about its plans for moving commercial customers to the new Outlook for Windows client. The company plans to support the classic version of the Outlook app until at least 2029. Microsoft plans to deploy the new Outlook for Windows client in three phases. Currently, the app is in the…

SQL Server is a relational database. But what is a relational database exactly? Mike Otey, our resident SQL Server expert, explains in this article. What is a relational database? A relational database is a type of data storage mechanism that organizes data into tables where each table consists of rows and columns. It is typically…

Earlier this year, Microsoft disclosed a breach in its corporate email servers by Russian state-sponsored hackers. Now, the company revealed that the same hackers, known as Midnight Blizzard, have infiltrated Microsoft’s source code and other internal systems. In January, Microsoft unveiled that Midnight Blizzard had successfully gained unauthorized access to the email accounts of some…

In this episode of First Ring Daily, Brad Sams and Paul Thurrott discuss Microsoft’s decision to drop support for the Windows Subsystem for Android and the Amazon App Store on Windows 11 in March 2025.

Microsoft has announced a new Restricted SharePoint Search feature for Copilot for Microsoft 365 customers. The new setting will allow administrators to control the SharePoint sites accessible to Copilot users within their organization. Microsoft has acknowledged that some organizations may have sensitive or confidential information stored in their SharePoint sites that they don’t want to…

Microsoft has launched Windows 365 Customer Lockbox for its commercial customers. This feature provides organizations with tools to control access to user content, especially when Microsoft support engineers need to resolve support issues. Microsoft support engineers usually rely on telemetry and debugging tools to troubleshoot problems with their services. However, there may be times when…

Last November, Microsoft introduced its Secure Future Initiative (SFI) to deal with cybersecurity threats. The company announced today the launch of a regular series to track the milestones and progress of the SFI, demonstrating a commitment to transparency and resilience. Microsoft Secure Future Initiative is a comprehensive effort to bolster security capabilities and protect customers…

Microsoft has introduced advanced investigation and response capabilities within its Defender for Endpoint service. The latest release brings support for file collection and investigation package collection response actions in public preview for macOS and Linux devices. According to Microsoft, security professionals should have a clear view of compromised devices to identify the malicious activities that…

Microsoft has recently addressed a zero-day vulnerability within the Windows AppLocker driver. The security flaw has been exploited by the North Korean threat group Lazarus for privilege escalation to carry out rootkit attacks. The security flaw (tracked as CVE-2024-21338) was first discovered by the cybersecurity firm Avast last year. The Avast researchers created a proof-of-concept…