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Microsoft has released a new setting for conditional access policies that enables organizations to define the authentication strength of accepted connections. This release brings the ability to specify a combination of multifactor authentication (MFA) methods that allow external users to access a particular resource. Conditional access policies let IT admins create a set of rules…

Microsoft announced yesterday that it has started rolling out several new capabilities for Servicing profiles. These are one of the top-requested features from IT admins, who will now be able to automate updates for Microsoft 365 apps via Azure Active Directory (AD). The Servicing profiles feature enables IT Pros to roll out monthly updates for…

Microsoft’s new Windows Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) is now natively integrated into Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows Server. Windows LAPS lets IT Pros secure local administrator accounts on Windows devices, and it supports on-premises Active Directory and Azure Active Directory scenarios.  With the release of the April 2023 Patch Tuesday updates yesterday, Windows…

Microsoft has announced that it is dropping Semi-Annual Channel (SAC) releases for Windows Server. Starting with Windows Server 2022 there will be only one release on the Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC). It will get 10 years’ support (five years mainstream, and five years extended). Microsoft says that SAC releases in previous versions of Windows Server…

As Microsoft rounds out its fiscal year, which officially ends on June 30th, the company is making a few last-minute changes before the new year begins in July. Specifically, Microsoft is changing the name of Windows Virtual Desktop to Azure Virtual Desktop. The naming update makes a bit of sense as the company is looking…

This Week in IT, unlock seamless collaboration in Teams with the new Loop components update, allowing real-time edits, sharing, and integration across Microsoft 365! Plus, Microsoft introduces extra security to protect Azure Backup vaults from ransomware, Windows 365 Cloud PCs get an important new security feature, and Security Copilot gets an update and wider availability….

How account synchronization works in the new version of Microsoft Edge.

We’re doing a twice-monthly interview show on Petri.com that is dedicated to covering topics of interest to our tech-professional audience. We have branded this show “MJFChat.” In my role as Petri’s Community Magnate, I will be interviewing a variety of IT-savvy technology folks. Some of these will be Petri contributors; some will be tech-company employees;…

Moving from on-premises to the cloud can be a challenge but there is software available that can help you map out what instances you will need for each type of workload.

In today’s Ask the Admin, I discuss whether federated authentication is really the most secure way to set up hybrid authentication between Windows Server Active Directory and Office 365.