Month: November 2024
Shame on Microsoft
So it seems like removing forum posts works, but removing a certificate from the Microsoft Database OR fixing this idoti.c Microsoft Partner Portal does not work within 2 MONTHS (whereas I see problems with this Partner Portal for almost a year now)?
Maybe the Forum admins should be levelled up to become backend administrators?
If Microsoft is not competent enough to fix the Microsoft Partner Portal problems, how about hiring skilled people rather than keep going with the current incompetent people who cannot and who are not willing to fix any problems?
Don’t be shocked but Microsoft AI is not up to it and will not fix it.
Why does Microsoft want to rely on cross signed Windows drivers if Microsoft is not competent enough to implement that in their eco-system?
Digicert is able to verify a company within 1 day while Microsoft is not able to fix their B2B issues within 2 month. Microsoft is not even able to verify the developer identification properly even though the developer is set as company owner which also shows up in the DUNS database.
What’s the goal of all that? Keep/make other people angry?
It’s so easy to fix those issues, why don’t you guys just fix them?
And reading .. the other department doesn’t share information, yes well then they should be laid off or getting taught to share information. The way Microsoft is going is absolute incompetent at the moment.
I really wonder how Microsoft can run a cloud service with such unreliable staff, customers joining this madness is nothing but an economical sui.cide mission.
So it seems like removing forum posts works, but removing a certificate from the Microsoft Database OR fixing this idoti.c Microsoft Partner Portal does not work within 2 MONTHS (whereas I see problems with this Partner Portal for almost a year now)?Maybe the Forum admins should be levelled up to become backend administrators? If Microsoft is not competent enough to fix the Microsoft Partner Portal problems, how about hiring skilled people rather than keep going with the current incompetent people who cannot and who are not willing to fix any problems?Don’t be shocked but Microsoft AI is not up to it and will not fix it. Why does Microsoft want to rely on cross signed Windows drivers if Microsoft is not competent enough to implement that in their eco-system? Digicert is able to verify a company within 1 day while Microsoft is not able to fix their B2B issues within 2 month. Microsoft is not even able to verify the developer identification properly even though the developer is set as company owner which also shows up in the DUNS database. What’s the goal of all that? Keep/make other people angry?It’s so easy to fix those issues, why don’t you guys just fix them? And reading .. the other department doesn’t share information, yes well then they should be laid off or getting taught to share information. The way Microsoft is going is absolute incompetent at the moment. I really wonder how Microsoft can run a cloud service with such unreliable staff, customers joining this madness is nothing but an economical sui.cide mission. Read More
एयरटेल में शिकायत कैसे करें?
एयरटेल ग्राहक सेवा अधिकारी से बात करने के लिए 9831×224×914 या O983~1224~914 ▪︎डायल करें । आपको अपनी समस्या को स्पष्ट और संक्षिप्त तरीके से बताना होगा। आधिकारिक शिकायत दर्ज करने के लिए अधिकारी आपसे आपकी ऑर्डर आईडी, पंजीकृत मोबाइल नंबर..
एयरटेल ग्राहक सेवा अधिकारी से बात करने के लिए 9831×224×914 या O983~1224~914 ▪︎डायल करें । आपको अपनी समस्या को स्पष्ट और संक्षिप्त तरीके से बताना होगा। आधिकारिक शिकायत दर्ज करने के लिए अधिकारी आपसे आपकी ऑर्डर आईडी, पंजीकृत मोबाइल नंबर.. Read More
Best way to share with External Users?
Hey all, just after the best way to share files with External users in SharePoint. Our users are increasingly having issues with external users not being able to access our files.
Sometimes its user issue like sending a sharing link only for employees with external users. Sometimes its external users tenant conflicting with ours. However, we’ve been having issues with many external users having dropped access or no access at all even though they were added to permissions.
We haven’t changed any setting in our tenant, and this was a lot smoother couple of months ago. Whats the process in your tenant for external sharing? It would be helpful if you could give me a step by step on how you do it at your org.
Right now, this is us:
- User fille out a form with necessary info.
- Security looks at the domain and make sure it’s safe.
- We whitelist the domain if it’s not already and if full name is specified, we add the guest through Azure and add the person to SharePoint permissions. If full name not specified, go to the SharePoint link and add the user straight to the folder permissions.
Thanks in advance all
Hey all, just after the best way to share files with External users in SharePoint. Our users are increasingly having issues with external users not being able to access our files. Sometimes its user issue like sending a sharing link only for employees with external users. Sometimes its external users tenant conflicting with ours. However, we’ve been having issues with many external users having dropped access or no access at all even though they were added to permissions. We haven’t changed any setting in our tenant, and this was a lot smoother couple of months ago. Whats the process in your tenant for external sharing? It would be helpful if you could give me a step by step on how you do it at your org. Right now, this is us: User fille out a form with necessary info.Security looks at the domain and make sure it’s safe.We whitelist the domain if it’s not already and if full name is specified, we add the guest through Azure and add the person to SharePoint permissions. If full name not specified, go to the SharePoint link and add the user straight to the folder permissions. Thanks in advance all Read More
Content Type Document Template Limits
I have a power user that has created a Content Type in their site with an Excel File Template. This has been working for a long time. The template was last updated in January 2024, but now suddenly the users that are using the New Menu on a List Webpart cannot create new documents using the template. I’ve reviewed the template, and the document is 95MB. Are there any known limits to how large a document template can be for a content type?
I have a power user that has created a Content Type in their site with an Excel File Template. This has been working for a long time. The template was last updated in January 2024, but now suddenly the users that are using the New Menu on a List Webpart cannot create new documents using the template. I’ve reviewed the template, and the document is 95MB. Are there any known limits to how large a document template can be for a content type? Read More
Filter results into 2 columns
Hi all,
I think this should be relatively straight forward, but can’t find a simple solution…My data has 2 columns, a week of the year and a ‘score’
I need to create a spill result (so I can generate a dynamic chart), which separates the result of a filter into 3 columns:
Column1: Week
Column2: Scores >50
Column 3: Scores <50
getting the three separate columns is not an issue, but it’s combing them into a spill result that I can’t fathom – using HSTACK with three FILTE functions means the scores/weeks do not align.
Any help much appreciated
Hi all, I think this should be relatively straight forward, but can’t find a simple solution…My data has 2 columns, a week of the year and a ‘score’ I need to create a spill result (so I can generate a dynamic chart), which separates the result of a filter into 3 columns: Column1: Week Column2: Scores >50Column 3: Scores <50 getting the three separate columns is not an issue, but it’s combing them into a spill result that I can’t fathom – using HSTACK with three FILTE functions means the scores/weeks do not align. Any help much appreciated Read More
फोनपे में गलत ट्रांजेक्शन कैसे रिफंड करें?
फ़ोनपे से पैसे कट जाने पर, ये कदम उठाए जा सकते ग्राहक सहायता से संपर्क(9831^224√914) है फ़ोनपे ऐप में जाकर, “ट्रांज़ैक्शन” या “इतिहास” सेक्शन में जाएं. असफल लेन-देन चुनें. “वापस लें” या “वापस लेने के लिए अनुरोध करें” विकल्प चुनें.
फ़ोनपे से पैसे कट जाने पर, ये कदम उठाए जा सकते ग्राहक सहायता से संपर्क(9831^224√914) है फ़ोनपे ऐप में जाकर, “ट्रांज़ैक्शन” या “इतिहास” सेक्शन में जाएं. असफल लेन-देन चुनें. “वापस लें” या “वापस लेने के लिए अनुरोध करें” विकल्प चुनें. Read More
How to add connection point with Visio online
Is there a way to add connection points to objects using the online version of Visio?
I’ve managed to add a few but somewhat randomly, without a clear process or function I can reproduce!
Thanks!
Is there a way to add connection points to objects using the online version of Visio?I’ve managed to add a few but somewhat randomly, without a clear process or function I can reproduce!Thanks! Read More
AZ-700 Step by Step Guide for Azure Private DNS
This article is part of our AZ-700 series, offering a step-by-step guide on configuring Azure Private DNS, based on the tutorial available on YouTube. I highly recommend watching the video to gain a solid understanding of the concepts covered in this article. Through this guide, you’ll gain hands-on experience in setting up and managing Azure Private DNS, enabling efficient DNS resolution, network segmentation, and seamless automation within Microsoft Azure.
In today’s cloud environment, managing network resources and ensuring secure connectivity across virtual networks (vNets) can be complex, particularly when DNS management comes into play. This article provides a comprehensive, hands-on guide to setting up and configuring Azure Private DNS for efficient DNS resolution, network segmentation, and seamless automation in Microsoft Azure. Follow along as we explore the essential elements, from linking vNets and subnets to DNS automation.
Why Azure Private DNS?
Azure Private DNS allows you to manage and resolve DNS names within a virtual network without exposing them to the public internet. It simplifies domain name resolution, enhances security, and enables automation for dynamic environments.
Key benefits of using Azure Private DNS:
- Dynamic DNS Management: Automatically updates DNS records for new or deleted resources, eliminating stale or “dangling” DNS entries.
- Domain Delegation: Allows centralized DNS management by delegating your corporate domain to Azure Private DNS.
- Enhanced Security: DNS records are automatically removed when resources are deleted, ensuring up-to-date and secure network configuration.
Quick Recap: Azure Networking Fundamentals
Before diving into Azure Private DNS, let’s revisit some foundational concepts from our previous discussions:
- vNet (Virtual Network): Similar to a traditional VLAN but without broadcast support, a vNet enables secure and scalable resource management.
- Subnet: Subdivision within a vNet, allowing more granular control over resource segmentation.
Azure allows you to set up a single vNet with multiple subnets, maximizing network organization and security without the broadcast overhead typical in traditional networks.
Step 1: Understanding Azure Private DNS
Azure Private DNS enables the automatic registration of DNS names for resources within your vNet. For example, when you create a virtual machine (VM) in a vNet linked to a private DNS zone, the VM’s name and IP address automatically register within the zone. This streamlines DNS management, especially for dynamic environments where resources are created and deleted frequently.
Key Features
- Automatic DNS Registration: Automatically updates the DNS zone with new or removed resources.
- Domain Delegation: You can delegate your corporate domain to the private DNS zone, managing DNS records centrally within Azure.
- Support for All DNS Record Types: Azure DNS supports a full range of DNS records, including A, AAAA, CNAME, and MX records.
Step 2: Setting Up the Private DNS Zone
1. Create a Private DNS Zone
- In the Azure Portal, navigate to Private DNS Zones and create a new zone.
- Define a name for the DNS zone, such as yourdomain.private.
- Deploy the DNS zone and navigate to the resource.
2. Link vNets for Automatic DNS Registration
- Within the Private DNS Zone resource, select Virtual Network Links to connect vNets to the DNS zone.
- For each vNet (e.g., Core Services, West Europe, Asia), specify the vNet link and enable Auto Registration.
- This enables seamless DNS name resolution across linked vNets and allows automatic DNS record updates when resources are created or deleted.
Step 3: Verifying DNS Resolution and Connectivity
- Verify DNS Records in the Private DNS Zone: Go to DNS Management under the Private DNS zone and check that the A records for the VMs appear.
- Connect to VMs via DNS:
- Use Remote Desktop to access one VM, then attempt to connect to the other VM by its DNS name (rather than IP address). This confirms that the Private DNS setup allows for name-based connectivity.
- If issues arise (e.g., timeouts), ensure that firewall settings permit connectivity between the VMs.
Step 4: DNS Zone Peering Across Regions
With Azure Private DNS, you can link vNets across different regions, allowing resources in different geographic locations to resolve names and connect seamlessly.
- Link vNets Across Regions: Connect the vNets in regions like West Europe, East US, and Asia to the Private DNS zone.
- Verify Regional Connectivity: From a VM in one region (e.g., Asia), test connectivity to a VM in another region (e.g., East US) using DNS names. Azure Private DNS allows DNS name resolution across regions, ensuring consistent and reliable network connectivity.
Summary
Setting up Azure Private DNS is a powerful way to automate and centralize DNS management within a virtual network environment. This guide provides a practical framework for deploying Private DNS zones, linking vNets, and verifying connectivity. By configuring Azure Private DNS, organizations can streamline DNS management, secure network configurations, and enhance connectivity across geographically dispersed resources.
Next Steps
In future tutorials, we’ll explore VNet peering for advanced network configurations, allowing secure communication between isolated virtual networks. Be sure to subscribe and stay tuned for more Azure networking tips and tricks!
Let’s enhance your Azure network management with practical, hands-on solutions.
This article is part of our AZ-700 series, offering a step-by-step guide on configuring Azure Private DNS, based on the tutorial available on YouTube. I highly recommend watching the video to gain a solid understanding of the concepts covered in this article. Through this guide, you’ll gain hands-on experience in setting up and managing Azure Private DNS, enabling efficient DNS resolution, network segmentation, and seamless automation within Microsoft Azure. In today’s cloud environment, managing network resources and ensuring secure connectivity across virtual networks (vNets) can be complex, particularly when DNS management comes into play. This article provides a comprehensive, hands-on guide to setting up and configuring Azure Private DNS for efficient DNS resolution, network segmentation, and seamless automation in Microsoft Azure. Follow along as we explore the essential elements, from linking vNets and subnets to DNS automation.Why Azure Private DNS?Azure Private DNS allows you to manage and resolve DNS names within a virtual network without exposing them to the public internet. It simplifies domain name resolution, enhances security, and enables automation for dynamic environments.Key benefits of using Azure Private DNS:Dynamic DNS Management: Automatically updates DNS records for new or deleted resources, eliminating stale or “dangling” DNS entries.Domain Delegation: Allows centralized DNS management by delegating your corporate domain to Azure Private DNS.Enhanced Security: DNS records are automatically removed when resources are deleted, ensuring up-to-date and secure network configuration.Quick Recap: Azure Networking FundamentalsBefore diving into Azure Private DNS, let’s revisit some foundational concepts from our previous discussions:vNet (Virtual Network): Similar to a traditional VLAN but without broadcast support, a vNet enables secure and scalable resource management.Subnet: Subdivision within a vNet, allowing more granular control over resource segmentation.Azure allows you to set up a single vNet with multiple subnets, maximizing network organization and security without the broadcast overhead typical in traditional networks.Step 1: Understanding Azure Private DNSAzure Private DNS enables the automatic registration of DNS names for resources within your vNet. For example, when you create a virtual machine (VM) in a vNet linked to a private DNS zone, the VM’s name and IP address automatically register within the zone. This streamlines DNS management, especially for dynamic environments where resources are created and deleted frequently.Key FeaturesAutomatic DNS Registration: Automatically updates the DNS zone with new or removed resources.Domain Delegation: You can delegate your corporate domain to the private DNS zone, managing DNS records centrally within Azure.Support for All DNS Record Types: Azure DNS supports a full range of DNS records, including A, AAAA, CNAME, and MX records.Step 2: Setting Up the Private DNS Zone1. Create a Private DNS ZoneIn the Azure Portal, navigate to Private DNS Zones and create a new zone.Define a name for the DNS zone, such as yourdomain.private.Deploy the DNS zone and navigate to the resource.2. Link vNets for Automatic DNS RegistrationWithin the Private DNS Zone resource, select Virtual Network Links to connect vNets to the DNS zone.For each vNet (e.g., Core Services, West Europe, Asia), specify the vNet link and enable Auto Registration.This enables seamless DNS name resolution across linked vNets and allows automatic DNS record updates when resources are created or deleted.Step 3: Verifying DNS Resolution and ConnectivityVerify DNS Records in the Private DNS Zone: Go to DNS Management under the Private DNS zone and check that the A records for the VMs appear.Connect to VMs via DNS:Use Remote Desktop to access one VM, then attempt to connect to the other VM by its DNS name (rather than IP address). This confirms that the Private DNS setup allows for name-based connectivity.If issues arise (e.g., timeouts), ensure that firewall settings permit connectivity between the VMs.Step 4: DNS Zone Peering Across RegionsWith Azure Private DNS, you can link vNets across different regions, allowing resources in different geographic locations to resolve names and connect seamlessly.Link vNets Across Regions: Connect the vNets in regions like West Europe, East US, and Asia to the Private DNS zone.Verify Regional Connectivity: From a VM in one region (e.g., Asia), test connectivity to a VM in another region (e.g., East US) using DNS names. Azure Private DNS allows DNS name resolution across regions, ensuring consistent and reliable network connectivity.SummarySetting up Azure Private DNS is a powerful way to automate and centralize DNS management within a virtual network environment. This guide provides a practical framework for deploying Private DNS zones, linking vNets, and verifying connectivity. By configuring Azure Private DNS, organizations can streamline DNS management, secure network configurations, and enhance connectivity across geographically dispersed resources.Next StepsIn future tutorials, we’ll explore VNet peering for advanced network configurations, allowing secure communication between isolated virtual networks. Be sure to subscribe and stay tuned for more Azure networking tips and tricks!Let’s enhance your Azure network management with practical, hands-on solutions. Read More
Check Boxes
I have been patiently waiting for the checkbox tab to appear on my excel application. As of today, 11/4/2024, it is still not showing up. I have Office 365, and my Version 2404 (Build 17531.20140 Click-to-Run) is what I am showing. When I click on Update Now, nothing happens. When I click View Updates, it takes me to the current changes page informing me “We fixed an issue where some users couldn’t see checkboxes getting rendered after inserting them.”, but it isn’t even populating on my ribbon to view.
I pay for Office 365 on two different accounts and I am not showing it on either account. If someone could walk me through getting this to populate on my ribbon, I would greatly appreciate it.
I have been patiently waiting for the checkbox tab to appear on my excel application. As of today, 11/4/2024, it is still not showing up. I have Office 365, and my Version 2404 (Build 17531.20140 Click-to-Run) is what I am showing. When I click on Update Now, nothing happens. When I click View Updates, it takes me to the current changes page informing me “We fixed an issue where some users couldn’t see checkboxes getting rendered after inserting them.”, but it isn’t even populating on my ribbon to view.I pay for Office 365 on two different accounts and I am not showing it on either account. If someone could walk me through getting this to populate on my ribbon, I would greatly appreciate it. Read More
Register for the upcoming live webinar covering the Metrics Layer in Microsoft Fabric!
Health and Life Sciences Fabric User Group present:
Mastering Fabric’s Metrics Layer
Live webinar
Tuesday, November 12
1:00-2:00 PM ET
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
5 Key Takeaways from the Marketplace Summit UK: Maximizing Marketplace Success
The Marketplace Summit UK, #MarketplaceSummitUK, recently brought together over 300+ Microsoft partners, including ISVs, systems integrators, and channel partners, to explore and capitalize on the rapidly growing opportunities within the Microsoft commercial marketplace. Here are 5 takeaways from the keynote which shared marketplace opportunities and insights from Jason Rook– Senior Director, Lead for channels sales for the marketplace, Andy Whyte– CEO, MEDDIC, Nick Ross– UK&I Channel leader, Wiz, and Amit Sinha– President and Co-Founder, WorkSpan.
Marketplace Growth:
- Microsoft commercial marketplace is experiencing substantial growth, with nearly 100% year-over-year sales increases from ISVs and Fortune 500 customers, particularly in the UK. This reflects a significant momentum and opportunity for partners to expand their reach and impact.
- By 2028, cloud marketplaces are projected to generate $85 billion in revenue*, underscoring the importance of joint selling and collaboration between ISVs, channel partners, and enterprise customers to capture this growth potential.
- *Hyperscale cloud marketplace sales to hit US$85 billion by 2028. Canalys, August 15, 2024.
MEDDPICC Framework:
- MEDDPICC stands for Metrics, Economic buyer, Decision criteria, Decision process, Paper process, Identify pain, Champion, and Competition.
- The MEDDPICC framework is used as a common language for co-selling across the entire customer lifecycle streamlining communication, improving collaboration, and enhancing the effectiveness of sales strategies. It emphasizes the understanding of customer pain points, decision criteria, and stakeholder engagement
Multiparty Private Offers:
- Multiparty private offers enable customers to purchase software through trusted channel partners, and ISVs to sell through channel partners, streamlining the buying experience and boosting sales opportunities. They are currently available in the US, Canada, and the UK. These offers are set to expand to Western Europe and Japan.
- Over 90% of multiparty private offer deals originate from channel partners interacting with customers.
Insights from Nick Ross of Wiz:
- Commitment to Channel Partners for Growth: Wiz has adopted a global strategy to always work with a channel partner on customer engagements, viewing it as essential for scaling, customer retention, and market expansion.
- Marketplace as a Key Growth Driver: With over 90% of revenue going through cloud marketplaces, Wiz emphasizes that adopting a marketplace-centric approach accelerates deal cycles, enhances customer reach, and is critical for sustained growth.
- Wiz’s marketplace-first, channel-first strategy accelerates scaling, shortens time-to-value for customers, and boosts deal efficiency by closely partnering with Microsoft and providing CSPs early pipeline insights. This integrated approach strengthens customer relationships and drives market expansion, providing a roadmap to becoming a leader in marketplace-driven growth.
Ecosystem Integration and Insights- Discussion with Amit Sinha from WorkSpan
- End-to-End Ecosystem Orchestration: WorkSpan serves as a platform connecting ISVs, channel partners, and service partners with Microsoft and other marketplaces, enabling seamless co-selling, co-building, and integration into existing CRM systems for a unified experience
- Enhanced Deal Velocity and Data Insight: By automating partner integrations and embedding marketplace processes into CRM systems, WorkSpan increases deal registration rates and enables data collection on sales performance, providing actionable insights in real-time.
To learn more, you can view the full Keynote session here: Marketplace Summit learnings: Maximizing marketplace success.
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Additional Resources:
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Temporarily Leaving Insider…
I’ve been an “Insider” for 10 years and am an MS Alumni. At the moment, my system is very unstable, and I’m at 26120.2200 on DEV. The online “reset” by “Recovery” fails time after time, and the newest ISO I have for Win11 is for build 26000 from June of ’24. Many, many quick crashes of various apps the debugger calls:
Security check failure or stack buffer overrun - code c0000409 (first/second chance not available)
Subcode: 0x7 FAST_FAIL_FATAL_APP_EXIT Teams will essentially crash silently over and over. Other apps do the same. I’m exhausted from restoring backups, and it’s no fun even if your backups/restores are successful. If the system is unstable, it’s no good. I’ve run the built-in Memtest on my ASUS Maximus Z790 motherboard (with 128GB of RAM) OVERNIGHT. The Memtest also has a “let’s beat on your CPU test,” and I’ve run it OVERNIGHT. BOTH with ZERO errors.
When I try to download a newer ISO, my machine is blocked from downloading builds, getting an error “715-123130 and 0937e3ef-85ee-495e-9ead-1ec99007c5a4,” and I’m not using a VPN, nor any other hiding technology.
“Error
We are unable to complete your request at this time. Some users, entities and locations are banned from using this service. For this reason, leveraging anonymous or location hiding technologies when connecting to this service is not generally allowed. If you believe that you encountered this problem in error, please try again. If the problem persists, you may contact Microsoft Support – Contact Us page for assistance. Refer to message code 715-123130 and 2df76cc4-cbbe-4ec1-92be-c4e03ea143e4.”
I’m at my wit’s end. So, how do I temporarily leave Windows Insider to get stable (like load 242H) and then come back in?
Thanks,
Steve
I’ve been an “Insider” for 10 years and am an MS Alumni. At the moment, my system is very unstable, and I’m at 26120.2200 on DEV. The online “reset” by “Recovery” fails time after time, and the newest ISO I have for Win11 is for build 26000 from June of ’24. Many, many quick crashes of various apps the debugger calls: Security check failure or stack buffer overrun – code c0000409 (first/second chance not available)
Subcode: 0x7 FAST_FAIL_FATAL_APP_EXIT Teams will essentially crash silently over and over. Other apps do the same. I’m exhausted from restoring backups, and it’s no fun even if your backups/restores are successful. If the system is unstable, it’s no good. I’ve run the built-in Memtest on my ASUS Maximus Z790 motherboard (with 128GB of RAM) OVERNIGHT. The Memtest also has a “let’s beat on your CPU test,” and I’ve run it OVERNIGHT. BOTH with ZERO errors. When I try to download a newer ISO, my machine is blocked from downloading builds, getting an error “715-123130 and 0937e3ef-85ee-495e-9ead-1ec99007c5a4,” and I’m not using a VPN, nor any other hiding technology.”ErrorWe are unable to complete your request at this time. Some users, entities and locations are banned from using this service. For this reason, leveraging anonymous or location hiding technologies when connecting to this service is not generally allowed. If you believe that you encountered this problem in error, please try again. If the problem persists, you may contact Microsoft Support – Contact Us page for assistance. Refer to message code 715-123130 and 2df76cc4-cbbe-4ec1-92be-c4e03ea143e4.” I’m at my wit’s end. So, how do I temporarily leave Windows Insider to get stable (like load 242H) and then come back in? Thanks,Steve Read More
Posting a date based on an event
Hello Forum,
Does any one know of a way thru a formula to post a date into a cell based on an event happening on other sheet.
I have a sheet that makes a random selection of people from my roster whereby I copy the selection and paste the values into cells on the same sheet in a different column. The thing is however, I have another Sheet in the same workbook that I need to have the selection date, the paste event date, based on the selection of the individual(s), placed/posted/dropped into the appropriate column/cell as applicable.
Can anyone help me out with this?
Carl
Hello Forum, Does any one know of a way thru a formula to post a date into a cell based on an event happening on other sheet. I have a sheet that makes a random selection of people from my roster whereby I copy the selection and paste the values into cells on the same sheet in a different column. The thing is however, I have another Sheet in the same workbook that I need to have the selection date, the paste event date, based on the selection of the individual(s), placed/posted/dropped into the appropriate column/cell as applicable. Can anyone help me out with this? Carl Read More
Team Leads can’t view team members calendars
I am admin on my companies booking calendar, we have multiple technicians that are booked out to services by myself and the scheduler. There are technical team leads that can view their specific team’s availability and advise myself and the scheduler for work assignments.
Technicians are set up as guests on the calendar to be booked but without being able to view others calendars, team leads are set up as viewers to facilitate advising on scheduling. Recently there have been two technicians that were promoted to team leads, I updated their roles to viewer and they can’t see the calendar, they can find it by searching it for name but when they try to open it they are told they don’t have access to it.
Any advice on what may be causing this?
I am admin on my companies booking calendar, we have multiple technicians that are booked out to services by myself and the scheduler. There are technical team leads that can view their specific team’s availability and advise myself and the scheduler for work assignments. Technicians are set up as guests on the calendar to be booked but without being able to view others calendars, team leads are set up as viewers to facilitate advising on scheduling. Recently there have been two technicians that were promoted to team leads, I updated their roles to viewer and they can’t see the calendar, they can find it by searching it for name but when they try to open it they are told they don’t have access to it.Any advice on what may be causing this? Read More
Server 2025 CSP Licensing
Anyone know when 2025 can be purchased through the CSP program?
Anyone know when 2025 can be purchased through the CSP program? Read More
Automating document indexing into Azure Cosmos DB with Logic Apps
Introduction
Effectively managing large document volumes is essential for modern applications, particularly to maintain fast and reliable querying. With Azure Logic Apps, you can now automate document indexing into Azure Cosmos DB, in addition to the existing capability of indexing in AI Search, offering the flexibility to use either service as a vector store.
Logic Apps offers a rich set of connectors that allow seamless integration with various document sources such as Azure Blob Storage, SharePoint, and OneDrive, enabling automated workflows for document ingestion from multiple locations. Whether you’re working with PDFs, Word documents, or structured data files like CSVs, Logic Apps supports parsing different document types efficiently.
For larger documents, Logic Apps can also implement chunking, breaking down files into manageable parts to optimize processing and indexing. This ensures even complex or large datasets are handled smoothly without overwhelming system resources.
In terms of integration with Azure Cosmos DB, the Logic Apps Cosmos DB connector supports multiple authentication methods, including Managed Identity, Shared Key Authentication, and Azure Active Directory OAuth, providing flexibility depending on your security requirements. Additionally, Logic Apps can meet various networking needs, such as integrating with private endpoints or using VNet integration to secure communication between services.
In this post, we’ll walk through a scenario where Logic Apps automates the ingestion and indexing of documents, such as PDFs, into Azure Cosmos DB. This approach not only reduces operational overhead but also ensures that your data remains highly accessible and queryable.
Why use Logic Apps for document indexing in Cosmos DB?
- Automated Workflows: By automating document indexing, you eliminate manual tasks and ensure that documents are indexed as soon as they are uploaded.
- Scalability: As your document volume grows, Azure Cosmos DB’s global distribution ensures your data remains scalable and highly available.
- Seamless Integration: Logic App enables you to easily integrate with other Azure services, such as Blob Storage and AI models, enhancing your document indexing with intelligence and automation.
Scenario Overview
In this scenario, we automate the ingestion of document content from Azure Blob Storage, parsing it, and indexing it into Azure Cosmos DB. When a blob (such as a PDF or text document) is uploaded, a Logic App workflow is triggered to process the document and store its data in a Cosmos DB container, making it easily retrievable and queryable.
Pre-requisites
To set up the scenario on your machine, please make sure to set up:
- Azure CosmosDB resource to index data into
- Azure Storage account to upload content to be indexed
Setting up Azure CosmosDB
Once you have created the resource:
- Navigate to the Azure CosmosDB resource
- From the “Settings” menu, select “Features”
- Enable the feature for “Vector Search in Azure Cosmos DB for NoSQL”
The steps could also be found in detail in this blogpost from Azure CosmosDB. Now that you have the CosmosDB resource setup as an index store, let’s create a new database and a container for the vector store database.
To create a new container:
- Navigate to “Data Explorer”
- Create a “New Container” with the following field set for:
- Database id: This is your databaseID, in our case it is ‘docs’
- Container id: Container in which your documents will be stored, we have it defined as ‘category’
- Partition key: for data distribution, we have defined it as ‘/category”, given there could be other categories of documents you may want to query that have been indexed.
- Container Vector Policy: this is where we set the vector properties for ‘Vector Embedding 1
- Path: where to search and represent the vector embeddings from. In our case it will be ‘/vector’.
- Data type: float32
- Distance function: this will be used to determine distance between the closest neighbors. In our case set it to ‘cosine’
- Dimensions: 1056
- Index type: diskANN, as it is low-cost, scalable and improved latency option for finding Approximate Nearest Neighbors (ANN)
You can find more information on the container set up from this GitHub tutorial.
Document Structure for Indexing in Azure Cosmos DB
In this Logic Apps workflow, we’re indexing document embeddings into Azure Cosmos DB. Below is a breakdown of the key fields we’re mapping and indexing:
- content: This field holds the main body of the document or the actual text content that has been processed. For example, this could be the textual data extracted from a document like a contract, invoice, or any other file type.
- documentName: The name or title of the document being indexed. This field helps in identifying the document based on its file name, making it easier to search and retrieve the document by its original name.
- vector: This represents the embeddings vector of the document, which is a numerical This irepresentation of the content. These vectors are used to perform similarity searches on documents, allowing for AI-driven insights or matching based on content similarity.
- docId: A unique identifier generated for each document. This ensures that each document has a distinct ID, which is crucial for querying and updating specific items in the Cosmos DB container.
- category: This is where the document type or category is assigned. In our case, we’re using “documents” as the value for this field. This helps in classifying and grouping documents, which can be useful when querying for specific types of documents within the database.
- id: Another unique identifier, often auto-generated or derived by concatenating values. This ID could be used to ensure that there is no duplication and that each document is properly referenced
It will look like this when we compose the payload to pass in Azure CosmosDB from logic app workflow:
Key Steps in the Workflow
I have added a GitHub sample for the workflow project. Here’s a visual representation of the workflow:
- Blob Upload Detection: The Logic App starts by detecting when a new blob (document) is added or updated in Azure Blob Storage.
- Read Blob Content: The workflow reads the content of the uploaded blob and prepares it for further processing.
- Document Parsing: Logic Apps parses the document, extracting the relevant content, such as text or metadata. This can include PDF extraction or text chunking for larger documents.
- Chunk Text (if needed): For larger documents, the content is split into manageable chunks to ensure smooth processing and indexing.
- Generate Embeddings Using AI: Using Azure AI, the Logic App generates embeddings from the document content. These embeddings allow for enhanced data processing, categorization, and structure mapping within Cosmos DB.
- Map to Schema: The extracted data and embeddings are mapped to a predefined schema to ensure consistency in how documents are indexed within Cosmos DB. Here are the properties we are indexing:
- Bulk Update in Cosmos DB: Finally, the processed document is stored and indexed in Cosmos DB. The “Create or update many items in bulk” action accepts the database and container ID alongside the data to be indexed in which multiple items are processed into the database from previous action.
Conclusion
By leveraging Azure Logic Apps to automate document indexing into Azure Cosmos DB, you can streamline data workflows, reduce manual intervention, and ensure your data is organized for optimal performance. This powerful integration simplifies the process, making it easier for teams to manage large volumes of documents and scale as needed.
What’s next
Currently, Logic Apps support efficient document indexing, but Vector search for AI-driven retrieval is not yet available in Azure CosmosDB. This much-anticipated feature that will enhance Cosmos DB as a powerful vector store. Stay tuned for this update!
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