Category: News
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
New opportunities for sales, services, and education partners
Today, we are excited to announce the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 with the general availability of new offerings for sales, services, and education—providing new ways for customers and partners to embrace AI to achieve their goals and significantly enhance how they work.
Copilot for Sales is an AI assistant for sales professionals that brings together the power of generative AI through Copilot for Microsoft 365, Copilot Studio, and data from any CRM system to accelerate productivity, keep data fresh, unlock seller-specific insights, and help sellers personalize customer interactions – all leading to closure of more deals.
Copilot for Service modernizes existing service solutions with generative AI to enhance customer experiences and boost agent productivity. It infuses AI into the contact center to accelerate time to production with point-and-click setup, direct access within major service vendors (including Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Zendesk), and connection to public websites, SharePoint, knowledgebase articles, and offline files. Agents can ask questions in natural language and answers are delivered in the tools they use every day—Outlook, Teams, Word, and others.
Learn more about Copilot for Sales and Copilot for Service announcements.
In addition, Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now also generally available for education customers to purchase for their faculty users through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program.
Read the announcement
Plan to join us on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, for the Reimagine education event: the future of AI in Education for an opportunity to deep dive on Copilot for Education.
Read more in our blog about specific opportunities for education partners with Copilot for Microsoft 365.
Additional opportunities for all partners
Register for the Copilot partner incentives overview webinar – February 28/29 to learn about the latest priorities, strategy, and earning opportunities for Copilot & AI.
Sign up for a Copilot for Microsoft 365 pre-sales and technical bootcamp
Join the conversation on our Copilot for Microsoft 365 community
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Security review for Microsoft Edge version 122
We are pleased to announce the security review for Microsoft Edge, version 122!
We have reviewed the new settings in Microsoft Edge version 122 and determined that there are no additional security settings that require enforcement. The Microsoft Edge version 117 security baseline continues to be our recommended configuration which can be downloaded from the Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit.
Microsoft Edge version 122 introduced 4 new computer settings and 4 new user settings. We have included a spreadsheet listing the new settings in the release to make it easier for you to find them.
As a friendly reminder, all available settings for Microsoft Edge are documented here, and all available settings for Microsoft Edge Update are documented here.
Please continue to give us feedback through the Security Baselines Discussion site or this post.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Microsoft Viva Glint badges are here!
We are excited to announce that Viva Glint badges are now available to earn! We’ve packaged the “need to knows” of Viva Glint into step-by-step training courses that summarize survey design and setup, dashboard basics, and how to share your results.
We’re kicking off this certification program with two badges:
Foundations Admin: Recommended for program administrators and administrator teams, this badge is awarded to those who demonstrated their ability to design and launch Viva Glint programs, as well as understand and share Viva Glint results to the broader organization and executive leaders.
Manager: Recommended for anyone using the dashboard and sharing results, this badge is awarded to those who demonstrated their ability to understand and share their Viva Glint results using Viva Glint’s reporting and ACT framework.
To earn a badge, follow the steps on our badging page. Once you have earned a badge, you can display it on your LinkedIn profile to show off your achievements. Be sure to share with your team, manager, exec team, and others to show you are the Glint expert in your organization!
Be on the lookout for more badges diving into topics like designing a holistic listening strategy, advanced analysis of results, and more – coming throughout 2024!
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Security review for Microsoft Edge version 122
We are pleased to announce the security review for Microsoft Edge, version 122!
We have reviewed the new settings in Microsoft Edge version 122 and determined that there are no additional security settings that require enforcement. The Microsoft Edge version 117 security baseline continues to be our recommended configuration which can be downloaded from the Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit.
Microsoft Edge version 122 introduced 4 new computer settings and 4 new user settings. We have included a spreadsheet listing the new settings in the release to make it easier for you to find them.
As a friendly reminder, all available settings for Microsoft Edge are documented here, and all available settings for Microsoft Edge Update are documented here.
Please continue to give us feedback through the Security Baselines Discussion site or this post.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Security review for Microsoft Edge version 122
We are pleased to announce the security review for Microsoft Edge, version 122!
We have reviewed the new settings in Microsoft Edge version 122 and determined that there are no additional security settings that require enforcement. The Microsoft Edge version 117 security baseline continues to be our recommended configuration which can be downloaded from the Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit.
Microsoft Edge version 122 introduced 4 new computer settings and 4 new user settings. We have included a spreadsheet listing the new settings in the release to make it easier for you to find them.
As a friendly reminder, all available settings for Microsoft Edge are documented here, and all available settings for Microsoft Edge Update are documented here.
Please continue to give us feedback through the Security Baselines Discussion site or this post.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Security review for Microsoft Edge version 122
We are pleased to announce the security review for Microsoft Edge, version 122!
We have reviewed the new settings in Microsoft Edge version 122 and determined that there are no additional security settings that require enforcement. The Microsoft Edge version 117 security baseline continues to be our recommended configuration which can be downloaded from the Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit.
Microsoft Edge version 122 introduced 4 new computer settings and 4 new user settings. We have included a spreadsheet listing the new settings in the release to make it easier for you to find them.
As a friendly reminder, all available settings for Microsoft Edge are documented here, and all available settings for Microsoft Edge Update are documented here.
Please continue to give us feedback through the Security Baselines Discussion site or this post.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Security review for Microsoft Edge version 122
We are pleased to announce the security review for Microsoft Edge, version 122!
We have reviewed the new settings in Microsoft Edge version 122 and determined that there are no additional security settings that require enforcement. The Microsoft Edge version 117 security baseline continues to be our recommended configuration which can be downloaded from the Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit.
Microsoft Edge version 122 introduced 4 new computer settings and 4 new user settings. We have included a spreadsheet listing the new settings in the release to make it easier for you to find them.
As a friendly reminder, all available settings for Microsoft Edge are documented here, and all available settings for Microsoft Edge Update are documented here.
Please continue to give us feedback through the Security Baselines Discussion site or this post.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
March 2024 Viva Glint newsletter
Welcome to the March edition of our Viva Glint newsletter. Our recurring communications will help you get the most out of the Viva Glint product. You can always access the current edition and past editions of the newsletter on our Viva Glint blog.
Our next features release date
Viva Glint’s next feature release is scheduled for March 9, 2024*. Your dashboard will provide date and timing details two or three days before the release.
In your Viva Glint programs
The Microsoft Copilot Impact Survey template has premiered in the Viva Glint platform. AI tools are increasingly integrated into the workplace to enhance workforce productivity and the employee experience. This transformational shift in work means leaders need to understand their early investments in Microsoft Copilot and how it is being adopted. Deploying the Copilot Impact Survey template in Viva Glint, organizations can measure the impact of Microsoft Copilot enabling leaders to plan AI readiness, drive adoption, and measure their ROI. Learn about the Copilot Impact survey here.
Changing item IDs for expired cycles will be self-serve. Comparing survey trend is essential to tracking focus area progress over time. When a survey is retired, you can still use the data for an item from that survey as a comparison in a new survey which uses the identical item. And you can do it quickly and independently! Learn how to change survey item IDs here.
We’ve updated our Action Plan templates! Action Plan templates provide resources to help organizations act on feedback. Content comes from our new learning modules, WorkLab articles, and LinkedIn Learning. Now we’re exploring opportunities across all Viva and Copilot products to harness sentiment and data to enhance the employee experience and surface relevant, contextualized action recommendations. Check out Action Plan guidance here.
Support survey takers with new help content
Simplify your support process during live Viva Glint surveys to help users easily submit their valuable feedback. Use support guidance as an admin to communicate proactively and create resources to address commonly asked questions by survey takers. Share help content directly with your organization so that survey takers have answers to all their questions.
Announcing our new Viva Glint product council
Viva Glint is launching a product council! We are keen to listen to you, our customers, to help inform the future of our product. By enrolling, you will hear directly from our product and design teams, have an impact in shaping our product, and connect with like-minded customers to discuss your Viva Glint journey. To learn more and express an interest in signing up, visit this blog post.
Connect and learn with Viva Glint
We are officially launching our badging program! We are excited to announce that Viva Glint users can now earn badges upon completion of recommended training modules and then publish them to their social media networks. We’re kicking off this program by offering both a Foundations Admin badge and a Manager badge course. Learn more here about badging.
Get ready for our next Viva Glint: Ask the Experts session on March 12. Geared towards new Viva Glint customers who are in the process of deploying their first programs, this session focuses on User Roles and Permissions. You must be registered to attend the session. Bring your questions! Register here for Ask the Experts.
Join us at our upcoming Microsoft and Viva hosted events
Attend our Think like a People Scientist webinar series. Premiering in February (if you missed it, you can catch the recording here!), this series, created based on customer feedback, will deep dive into important topics that you may encounter on your Viva Glint journey. Register for our upcoming sessions below:
March 20: Telling a compelling story with your data
April 23: Influencing action without authority
May 28: Designing a survey that meets your organization’s needs
We are also kicking off our People Science x AI Empowerment series. Check out and register for our upcoming events that will help empower HR leaders with the knowledge and resources to feel confident, excited, and ready to bring AI to their organizations:
March 14: AI overview and developments for Viva Glint featuring Viva Glint People Science and Product leaders
April 18: AI: the game-changer for the employee experience featuring Microsoft research and applied science leaders
For those in the Vancouver area, join us for Microsoft Discovery Day on March 6. During this in-person event at Microsoft Vancouver you will learn from Microsoft leaders and industry experts about fundamental shifts in the workplace and the implications for your business. Gain an understanding of the value of AI-powered insights and experiences to build engagement and inspire creativity. Register.
Join the Viva People Science team at upcoming industry events
Are you attending the Wharton People Analytics Conference on March 14-15? As sponsors of the event, we will be there, and we would love to see you at our booth! This conference explores the latest advances and urgent questions in people analytics, including AI and human teaming, neurodiversity, new research on hybrid and remote work, and the advancement of frontline workers. Learn more about the conference here.
Our Microsoft Viva People Scientists are among the featured speakers at the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) annual conference in April. Live in Chicago, and also available virtually, the SIOP conference inspires and galvanizes our community through sharing knowledge, building connections, fostering inclusion, and stimulating new ideas. Learn more here.
Join Rick Pollak on April 18 for a panel discussion, Your Employee Survey is Done. Now What? Rick and leading experts will address best practices and advice about survey reporting, action taking, and more.
Join Caribay Garcia and other industrial organizational psychology innovators on April 19 for IGNITE-ing Innovation: Uses of Generative AI in Industrial Organization Psychology. This session will help psychologists conduct timelier research by fostering cross-collaborative communication between academics and practitioners.
Join Stephanie Downey and other industry experts on April 19 for Ask the Experts: Crowdsource Solutions to Your Top Talent Challenges. This session brings together industry experts to facilitate roundtable discussions focused on key talent and HR challenges.
Again, join Stephanie Downey on April 19 for Alliance: Unlocking Whole Person Management: Benefits, Hidden Costs, and Solutions. Explore the multifaceted dimensions of whole person management (WPM) by delving into the benefits and challenges this approach creates.
Join Carolyn Kalafut on April 19 for Path to Product. This seminar provides an intro to understanding product and the ability to influence the software development lifecycle and to embed responsible and robust I-O principles in it.
Join Caribay Garcia on April 20 for Harnessing Large Language Models in I-O Psychology: A Revolution in HR Offerings. Delve into the practical implications, ethical concerns, and the future of large language models (LLMs) in HR.
Check out our most recent blog content on the Microsoft Viva Community
Assess how your organization feels about Microsoft Copilot
Viva People Science Industry Trends: Retail
How are we doing?
If you have any feedback on this newsletter, please reply to this email. Also, if there are people on your teams that should be receiving this update, please have them sign up using this link.
*Viva Glint is committed to consistently improving the customer experience. The cloud-based platform maintains an agile production cycle with fixes, enhancements, and new features. Planned program release dates are provided with the best intentions of releasing on these dates, but dates may change due to unforeseen circumstances. Schedule updates will be provided as appropriate.
Microsoft Tech Community – Latest Blogs –Read More
Implementing MLOps for Training Custom Models with Azure AI Document Intelligence
Addressing the challenges of effectively maintaining custom models in Azure AI Document Intelligence, this article explores adapting the concepts of MLOps into your delivery strategy. The goal is to provide guidance on how to ensure that custom document analysis models are not only accurate but remain effective for users throughout their lifecycle.
Key Challenges
Balancing model accuracy with operational scalability
Ensuring that custom models remain accurate over time while also scalable and efficient in operation is challenging. Teams are required to collect and process many documents while exploring techniques to improve accuracy. The operational overhead of managing document storage, running pre-processing flows, training models, and ensuring they are efficiently deployed without affecting the user experience requires a meticulous approach.
Implementing strategies for model improvement
Finding the right approach to model retraining presents many complexities. Teams are required to establish seamless mechanisms for monitoring, collecting feedback, and recreating training data to retrain a model. While automations establish best practices with faster delivery, they pose challenges for malicious actors to affect a model’s analysis. Introducing manual processes need to be carefully managed to also prevent compromising the integrity of a model.
Managing multiple models and versions
Teams building custom models with Azure AI Document Intelligence will create multiple variants. This poses a challenge for future maintenance when identifying models and whether they are still relevant or in use. Teams need to consider strategies to ensure effective management, providing rollback capabilities, and minimizing disruptions to end-users during updates.
Recommendations
As teams adopting MLOps practices when utilizing Azure AI Document Intelligence to build custom models for document analysis, you should:
Adopt MLOps practices to streamline the end-to-end lifecycle management of custom models. Utilize automation pipelines to perform model training, evaluation, and deployment to reduce manual errors. Adopt a semantic versioning strategy to improve the management of models. Leverage Azure Blob Storage for document collection to organize and manage training data efficiently.
Establish continuous feedback and retraining mechanisms. Embed feedback mechanisms into intelligence applications to allow users to submit changes and inform retraining activities. Establish a human-in-the-loop to oversee user feedback and submit recommendations for retraining. Utilize established automation pipelines that can be triggered by reviewers to rollout changes continuously without manual intervention.
Enhance model deployment strategies to minimize user impact when establishing multiple model versions. Utilize approaches such as blue/green deployments and feature flags to manage model updates, enabling gradual rollout with rollback capabilities. Implement monitoring to track model performance, usage, and identify potential issues early. Use the data to inform decisions regarding model retraining.
Challenge Overview
In an ever-evolving demand for AI integration in SaaS products, leveraging the Azure AI services to enhance user experience is no longer just an advantage; it’s a necessity. Azure AI Document Intelligence provides a powerful platform for extracting valuable data from a variety of document types, transforming manual, time-consuming tasks into automated, efficient processes. However, the challenges many engineering teams integrating this service face in analyzing and generating a custom model accurately mirror the complexities that any data science team face in building custom machine learning models.
This is leading engineering teams to ask, “How do we effectively implement continuous improvement to custom document analysis models?”
This article focuses on adapting the concepts of MLOps to custom models created within Azure AI Document Intelligence. The goal is to provide you with guidance to ensure that models are not only accurate but remaining effective for users consuming them throughout their lifecycle.
What is MLOps?
MLOps represents the blend of machine learning with DevOps practices, aiming to streamline the lifecycle of ML projects. At its core, MLOps is about enhancing efficiency and reliability in deploying ML models, taking advantage of automation, team collaboration, continuous integration (CI), deployment (CD), testing, and monitoring of changes made.
Diagram representing the lifecycle of MLOps; collecting data, processing it, training a model, validating, packaging, and deploying, completing the cycle with monitoring and feedback
Implementing these practices is important because:
Automation is crucial in reducing manual errors and increasing efficiency. It allows for the automatic training, evaluation, and deployment of models. This minimizes the need for human intervention and speeding up iteration cycles.
Collaboration among team members is essential to ensure that models are not only accurate but also deployable and maintainable in production environments.
Transparency in the processes ensures that all stakeholders have visibility into the model’s performance, the changes being made, and the impact the changes make. This is critical for maintaining trust and for continuous improvement.
To understand more about MLOps, dive deeper into our Microsoft Learn training paths.
Applying MLOps to Azure AI Document Intelligence
Building and deploying a custom model in Azure AI Document Intelligence doesn’t require deep machine learning understanding. However, the process mirrors the same challenges that are resolved by implementing MLOps in a machine learning model’s lifecycle.
This approach provides a transformative strategy that ensures the seamless integration of AI into document processing workflows, to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of the models over time. Let’s delve into best practices for preparing custom models in Azure AI Document Intelligence for production, highlighting the implementation of MLOps to achieve operational excellence and scalability.
Technical diagram demonstrating the application of MLOps to the custom model creation process in Azure AI Document Intelligence
Collecting and processing documents for custom models in Azure AI Document Intelligence
The foundation of creating an accurate custom model in Azure AI Document Intelligence with MLOps starts with the collection and processing of relevant documents of a given type. This step is critical as the quality and diversity of the content in the documents directly impact the model’s performance.
To improve how you collect and process documents, consider the following:
Diverse sources of the same document type: Aim to gather documents from a variety of sources of the same type, e.g., an invoice, but also consider documents with various layouts, e.g., tables that span multiple pages, signatures in different locations, handwritten and digitized. Ensure you have enough volume of documents to provide variety to the model, but not too much that you lose quality and introduce noise.
Storing your training data: Storing your model’s training documents in Azure Blob Storage will ease the model creation, enabling you to use both Azure AI Document Intelligence Studio, as well as interacting with the APIs via code. This will be important for automating the process of retraining later. Track the documents that are being used in your model so that you can manage ones that are included in the trained model.
Implement pre-processing: Before feeding documents into your custom model, apply pre-processing techniques to standardize your document formats, e.g., de-skewing scanned documents, ensuring correct page ordering. Using the Azure AI Document Intelligence Studio, analyze and accurately label the key detail you want to extract from your documents. High-quality labeling is crucial for training successful models.
With your documents ready, we can now start considering how we build, manage, and deploy our models to customers.
Continuous integration and deployment of Document Intelligence models
Continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) practices are central to MLOps, enabling teams to integrate changes, automate testing, and deploy models more reliably and quickly. To apply these MLOps practices in Azure AI Document Intelligence, let’s explore some important factors that apply to the training of custom models once we have collected and pre-processed our documents.
Model versioning
Model versioning is the cornerstone of effective MLOps practices. Using versions for models allows teams to track, manage, and rollback models to previous states. This ensures that only the best-performing versions are available in a production environment.
For Azure AI Document Intelligence, consider using semantic versioning in the model ID. When implementing semantic versioning, establish a strategy for what you consider a major, minor, or patch change in collaboration across your team. This ensures that everyone understands the scope for deploying new model versions and eases the identification of changes in models.
As an example for implementing semantic versioning in Azure AI Document Intelligence models, consider:
Major: Breaking changes in the document template or field labels which invalidates previous models.
Minor: New training data based on the current document template.
Patch: Fixes to previously processed documents such as correcting pre-processing steps, e.g., de-skewing, page ordering, and labelling.
With a versioning strategy established, we can start to train and register our models with Azure AI Document Intelligence.
Testing model changes
Testing changes is a crucial aspect of MLOps, ensuring that updates maintain or improve performance without introducing regressions. A comprehensive testing strategy should encompass several layers, from data validation to performance testing.
Consider the following for effectively testing model changes:
Establish a baseline for quality and performance: With each training of a model, it is critical to have an established baseline to compare against for both the accuracy of the results, as well as the time taken to analyze the documents. Establish a defined training set of analyzed documents and their results to compare against for consistency in subsequent changes.
Running automated tests to validate changes: With an established set of test data, it is important to monitor for significant changes in the accuracy of new model versions compared to data previously established through testing. Performing this manually can be cumbersome when working with a large training set. Consider implementing an automated process that calls the Azure AI Document Intelligence APIs to analyze results for new models.
Deploying custom Azure AI Document Intelligence models
When you’re ready for your customers to start consuming your model, establishing a deployment strategy is critical to minimizing downtime and ensuring a smooth user experience during updates.
For applications integrating with Azure AI Document Intelligence, implementing an API gateway allows you to rollout changes while minimizing application updates. The proxy allows you to establish model deployment strategies such as:
Blue/green deployments: This strategy involves deploying the new (green) version alongside the current (blue) within an identical environment. After testing and validating with a select user group, traffic can gradually shift from the blue to green model. This approach minimizes downtime and risk by allowing an instant rollback if issues arise.
Feature flags: Implementing feature flags allows you to dynamically toggle between model versions without redeploying changes. This is particularly useful for A/B testing, as well as gradually introducing new features or models to users.
API versioning: With a proxy in front of your Azure AI Document Intelligence, you can run multiple models simultaneously while you phase them out and update client applications. Consider providing an endpoint for a model with API versioning that matches your deployed model versions.
MLOps techniques for gathering user feedback for Document Intelligence model retraining
Enhancing the performance and accuracy of custom models is important to maintain long-term value for customers. An effective approach to achieve this is through monitoring in the Document Intelligence model’s lifecycle as defined by MLOps.
Let’s explore approaches to monitoring via feedback from users and leveraging it for efficient model retraining.
User Feedback Loops
User feedback loops provide a critical step in the iterative improvement of custom models. As well as the expected performance and usage monitoring, user feedback loops enable the collection of real-world insights. User feedback provides details into how the model is performing under scenarios you may not be able to test otherwise.
Implementing a robust user feedback loop involves:
Direct integration into client applications: It is important to embed a feedback mechanism directly into the applications that take advantage of Azure AI Document Intelligence models. Use intuitive UI elements that encourage users to report inaccuracies or provide suggestions without disrupting their work. An implementation can start with a simple form that allows users to correct the extracted data and submit back. For more interactive feedback, implement a UI that mimics the capabilities of Azure AI Document Intelligence Studio for users to analyze documents and re-label them using the existing fields of the model.
Streamlining feedback collection: The process of user feedback should be as seamless as possible. It is important to create structured feedback that you can easily convert to the required format for retraining. Consider using the existing schemas from Azure AI Document Intelligence to map user feedback to shorten the lifecycle. You must also securely store the analyzed documents and OCR analysis results to enable effective retraining with the user feedback.
Human-in-the-loop Reviews
While user feedback can be directly integrated via automated retraining, human oversight is crucial to prevent malicious use. A human-in-the-loop, providing a review, ensures that feedback is accurately interpreted and applied into the model.
When implementing a strategy for feedback reviews, consider:
Establishing a review panel: Gather a group of subject matter experts, e.g., the team responsible for model creation, to review feedback from users on a regular basis. Implement alerts for user submissions to ensure that feedback is actioned. The review panel should be empowered to follow the MLOps process, integrate feedback, test, and rollout changes.
Routine quality assurance: Implement routine checks on the submitted feedback queue to ensure that the feedback is relevant and is being correctly users to inform model retraining efforts. It is also important to review feedback that has previously been integrated into the model for continued relevance.
Efficient Model Retraining
To capitalize on the insights from user feedback and human-in-the-loop reviews, it is important to establish an effective model retraining process. Here is where automation plays a key role in making this viable at scale by:
Triggering automated CI/CD pipelines: Model retraining should be integrated in a workflow that can be triggered in an event, such as a schedule or submission of a user feedback review. The workflow should automate the guidance provided in this article including model versioning, testing, and deployment. This ensures that model updates are readily available with the latest feedback-driven improvements and deployed seamlessly.
Conclusion
As the demand for intelligent AI applications grows, teams must establish best practices for production readiness. The challenges and complexities of implementing effective strategies for model improvement highlight the need for a robust, iterative approach. Applying the principles of MLOps enhances the longevity of custom models in Azure AI Document intelligence.
By adopting these MLOps practices, teams can leverage a well-defined framework to deliver reliable AI solutions that meet their ever evolving customer expectations.
Further Reading
Introduction to machine learning operations (MLOps) | Microsoft Learn
Using the Azure AI Document Intelligence SDKs | Microsoft Learn
Custom document models in Azure AI Document Intelligence | Microsoft Learn
Semantic Versioning 2.0.0 | Semantic Versioning
Azure Document Intelligence Custom Template User Feedback Loop Experiment | GitHub (jamesmcroft)
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Microsoft and open-source software
Microsoft has embraced open-source software—from offering tools for coding and managing open-source projects to making some of its own technologies open source, such as .NET and TypeScript. Even Visual Studio Code is built on open source. For March, we’re celebrating this culture of open-source software at Microsoft.
Explore some of the open-source projects at Microsoft, such as .NET on GitHub. Learn about tools and best practices to help you start contributing to open-source projects. And check out resources to help you work more productively with open-source tools, like Python in Visual Studio Code.
.NET is open source
Did you know .NET is open source? .NET is open source and cross-platform, and it’s maintained by Microsoft and the .NET community. Check it out on GitHub.
Python Data Science Day 2024: Unleashing the Power of Python in Data Analysis
Celebrate Pi Day (3.14) with a journey into data science with Python. Set for March 14, Python Data Science Day is an online event for developers, data scientists, students, and researchers who want to explore modern solutions for data pipelines and complex queries.
C# Dev Kit for Visual Studio Code
Learn how to use the C# Dev Kit for Visual Studio Code. Get details and download the C# Dev Kit from the Visual Studio Marketplace.
Visual Studio Code: C# and .NET development for beginners
Have questions about Visual Studio Code and C# Dev Kit? Watch the C# and .NET Development in VS Code for Beginners series and start writing C# applications in VS Code.
Reactor series: GenAI for software developers
Step into the future of software development with the Reactor series. GenAI for Software Developers explores cutting-edge AI tools and techniques for developers, revolutionizing the way you build and deploy applications. Register today and elevate your coding skills.
Use GitHub Copilot for your Python coding
Discover a better way to code in Python. Check out this free Microsoft Learn module on how GitHub Copilot provides suggestions while you code in Python.
Getting started with the Fluent UI Blazor library
The Fluent UI Blazor library is an open-source set of Blazor components used for building applications that have a Fluent design. Watch this Open at Microsoft episode for an overview and find out how to get started with the Fluent UI Blazor library.
Remote development with Visual Studio Code
Find out how to tap into more powerful hardware and develop on different platforms from your local machine. Check out this Microsoft Learn path to explore tools in VS Code for remote development setups and discover tips for personalizing your own remote dev workflow.
Using GitHub Copilot with JavaScript
Use GitHub Copilot while you work with JavaScript. This Microsoft Learn module will tell you everything you need to know to get started with this AI pair programmer.
Generative AI for Beginners
Want to build your own GenAI application? The free Generative AI for Beginners course on GitHub is the perfect place to start. Work through 18 in-depth lessons and learn everything from setting up your environment to using open-source models available on Hugging Face.
Use OpenAI Assistants API to build your own cooking advisor bot on Teams
Find out how to build an AI assistant right into your app using the new OpenAI Assistants API. Learn about the open playground for experimenting and watch a step-by-step demo for creating a cooking assistant that will suggest recipes based on what’s in your fridge.
What’s new in Teams Toolkit for Visual Studio 17.9
What’s new in Teams Toolkit for Visual Studio? Get an overview of new tools and capabilities for .NET developers building apps for Microsoft Teams.
Embed a custom webpage in Teams
Find out how to share a custom web page, such as a dashboard or portal, inside a Teams app. It’s easier than you might think. This short video shows how to do this using Teams Toolkit for Visual Studio and Blazor.
Get to know GitHub Copilot in VS Code and be more productive
Get to know GitHub Copilot in VS Code and find out how to use it. Watch this video to see how incredibly easy it is to start working with GitHub Copilot…Just start coding and watch the AI go to work.
Customize Dev Containers in VS Code with Dockerfiles and Docker Compose
Dev containers offer a convenient way to deliver consistent and reproducible environments. Follow along with this video demo to customize your dev containers using Dockerfiles and Docker Compose.
Designing for Trust
Learn how to design trustworthy experiences in the world of AI. Watch a demo of an AI prompt injection attack and learn about setting up guardrails to protect the system.
AI Show: LLM Evaluations in Azure AI Studio
Don’t deploy your LLM application without testing it first! Watch the AI Show to see how to use Azure AI Studio to evaluate your app’s performance and ensure it’s ready to go live. Watch now.
What’s winget.pro?
The Windows Package Manager (winget) is a free, open-source package manager. So what is winget.pro? Watch this special edition of the Open at Microsoft show for an overview of winget.pro and to find out how it differs from the well-known winget.
Use Visual Studio for modern development
Want to learn more about using Visual Studio to develop and test apps. Start here. In this free learning path, you’ll dig into key features for debugging, editing, and publishing your apps.
Build your own assistant for Microsoft Teams
Creating your own assistant app is super easy. Learn how in under 3 minutes! Watch a demo using the OpenAI Assistants, Teams AI Library, and the new AI Assistant Bot template in VS Code.
GitHub Copilot fundamentals – Understand the AI pair programmer
Improve developer productivity and foster innovation with GitHub Copilot. Explore the fundamentals of GitHub Copilot in this free training path from Microsoft Learn.
How to get GraphQL endpoints with Data API Builder
The Open at Microsoft show takes a look at using Data API Builder to easily create Graph QL endpoints. See how you can use this no-code solution to quickly enable advanced—and efficient—data interactions.
Microsoft, GitHub, and DX release new research into the business ROI of investing in Developer Experience
Investing in the developer experience has many benefits and improves business outcomes. Dive into our groundbreaking research (with data from more than 2000 developers at companies around the world) to discover what your business can gain with better DevEx.
Build your custom copilot with your data on Teams featuring Azure the AI Dragon
Build your own copilot for Microsoft Teams in minutes. Watch this video to see how in this demo that builds an AI Dragon that will take your team on a cyber role-playing adventure.
Microsoft Graph Toolkit v4.0 is now generally available
Microsoft Graph Toolkit v4.0 is now available. Learn about its new features, bug fixes, and improvements to the developer experience.
Microsoft Mesh: Now available for creating innovative multi-user 3D experiences
Microsoft Mesh is now generally available, providing a immersive 3D experience for the virtual workplace. Get an overview of Microsoft Mesh and find out how to start building your own custom experiences.
Global AI Bootcamp 2024
Global AI Bootcamp is a worldwide annual event that runs throughout the month of March for developers and AI enthusiasts. Learn about AI through workshops, sessions, and discussions. Find an in-person bootcamp event near you.
Microsoft JDConf 2024
Get ready for JDConf 2024—a free virtual event for Java developers. Explore the latest in tooling, architecture, cloud integration, frameworks, and AI. It all happens online March 27-28. Learn more and register now.
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How to Develop Your AI Coding Skills with Azure Enablement Show (Part Two)
As the tech world constantly evolves, artificial intelligence (AI) has become an integral part of innovative development. If you’re a developer, an Azure user, or simply an AI enthusiast, improving your AI coding skills is no longer just a competitive edge—it’s a necessity. This blog delves into the Azure Enablement Show’s How to Develop your AI Coding Skills (Part Two) and all of the various resources that will be a valuable to your AI learning journey.
Tips for Developing AI Coding Skills
Emerging as a skilled AI developer involves understanding robust platforms like Azure deeply. Azure Skilling Expert Natalie Mickey and I dive into some of the tips and resources to get you started:
Start with the Basics: Take note of the “Get started with Azure OpenAI Service” module to build a strong foundation.
Engage with Microsoft Learn Collections: The Official Collection, Essentials for Building Intelligent Apps, offers an in-depth selection of modules will lead you from beginner-level concepts right through to developing solutions that use Azure Cosmos DB and Azure Kubernetes Service.
Get Hands-On Practice: Make the most of exercises available within the modules to practically apply your knowledge. Build natural language solutions with Azure OpenAI Service and Apply prompt engineering with Azure OpenAI Service. These learning paths build on experience, guiding you through the entire process.
Learn from the Experts: Microsoft Reactor’s “Make Azure AI Real” series features Microsoft Cloud Advocates who speak on the latest AI trends, best practices, and how to leverage all of your Azure AI Tools and Services such as Azure OpenAI Service.
Get Started Building Intelligent Apps on Azure
Start developing your AI skills with Azure today and take your first step towards becoming an AI-development savant. Make sure to watch the Azure Enablement Show now and take that initial step towards becoming an AI architect of tomorrow.
Microsoft’s AI Learning Hub is your one-stop-shop for accessing all these resources. It covers new technology offerings through Azure, different modules, learning paths, and certifications that will keep you up to date with everything we have to offer.
As AI developers, the horizon is yours to broaden. We encourage you to harness the potential of AI with Microsoft Azure, let this be the start—or the escalation—of your AI coding skills development journey.
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Optimize and secure your cloud with new Azure Optimization skilling events
Optimizing existing cloud environments is consistently the top cloud initiative for nearly every tech company, and the benefits of skilling your organization on optimization abound. Optimizing your cloud usage means saving money, improving efficiency, security, and resiliency, as well as innovating faster, and gaining a competitive advantage in your industry. In this blog you’ll discover how the tools and learning resources of Azure Optimization can be a value driver for your organization with comprehensive learning opportunities to put you on the right path.
Join us for an exclusive virtual event
To help you learn to manage your Azure investments and architecture in key areas—managing costs, boosting resiliency and reliability, and keeping security tight—we’ve launched exclusive, no-cost events that give you the tools required to optimize your cloud investment.
Our Azure Optimization Virtual Training Days aim to funnel Microsoft’s know-how into helping you optimize and manage your cloud investment. Guided by a Microsoft Technical Trainer, you’ll discover how Azure guidance, resources, and practices can streamline your cloud spend, enable modernization, and fuel innovation in the cloud.
Participation for these upcoming events is limited, so please check the event calendar frequently to sign up as soon as new event registrations go live.
In two days of class, in four-hour sessions—translated in 28 languages—we tackle cloud optimization best practices and the frameworks that will power your team to adopt them. You’ll get a comprehensive look into our collected Azure Optimization learning modules, see demos and use cases, and get hands-on practice deploying workloads for cost optimization, operational excellence, performance efficiency, reliability, and security.
Whether you’re just starting to migrate to the cloud or already have Azure workloads in place, our Azure Optimization Virtual Training Day will put you on the road to maximizing your cloud investment, innovation, security, and modernization.
Engage with live instruction or watch on your own time
If you’re unable to attend the Virtual Training Day event, we have other flexible learning options to fit your availability. Our upcoming series of Learn Live sessions will highlight the frameworks and tools for Azure Optimization to help you strategically manage your cloud architecture and workloads.
Delivering technical readiness and skilling programming in a television format, Learn Live sessions are typically broadcasted live with instructor Q&A, and then available on-demand. Each session is 90 minutes, and you can get familiar with the content beforehand by checking out the associated learning modules.
Learn Live episode
Learning module
Date and time
Design for optimization: Getting started
Getting started with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure
Landing Zones
Choose the best Azure landing zone to support your requirements for cloud operations
Continuous improvement: Optimize the architecture of your workloads
Introduction to the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework
Optimizing with Azure Advisor and Cost Management
Describe cost management in Azure and Get started with Azure Advisor
Optimize costs with Reserved Instances and Azure savings plan for compute
Save money with reserved instances and Azure savings plan for compute
30 Day Challenge: Climb the leaderboard with our Azure Optimization Cloud Skills Challenge
For those looking to sharpen their skills at their own pace—but also want some friendly competition—Microsoft’s Cloud Skills Challenges are part interactive learning sprint, part good-natured tournament between you and thousands of your peers around the globe. These immersive, gamified learning experiences are a blend of hands-on exercises, tutorials, and assessments to ensure a well-rounded learning experience.
With the Azure Optimization Cloud Skills Challenge, you’ll have 30 days to complete a series of learning objectives focused on how to optimize cloud architecture and workloads. Sign up and climb the leaderboard as you learn how to drive continuous improvement of your architecture and workloads while managing and optimizing cloud costs.
Optimize your cloud architecture so you can focus on what matters most
Cloud optimization is a process of continuous improvement. It isn’t a question of “why”—it’s “how soon can we start and how do we keep improving?” Azure and our optimization guidance are ready when you are, both in technical capacity and as a collection of easily accessible, free educational resources. As an industry leader in cloud computing, we’re with you every step of the way. Whether that means examining and analyzing your workloads to maximize efficiency, advising you on cost management, or providing expert troubleshooting with our Azure engineers, optimizing your cloud is our priority.
Build more secure workloads: Help secure your future with reliable, futureproofed designs.
Cloud cashflow optimization: Unleash the cost-cutting power of the cloud by harnessing smart spend management and cost-trimming strategies.
Tech upgrade, budget upgrade: Unlock innovation by dynamically allocating cloud resources. Refine your tech investments for continuous improvements.
Future-proof your foundation: Design reliable and secure workloads for a launchpad to accelerated development.
Cost-conscious cloud, competitive edge: Manage your cloud spend to unlock savings and innovate with newfound resources.
Tailor your skilling experience with the Azure Optimization Collection
Whether you’re in the process of migrating to the cloud or already have established Azure workloads, we have assembled a handpicked collection of training and resources to help you on our journey. The collection is tailored to support the ongoing enhancement of your architecture and workloads, all while effectively managing and optimizing your cloud expenses.
Describe cost management in Azure
Get started with Azure Advisor
Purchase Azure savings plan for compute
Save money with Azure Reserved Instances
Getting started with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure
Address tangible risks with the Govern methodology of the Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure
Ensure stable operations and optimization across all supported workloads deployed to the cloud
Choose the best Azure landing zone to support your requirements for cloud operations
Introduction to the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework
Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework: Operational excellence
Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework: Cost optimization
Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework: Performance efficiency
Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework: Security
Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework: Reliability
Discover more in the Azure Optimization Collection, including e-books and further reading, at the Microsoft Learn site.
Don’t miss out on Azure Optimization skilling
Optimizing your cloud resources unlocks hidden savings, boosts performance, and fuels innovation. Stop overpaying for unused space, automate tedious tasks, and redirect those freed-up resources to projects that drive real growth. With our roster of Azure Optimization resources, you can start realizing newfound value today.
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Upcoming changes for SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) – Part 2
The second post in our series about SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) coincides with the SSMS 20 Preview 1 release – now available! However, before you download and install the Preview release to check out the updated SSMS 20 connection dialog, we recommend you read (or review) the first post to familiarize yourself with the changes.
In addition, if you are not the person who manages your SQL Server, we highly recommend talking to your SQL Server administrator to verify what options you should select when connecting, based on whether your installation is configured to support encryption.
If you are the SQL Server administrator, and you’ve read the first post, you might be all set. But if you are interested in additional details of what’s new as it relates to the SSMS 20 connection dialog, read on. If you’re not, then please review the release notes for SSMS 20 Preview 1 before you download and install it.
As a reminder…if you encounter issues navigating the connection changes in SSMS 20, you can temporarily workaround them with SSMS 19.x installed side-by-side.
Terminology review – TDS, TLS, and Encryption
The Tabular Data Stream (TDS) protocol is an application layer protocol used by clients to connect to SQL Server.
SQL Server uses Transport Layer Security (TLS) to encrypt data that is transmitted across a network between an instance of SQL Server and a client application. TLS has different versions, each with different levels of security and performance. The latest version is TLS 1.3, which was published in 2018.
Encryption is a process of converting data into an unreadable, encoded format to protect it from unauthorized access. Encryption can be applied to data at rest (stored on disk) or in transit (transferred over a network).
TDS 8.0 was introduced to support mandatory encryption when using SQL Server, and the TLS handshake precedes any TDS message. TDS 8.0 is compatible with TLS 1.3, as well as TLS 1.2 and earlier.
Know before you go: Strict encryption in SSMS 20
SSMS 20 is the first major version of SSMS that supports Strict encryption and TLS 1.3, thanks to the migration to Microsoft.Data.SqlClient (MDS) 5.1.4. MDS is the data access library used by SSMS 19 and higher, as well as other SQL Server tools.
Strict is a new option for the encryption property, introduced in MDS 5, and strict encryption requires the use of TLS 1.3 and a trusted server certificate for encrypted connections. This means that the client and the server must both support TLS 1.3 and have a trusted certificate installed. Strict encryption is the most secure option for encryption in transit and is recommended for connections to Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance, which both support TDS 8.0 and are configured with trusted certificates. In addition, with SSMS 20, Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRamp) customers have the option of end-to-end encryption support for TLS 1.3.
Enabling encryption for SQL Server
Support for encryption typically starts with enabling Force Encryption or Force Strict Encryption on the server. For more information, see Configure SQL Server Encryption.
Using the highest level of encryption that is supported by both the client and the server provides the highest level of security. For Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance, that is Strict encryption. For SQL Server 2022 you can use Strict encryption if you have a trusted certificate installed. For SQL Server 2019 and lower, Mandatory encryption provides the highest level of encryption.
Connecting from SSMS
We’ve provided a new Learn page, Connect with SQL Server Management Studio, to help folks navigate the changes in SSMS 20 connection dialog. These changes will affect any user connecting to SQL Server. Again, we strongly recommend you understand these changes and their impact before end users install SSMS 20 and try to connect.
If you import connections from a previous version of SSMS, we recommend that you review the options selected before connecting.
New connections require reviewing the properties which have moved to the Login page of the dialog, and understanding how your SQL Server is configured.
Take note: the default value for Encryption is now Mandatory. With the default value of Mandatory, any connection to a SQL Server installation that does not have a trusted certificate installed generates the error:
Screenshot of error from SSMS when connecting with Mandatory encryption but no trusted certificate
For more information, see “The certificate received from the remote server was issued by an untrusted certificate authority” error when you connect to SQL Server.
Features that don’t support strict encryption
There are some features of SQL Server that do not support strict encryption. The current list can be found in TDS 8.0 – SQL Server. Unsupported scenarios specific to SSMS are documented in the release notes.
What’s next?
For the SQL and SSMS enthusiasts out there, we’ve heard you’re curious about the upcoming changes in SSMS. While SSMS 20 brings some important security features, we’re already planning for the next major release: SSMS 21. We will cover the roadmap in the next post in this series.
As a friendly reminder, we regularly review items on the SQL Feedback site. If you spot something you love, give it an upvote and add a comment. Comments help us understand your scenario, and how the change or feature solves it.
If you don’t find your desired functionality after searching the site, add your request! Tell us how that change or feature would be useful, and how it solves your problem.
Votes and comments are our currency. Bugs get priority, but beyond that, we look at your requests and consider things like…Does it improve user efficiency or solve a workflow problem? Will it benefit the broader SSMS community?
“But wait,” you say, “what about dark mode and the debugger?” Rest assured, we will discuss both, and more, in our third post. Stay tuned!
In the meantime, we encourage you explore the SSMS 20 release notes and the updated documentation. We’ve focused on the connection dialog for this release, and we hope you’ll embrace these changes as they pave the way for an updated SSMS and continued investment in its future.
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