Microsoft Inspire 2018, formerly called Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC), continues in Las Vegas. Check this ongoing blog for live Azure Cloud and Office 365 partner news updates, analysis and perspectives throughout the day.
8. Workspace as a Service: CloudJumper has unveiled Cloud Workspace for Azure. The platform integrates the CloudJumper's Management Suite with Microsoft’s Remote Desktop modern infrastructure (RDmi) for increased visibility into the user’s Azure, Office365 and Cloud Workspace experience, the companies say.
7. Vertical Markets: ClearDATA has launched "healthcare compliant" cloud services for Microsoft Azure. The new offering helps healthcare organizations to embrace Azure while complying with protected health information (PHI) laws, the company says.
6. Key Microsoft Leader: Microsoft CFO Amy Hood is earning major praise for her financial prowess, and her ability to align ample budget with Microsoft growth opportunities. Bloomberg notes Hood's symbiotic relationship with CEO Satya Nadella -- allowing him to focus on technology priorities while Hood marshals key financial resources for those R&D efforts.
5. Dell EMC and Azure Stack: Dell EMC Cloud for Microsoft Azure Stack, the on-premises extension to Microsoft's public cloud, now supports:
- An all flash VxRack Azure Stack configuration option.
- A preview of Automated HCI Patch and Update is available now allowing customers to update the firmware on their entire VxRack AS scale unit in one step. No other Azure Stack vendor offers this orchestration tool, Dell EMC asserts.
- Cloud Flex pricing, allowing partners and customers to consume Azure Stack as an operating expense rather than a capital expense.
- SecureVM is now integrated with Azure Stack and available through the Azure Stack Marketplace.
- VM extensions for Linux and Windows VMs allow customers to enforce policies that dictate the circumstances under which keys are released and includes geo-fencing
More detail on these updates is available below in a blog by Paul Galjan, senior director of Microsoft Hybrid Cloud at Dell EMC.
4. Azure for MSPs Part One: MB Solutions a Denmark-based cloud services provider specializing in Microsoft solutions, is partnering with NetEnrich in a bid to transform from a hosting company into a Microsoft Azure MSP.
3. Azure for MSPs Part Two: Cloud distributor Pax8 unveiled a Wingman Professional Services Program. The offering allows MSPs to leverage customized IaaS solutions built by Pax8 cloud architects and engineers. Reminder: Microsoft finally unveiled a major Azure MSP partner program push earlier this month...
2. Walmart-Microsoft Azure Partnership: Walmart has inked a five year agreement with Microsoft to leverage Azure and Office 365 for enterprise-wide use. The partnership is widely viewed as an alliance vs. Amazon Web Services and Amazon's e-commerce businesses.
1. Ongoing Updates: Keep checking this blog for more updates. And check our extended Microsoft Inspire news coverage here. Got news to share from the conference? Email me the details ([email protected]).
