Microsoft announce that Defender for Business servers is now generally available, offering endpoint security for Windows and Linux servers for small and medium-sized businesses. It’s $3 per server instance per month and is available as an Add-on licence to Microsoft 365 Business Premium or Microsoft Defender for Business.
Find the announcement here: http://bit.ly/3DW0SPn, and a useful FAQ here: https://bit.ly/3BhF3d3.
Microsoft introduce the Microsoft 365 App which will replace Office.com (starting in November 2022), as well as the Office mobile app and the Office app for Windows (starting in January 2023). The “traditional” perpetual licences for Office 2021 stay branded as Office at this time.
For more information, take a look at the FAQs here: https://bit.ly/3ThafiM.
There’s an October 2022 version of the popular Microsoft 365 plan comparison document showing you the different components in all of the Enterprise and Frontline Worker plans and the Add-on licences that are available. Find this useful document here: https://bit.ly/2LG4gqi.
The License Mobility through SA overview document has been updated to include reference to the Flexible Virtualization Benefit. Find this customer-facing document here: https://bit.ly/3VBIyDa.
Microsoft announce two updates for endpoint management.
Firstly, Microsoft Intune will now be the name of the endpoint management family with the name Microsoft Endpoint Manager no longer being used. Going forward, Microsoft will refer to cloud management as Microsoft Intune and on-premises management as Microsoft Configuration Manager. You can read the full article here: https://bit.ly/3gjrIbQ.
Secondly, there will be a new suite of advanced endpoint management solutions available from March 2023 for customers who have Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 or any other plan which includes a licence for Microsoft Intune. You can read the full article and find out more about the capabilities that will be included in the suite here: https://bit.ly/3TeaTOb.
If you’re an EA customer and you want to calculate the cost savings on your Reservations, then there’s a tutorial you might find useful that takes you through the required steps here: https://bit.ly/3EK8Ht9.
Microsoft announce that there will be a new benefit for customers who have Windows Server licenses with active SA or bought as Software Subscriptions through CSP. This is an extension to the Azure Hybrid Benefit and will allow customers to use the Azure Kubernetes Services (AKS) on Windows Server and Azure Stack HCI at no extra cost.
You can find the announcement article here: https://bit.ly/3S4ldHf, and this page has a great diagram explaining all the different flavours of the Azure Hybrid Benefit and how they might work together: https://bit.ly/3Te7A9G.
Microsoft announce two new apps for Viva.
Firstly, there will be Viva Pulse to empower leaders to seek regular and confidential feedback about their team’s experience, which will sit alongside company-wide engagement tools like Glint, which itself will come to Viva next year.
Secondly, there will be Viva Amplify to help leaders to get their message across and energise their people. Both of these apps will be included within the existing Viva Suite when they’re available.
Find the announcement article here: https://bit.ly/3Twys4E, and find out more about the new apps and other new functionality in the “Viva Innovation Brochure” here: https://bit.ly/3MFc3Qg.
There’s an updated (October 2022) Dynamics 365 Licensing Guide. The main change is for the inclusion of Viva Sales in Dynamics 365 Sales Enterprise and Premium licences – see our blog for more information on Viva Sales: https://bit.ly/3Dfl93j.
Other changes include confirmation that Sales Professional users are not entitled to use the Sales Hub application (page 25) and a simplification of the “Microsoft Relationship Sales solution Plus” name to “Microsoft Relationship Sales” (page 60).
Get this updated guide here: https://bit.ly/3UYisKa.
Microsoft announce the General Availability of Teams Phone Mobile, previously known as Operator Connect Mobile, which gives users a single, business-provided number for Teams and their mobile phone.
From a licensing perspective users will need to be licensed for Teams Phone and will also need to have the $0 Teams Phone Mobile Add-on licence assigned to them.
Find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/3yO1aGi.