Tag Archives: General Availability

GA of Microsoft Places

Microsoft announce that Microsoft Places is now generally available. This new technology is based on Teams and Microsoft 365 Copilot and is designed to help users have a better experience when they’re working from their office – by making it easy to coordinate in-person gatherings or to sync up spontaneously with colleagues also working from the office on a particular day. From a licensing perspective there are three tiers of features: core, enhanced, and additional. If you’ve got Microsoft 365 Business Basic/Standard/Premium, Office 365 F3/E1/E3/E5 or Microsoft 365 F3/E3/E5 licence then you have access to the core features, although you’ll also need a Teams licence if it’s not included in your plan. The enhanced features are available through a Teams Premium Add-on licence, and the additional features need a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence too.

You can find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/4eIoUgX with lots of visionary information as to what Places might do for you, and the more pragmatic Learn documentation here: https://bit.ly/4i3m8ph.

Windows Server and System Center 2025

Windows Server and System Center 2025 were made generally available by Microsoft on November 1, 2024. This is a useful article (https://bit.ly/3CaBgAO) which gives more information on the new features of Windows Server 2025 including the fact that hotpatching (installing security updates without a reboot) will be available as a monthly subscription for Windows Server 2025 Standard and Datacenter editions.

Find out more about the public preview of Windows Server Hotpatch here: https://bit.ly/40AX1Eb.

System Center 2025

Microsoft announce that System Center 2025 is generally available from 1 November, 2024. The licensing is exactly the same as for System Center 2022, but licences are 10% more expensive – you can find the licensing summarised on a handy 2-page datasheet here: https://bit.ly/40xXqar.

The announcement article is here: https://bit.ly/4fc1TE3, and that’s where you’ll also find a list of some of the new features.

Windows Server 2025

Microsoft announce that Windows Server 2025 is generally available from 1 November, 2024. From a what’s-the-same perspective, there are still Standard and Datacenter editions which differ by a couple of technical features but mainly by their virtualisation licensing rights, and CALs are still needed for users or devices. From a what’s-new perspective, there’s now a PAYG licensing option through Azure Arc, and prices are increased by 10%.

Find the (low-key) announcement here: https://bit.ly/40DqRHY, and early information on the PAYG option here: https://bit.ly/3YxtfgP.

Microsoft Entra Suite

Microsoft announce that the Microsoft Entra Suite is generally available. This solution brings together identity and network access so that you can secure employee access to any cloud or on-premises application or resource from any location whilst all the time enforcing least privileged access. Microsoft Entra Suite costs $12 per user per month and can be assigned to any user already licensed with Entra ID Plan 1 – or any plan (like Microsoft 365 E3) that includes it. There’s also an Add-on available for users already licensed with Entra ID Plan 2.

Find the announcement here (with a list of the suite components): https://bit.ly/4fa2iY1, pricing information here: https://bit.ly/46dHcUU, and the Product Terms information here: https://bit.ly/2OFt7vB.

Multi-tenant organisation capabilities within Microsoft 365

Microsoft announce that multi-tenant organisation (MTO) capabilities within Microsoft 365 are now generally available. These capabilities aim to enhance an organisation’s collaboration and communication activities across multiple tenants using Teams and Viva Engage. From a licensing perspective only one Microsoft Entra ID Plan 1 licence is required per employee per multi-tenant organisation, and a Viva Suite or Employee Communications & Communities User SL is required for the MTO capabilities in Viva Engage.

Find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/3wkgMmB, and use this site for a good explanation of the different options for organisations with more than one tenant: https://bit.ly/3QjywW8.

Copilot for Security

Microsoft announce that Copilot for Security will be generally available on April 1st, 2024.

If you’re not sure how Copilot fits in with security then this video (https://bit.ly/3VBv5h5) is a good minute-long overview of AI-powered security.

Customers will be able to choose a standalone Copilot experience or an embedded one (find a good diagram on the announcement page here: https://bit.ly/3TV4Qkf) and both will be billed on a consumption model. It’s all going to work via a new Security Compute Unit (SCU) which costs $4/hour billed, as usual, against an existing or new Azure Subscription.

Microsoft Mesh is generally available

Microsoft announce that Microsoft Mesh is now generally available, allowing you to join a Teams meeting as an Avatar within a 3D space. Features are available to everyone licensed with a Microsoft 365 Business Basic/Standard/Premium, Microsoft 365 E3/E5 or Office 365 E1/E3/E5 licence, with the creation of customised 3D spaces requiring a Teams Premium licence. Find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/3u0k917.