Russell Stephens

I spent some time this weekend creating a quick tutorial to get started with Microsoft DSC v3.0 ☀️ Whilst Microsoft DSC v3 doesn't rely on PowerShell, it's still pretty dominant in input and output, making it easy to find what is needed. Let me know what you think! #dsc #dscv3 #configurationmanagement

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Every week, the UK headlines highlight AI’s promise - and its pressure. Compute shortages. Energy constraints. Sovereign security. Behind each of these challenges lies a common truth: technology only creates value when it’s integrated, scaled, and delivered securely. That’s why Computacenter’s UK Integration Center is so important. We’ve built a sovereign capability that can take thousands of systems a week, integrate them for purpose, and deliver them ready to run. It’s a capability few countries have, and fewer companies can offer. As a UK-headquartered business, we see it as our responsibility - and our advantage - to ensure our customers have the infrastructure they need to power the future. Learn more about our Technology Sourcing capability at Computacenter: bit.ly/4n7Wou3 #Technology #Innovation #AI

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Since 2019, Quorum Cyber has worked side-by-side with Renfrewshire Council to evolve from Public Services Network (PSN) compliance support to delivering 24/7 Microsoft Sentinel MDR through a fully managed Security Operations Centre. By aligning strategy and architecture, we’ve built a trusted relationship that supports business resilience, multi-cloud security, and community protection at scale. Learn more: https://bit.ly/42ENtsm #CyberSecurity #MicrosoftSentinel #MDR #PublicSectorSecurity #QuorumCyber #SOC #CommunityProtection

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Commvault’s recent survey with GigaOm shows the scale of the challenge for UK businesses: nearly every organization (93%) has faced a critical cyber incident, with more than half in the last 18 months. One of the key takeaways? The importance of defining your Minimum Viable Company to ensure continuity even when backups are compromised. More insights in the full release: https://bit.ly/47zGVOr #CyberResilience #MinimumViableCompany

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🔹Azure Arc & Renaming Servers – A Real-World Gotcha 🔹 ⚠️Recently, I ran into a tricky situation with some of our Azure Arc–enabled servers. When renamed an on-prem Windows server machine locally, but after I checked the Azure Arc inventory, it still showed the old name☹️ At first, I was confused… but when I clicked into the machine properties, the new hostname was there! 👁️‍🗨️Turns out, Azure resource names are immutable, so Arc doesn’t automatically update the display name after a local rename. Here’s how I solved it: 1️⃣ Documented and removed all VM extensions 2️⃣ Ran azcmagent disconnect to unhook the server 3️⃣ Deleted the old Arc resource in Azure 4️⃣ Reconnected the server with azcmagent connect (used --resource-name to set the new name) 5️⃣ Redeployed VM extensions ✅ Lesson learned: Always plan for Arc renames and monitor Resource Health alerts — missing heartbeats can indicate agent or connectivity issues. Has anyone else run into this Arc renaming quirk? How do you handle it in hybrid environments? #AzureArc #HybridCloud #MicrosoftAzure #CloudEngineering #ArcEnabled

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Our engineers have been busy configuring the new Microsoft Security Baseline Tool for all of our clients to ensure their entire Microsoft 365 system is secure and aligned to UK cyber regulations. This feature will help protect their data and reputation as well as allowing us to monitor their systems for any malicious activity and erosion of policies 24/7. If you are unsure if your IT company is managing your Microsoft 365 properly for you, then we would be happy to run a free audit and to provide you with a report on your systems.

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It's the Microsoft Product Terms for September 2025. Visual Studio Subscriptions have been added to MCA Windows 10 ESU added to CSP Microsoft Defender & Microsoft Purview Suites have now been made available to Business Premium users That last point is very interesting as this brings a world of new security features to smaller organisations - which will have multiple impacts: 1) directly increase the ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) of SMB customers as they buy new add-ons 2) increase the chances of SMB customers adopting Copilot - as these new products address many of the security/data challenges... 2b) which will further increase the ARPU of SMB customers #microsoft #licensing #ProductTerms

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In today’s digital-first world, seamless, cost-effective, and agile IT service delivery is the expectation. Behind this performance lies IT Asset Management (ITAM), silently powering the efficiency. 🔍 **Visibility That Drives Decisions** ITAM offers a centralized view of the entire IT estate, avoiding asset sprawl, reducing duplication, and aiding in strategic decisions about upgrades and retirements. 💰 **Cost Control Without Compromise** Identifying unused licenses and hardware, ITAM enables proactive financial planning, forecasting spend, negotiating better deals, and reinvesting savings into innovation. ✅ **Compliance and Risk Mitigation** ITAM ensures accurate licensing, timely renewals, and audit-ready documentation, safeguarding organizations against non-compliance risks and fines. ⚙️ **Operational Efficiency** Accurate asset tracking leads to faster incident resolution, smooth changes, and minimal downtime, integrating seamlessly with ITSM platforms for real-time insights. 🚀 **Enabling Transformation** ITAM supports cloud migration, infrastructure modernization, and sustainability initiatives by identifying legacy systems and planning their exit, laying the groundwork for scalable and secure IT operations. 💬 **Final Thought** IT Asset Management has evolved from a back-office function to a strategic enabler, impacting cost savings, compliance, operational excellence, and transformation across service delivery. Prioritizing ITAM is crucial for organizations looking to excel in the digital landscape. https://lnkd.in/ewgg7svz

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Misconfigurations pose a significant risk, not just minor errors. In the case of Microsoft 365, misconfigured Apps led to the exposure of 38 million records in 2021 and over 1.1 million NHS records in 2024, as reported by Compass IT Compliance. At DEV IT, our managed security services revolve around Microsoft’s key pillars—MFA, conditional access, endpoint security, and data protection. We enhance these with proactive configuration audits, governance, and automation. This approach ensures fewer vulnerabilities, quicker implementation, and a robust defense right from the start. In a landscape where misconfigurations can result in costly breaches and the exposure of sensitive data, relying on good intentions alone is not enough. Choose DEV IT for precision in every setting. #CyberSecurity #Microsoft365 #DEVIT #CloudSecurity #Misconfiguration #SMBSecurity #ManagedServices Himani Shah Vrajesh Vora Abhijit Yardi Yogesh Dave Vaibhav Pawar Ayushi Davda

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