Horrible bosses are all too common — there’s even a movie about them. Here, three experts weigh in on how to spot a bad boss before you accept a position and offer tips on how to make sure you’re making the right employment choice. Everyone suffers under a bad manager – morale sinks, productivity tanks, absences increase. Even those above a bad manager in the corporate hierarchy feel the impact; executives must dedicate time to resolving conflicts, and often end up assuming the role and responsibility for those who aren’t adequately doing their job, says says Patty Azzarello, CEO of Azzarello Group, and a business advisor, author and executive. But there are warning signs, red flags to look out for when searching for a job and while interviewing that can identify a bad boss or an untenable work environment before you accept a job. Do Some Early Detective Work Your first step should be researching the company online – but go beyond the obvious corporate Web site and Facebook profile, says Craig Bryant, founder and product manager for Kin HR, which provides human resources software solutions for small businesses. [Related: How to Write a Job Description That Attracts Top IT Talent ] “Before you even start the interview process, research the company online. Go to Glassdoor and other feedback sites to see what current and former employees have to say about the company,” Bryant says. While the comments on sites like Glassdoor aren’t entirely objective, you can get a good sense of whether or not employees are happy with the company, their management hierarchy, whether or not there are advancement opportunities, says Johanna Aiken, human resources director at ecommerce solutions company Cleverbridge. “Especially in the technology arena, it’s critical to use social media to your advantage,” Aiken says. “Use sites like Glassdoor, sure, but don’t discount LinkedIn. Use LinkedIn to do keyword searches and connection searches; reach out to current and former employees and ask if they’re happy with the company, do they like their job, that sort of thing. If they’ve left, ask why,” Aiken says. What you’re looking for are patterns of behavior: Does every junior programmer leave that company only to reappear as a senior programmer at a different company? That could be indicative of a lack of advancement or promotion opportunities, says Kin HR’s Bryant. In addition, find out as much as you can about the company culture and work environment, says Bryant. Finding a good fit is as much about character, culture and personality match as it is about hard skills, and it’s important to make sure you’ll mesh well with the company. “When we hire, we’re looking for character and cultural fit, not just hard skills,” says Bryant. “We’re looking at who and what that person will eventually become at the company. Are you a freewheeling, work-anywhere night owl? You might not perform at your best for a company with strict nine-to-five hours and not a lot of flexibility, for instance,” he says. Look to Your Future Even more important than the immediate impact of starting a new job is the future potential, both for the company and for the employee, says Bryant. Starting as early as the interview process, candidates should focus on how the company will contribute to their professional growth and development and make sure that aligns with their career goals. “During the interview process, candidates should probe for details on how the company will contribute to their professional growth,” says Bryant. “Not just the raw skill sets, but learn what you can expect in terms of continuing education, personal growth, travel. If you’re going to pour your passion and devote most of your waking hours to a company what will you get in return?” he says. [Related: Inside the Changing Role of the CISO ] “You want to ask, specifically, how your own personal and professional objectives fit in with those of the company, and how that ties into your compensation, too,” says Bryant. “If you get a ‘deer in the headlights’ look in response, that’s a red flag and there most likely won’t be that much room for personal growth and advancement,” he says. As an example, Azzarello Group’s Patty Azzarello describes an interview she had for a position that was described as “strategic.” “Everyone I interviewed with was saying they’d be thrilled to have me on board to drive this ‘strategic position’ and help grow the business in a certain direction,” Azzarello says. “But when I talked to the CEO, and I delved into the ‘strategic’ aspects of the role, he simply nodded and didn’t seem to be on the same page. He didn’t understand what I was talking about!” she says. Azzarello adds that it’s important to make sure your own expectations and objectives fit with those of the company, and that candidates are very clear about what’s important to them, both personally and professionally, she says. “Make sure you’re not the only one talking about these objectives, and the interviewing team isn’t just ‘nodding along’ to placate you,” she says. “That’s a huge red flag, and you’re not going to be happy or successful if you’re feeding them lines and they’re agreeing just to get you into the position,” Azzarello says. Make sure you ask about performance reviews, mentoring programs and other on-the-job training and support relationships, adds Bryant. These are more important to your success and happiness than most candidates realize, and are often overlooked. Observe and Interact With Your Potential Colleagues Your powers of observation can be critical when scoping out a potential new job or career path, says Cleverbridge’s Johanna Aiken. Plan to arrive at the interview location early, and simply sit and observe, she says. “I recommend arriving at least 10 minutes early; sit in the lobby and just observe, because you can gain a lot of insight just by watching the employees interacting with each other in a non-professional way,” Aiken says.”Take note of the general ‘vibe’ in the office. Do you see people coming and going frequently? How do they talk to each other? What’s their tone of voice? Their body language? How do the employees seem that differs from what the company claims is their culture?” she says. “If you see behavior or overhear conversations that make you uncomfortable, don’t ignore it. This is one of the best ways to gauge what the working environment will be like,” she says. Azzarello suggests going out to lunch or for a cup of coffee with the interviewing team, if that’s possible, to get an inside look at how your potential supervisors and colleagues handle their ‘power,’ either real or perceived. “If you can, to out to lunch and closely observe how they treat the waiter,” she says. “People who are otherwise smart and competent can turn into narcissistic, controlling jerks when in a position of power, and you need to gauge how they treat others who they perceive as being in a ‘lesser’ position. If you can’t go out to lunch, notice how they treat their assistants, their office staff, and people who walk into the office,” she says. Kin HR’s Bryant suggests asking to spend some time with the people who could become your colleagues, too. “You can talk to — or at least request of the interviewing manager — to spend some time with the folks who are your peers at the job,” he says. “Ask them what expectations they held coming into the job and whether or not those were met. Ask them if they have the tools and resources they need to do their job effectively. Ask what the biggest obstacles are to success, and why those aren’t removed,” Bryant says. “If you’re looking for specifics about the person who’ll be your immediate supervisor, ask things like, ‘How does s/he communicate? What are her/his methods for holding people accountable? Can you describe a typical decision-making process? Do you feel like you have the support and freedom to do your job or are you micromanaged?” says Azzarello. But remember, Aiken cautions, to take some of this information with a grain of salt. Since the interviewing team will be selecting the folks you’ll have access to, you may not be getting the entire, unblemished picture. “Now, you must remember that management is going to select the people you’ll be talking to, and they’re going to choose employees they feel will give the most positive view of the company,” she says. “So, just remember that there will be a bias,” she says. ‘At-Will’ Employment Goes Both Ways If you do end up in a situation with a bad boss or a poor working environment, it can be helpful to know if your state supports the idea of “at will” employment, says Bryant. While “at will” statutes empower employers to hire and fire as they see fit, employees can also benefit, especially in a booming tech industry market where employment’s plentiful, he says. “If you’re in an at-will employment state, you’re not bound or beholden to the company to stay, or even to give two weeks’ notice if you decide to leave,” Bryant says. “Especially in IT, it’s a bustling economy and you can walk away; with a low unemployment rate, it can be much more productive to find another situation than to stick it out under a bad boss or in a bad work environment,” he says. “Always remember to ‘run to’ a job for the ‘right’ reasons,” says Cleverbridge’s Aiken. “Even if you’re currently in a bad situation, make sure you’re taking a job opportunity because it’s the right thing for you, not just because you hate your current situation,” she says. That said, it can happen that sticking it out under a bad boss or in an otherwise less-than-ideal job situation is worth it if it opens doors and clears the way for even greater professional and personal growth and advancement, says Azzarello. “From my own experience, I worked under a boss who was a walking red flag,” she says. “But that position and the experience I gained opened up so many more opportunities for me later — jobs with global scope, with increasing external responsibilities, rapid advancement. So, you should always gauge the pros and cons and decide what’s the best for you and for your future,” Azzarello says.

Horrible bosses are all too common — there’s even a movie about them. Here, three experts weigh in on how to spot a bad boss before you accept a position and offer tips on how to make sure you’re making the right employment choice.

Everyone suffers under a bad manager – morale sinks, productivity tanks, absences increase. Even those above a bad manager in the corporate hierarchy feel the impact; executives must dedicate time to resolving conflicts, and often end up assuming the role and responsibility for those who aren’t adequately doing their job, says says Patty Azzarello, CEO of Azzarello Group, and a business advisor, author and executive.

But there are warning signs, red flags to look out for when searching for a job and while interviewing that can identify a bad boss or an untenable work environment before you accept a job.
Do Some Early Detective Work

Your first step should be researching the company online – but go beyond the obvious corporate Web site and Facebook profile, says Craig Bryant, founder and product manager for Kin HR, which provides human resources software solutions for small businesses.

[Related: How to Write a Job Description That Attracts Top IT Talent ]

“Before you even start the interview process, research the company online. Go to Glassdoor and other feedback sites to see what current and former employees have to say about the company,” Bryant says.

While the comments on sites like Glassdoor aren’t entirely objective, you can get a good sense of whether or not employees are happy with the company, their management hierarchy, whether or not there are advancement opportunities, says Johanna Aiken, human resources director at ecommerce solutions company Cleverbridge.

“Especially in the technology arena, it’s critical to use social media to your advantage,” Aiken says. “Use sites like Glassdoor, sure, but don’t discount LinkedIn. Use LinkedIn to do keyword searches and connection searches; reach out to current and former employees and ask if they’re happy with the company, do they like their job, that sort of thing. If they’ve left, ask why,” Aiken says.

What you’re looking for are patterns of behavior: Does every junior programmer leave that company only to reappear as a senior programmer at a different company? That could be indicative of a lack of advancement or promotion opportunities, says Kin HR’s Bryant.

In addition, find out as much as you can about the company culture and work environment, says Bryant. Finding a good fit is as much about character, culture and personality match as it is about hard skills, and it’s important to make sure you’ll mesh well with the company.

“When we hire, we’re looking for character and cultural fit, not just hard skills,” says Bryant. “We’re looking at who and what that person will eventually become at the company. Are you a freewheeling, work-anywhere night owl? You might not perform at your best for a company with strict nine-to-five hours and not a lot of flexibility, for instance,” he says.
Look to Your Future

Even more important than the immediate impact of starting a new job is the future potential, both for the company and for the employee, says Bryant. Starting as early as the interview process, candidates should focus on how the company will contribute to their professional growth and development and make sure that aligns with their career goals.

“During the interview process, candidates should probe for details on how the company will contribute to their professional growth,” says Bryant. “Not just the raw skill sets, but learn what you can expect in terms of continuing education, personal growth, travel. If you’re going to pour your passion and devote most of your waking hours to a company what will you get in return?” he says.

[Related: Inside the Changing Role of the CISO ]

“You want to ask, specifically, how your own personal and professional objectives fit in with those of the company, and how that ties into your compensation, too,” says Bryant. “If you get a ‘deer in the headlights’ look in response, that’s a red flag and there most likely won’t be that much room for personal growth and advancement,” he says.

As an example, Azzarello Group’s Patty Azzarello describes an interview she had for a position that was described as “strategic.” “Everyone I interviewed with was saying they’d be thrilled to have me on board to drive this ‘strategic position’ and help grow the business in a certain direction,” Azzarello says. “But when I talked to the CEO, and I delved into the ‘strategic’ aspects of the role, he simply nodded and didn’t seem to be on the same page. He didn’t understand what I was talking about!” she says. Azzarello adds that it’s important to make sure your own expectations and objectives fit with those of the company, and that candidates are very clear about what’s important to them, both personally and professionally, she says.

“Make sure you’re not the only one talking about these objectives, and the interviewing team isn’t just ‘nodding along’ to placate you,” she says. “That’s a huge red flag, and you’re not going to be happy or successful if you’re feeding them lines and they’re agreeing just to get you into the position,” Azzarello says.

Make sure you ask about performance reviews, mentoring programs and other on-the-job training and support relationships, adds Bryant. These are more important to your success and happiness than most candidates realize, and are often overlooked.
Observe and Interact With Your Potential Colleagues

Your powers of observation can be critical when scoping out a potential new job or career path, says Cleverbridge’s Johanna Aiken. Plan to arrive at the interview location early, and simply sit and observe, she says.

“I recommend arriving at least 10 minutes early; sit in the lobby and just observe, because you can gain a lot of insight just by watching the employees interacting with each other in a non-professional way,” Aiken says.”Take note of the general ‘vibe’ in the office. Do you see people coming and going frequently? How do they talk to each other? What’s their tone of voice? Their body language? How do the employees seem that differs from what the company claims is their culture?” she says. “If you see behavior or overhear conversations that make you uncomfortable, don’t ignore it. This is one of the best ways to gauge what the working environment will be like,” she says.

Azzarello suggests going out to lunch or for a cup of coffee with the interviewing team, if that’s possible, to get an inside look at how your potential supervisors and colleagues handle their ‘power,’ either real or perceived.

“If you can, to out to lunch and closely observe how they treat the waiter,” she says. “People who are otherwise smart and competent can turn into narcissistic, controlling jerks when in a position of power, and you need to gauge how they treat others who they perceive as being in a ‘lesser’ position. If you can’t go out to lunch, notice how they treat their assistants, their office staff, and people who walk into the office,” she says.

Kin HR’s Bryant suggests asking to spend some time with the people who could become your colleagues, too. “You can talk to — or at least request of the interviewing manager — to spend some time with the folks who are your peers at the job,” he says.

“Ask them what expectations they held coming into the job and whether or not those were met. Ask them if they have the tools and resources they need to do their job effectively. Ask what the biggest obstacles are to success, and why those aren’t removed,” Bryant says.

“If you’re looking for specifics about the person who’ll be your immediate supervisor, ask things like, ‘How does s/he communicate? What are her/his methods for holding people accountable? Can you describe a typical decision-making process? Do you feel like you have the support and freedom to do your job or are you micromanaged?” says Azzarello.

But remember, Aiken cautions, to take some of this information with a grain of salt. Since the interviewing team will be selecting the folks you’ll have access to, you may not be getting the entire, unblemished picture.

“Now, you must remember that management is going to select the people you’ll be talking to, and they’re going to choose employees they feel will give the most positive view of the company,” she says. “So, just remember that there will be a bias,” she says.
‘At-Will’ Employment Goes Both Ways

If you do end up in a situation with a bad boss or a poor working environment, it can be helpful to know if your state supports the idea of “at will” employment, says Bryant.

While “at will” statutes empower employers to hire and fire as they see fit, employees can also benefit, especially in a booming tech industry market where employment’s plentiful, he says.

“If you’re in an at-will employment state, you’re not bound or beholden to the company to stay, or even to give two weeks’ notice if you decide to leave,” Bryant says. “Especially in IT, it’s a bustling economy and you can walk away; with a low unemployment rate, it can be much more productive to find another situation than to stick it out under a bad boss or in a bad work environment,” he says.

“Always remember to ‘run to’ a job for the ‘right’ reasons,” says Cleverbridge’s Aiken. “Even if you’re currently in a bad situation, make sure you’re taking a job opportunity because it’s the right thing for you, not just because you hate your current situation,” she says.

That said, it can happen that sticking it out under a bad boss or in an otherwise less-than-ideal job situation is worth it if it opens doors and clears the way for even greater professional and personal growth and advancement, says Azzarello.

“From my own experience, I worked under a boss who was a walking red flag,” she says. “But that position and the experience I gained opened up so many more opportunities for me later — jobs with global scope, with increasing external responsibilities, rapid advancement. So, you should always gauge the pros and cons and decide what’s the best for you and for your future,” Azzarello says.


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Microsoft to lay off 18,000 in next year

Microsoft announced Thursday morning that it will cut its workforce by up to 18,000 jobs, or 14 percent, in the next year, as part of a broad effort to streamline the company in the wake of its acquisition of phone-maker Nokia.

A letter to employees from CEO Satya Nadella, released by the company, said that its “work toward synergies and strategic alignment on Nokia Devices and Services is expected to account for about 12,500 jobs, comprising both professional and factory workers. We are moving now to start reducing the first 13,000 positions, and the vast majority of employees whose jobs will be eliminated will be notified over the next six months.”

Nadella’s letter said that the company will add jobs in other areas.

In it, he promised further information about where the company will focus investment in innovation during a public conference call to discuss earnings on July 22, and invited staff to join a monthly internal question and answer session with him on Friday to find out more.

Senior leadership team members will discuss the effect of the cuts on their organizations later Thursday, he said. Staff laid off as a result of the process will be offered severance pay and, in many places, help in finding a new job, he said.

Beyond integration of the Nokia handset business, Nadella said the job cuts would focus on work simplification, eliminating layers of management and changing what the company expects from each of the disciplines involved in engineering activities. These changes are intended to accelerate the flow of information and decision making, he wrote.

Nadella also unveiled a few details of his plans for the Nokia phone portfolio.

Microsoft will “focus on breakthrough innovation that expresses and enlivens Microsoft’s digital work and digital life experiences” to win in the higher price tiers, he said.

Most intriguingly, the low-end, Android-based Nokia X phones, introduced as last-gasp strategy by Nokia before it sold the handset business to Microsoft, will survive—but not as Android phones. Instead, said Nadella, “We plan to shift select Nokia X product designs to become Lumia products running Windows.” Nokia had laid the groundwork for that before the sale, building its own apps and a user interface for Android that resembled Windows Phone.

In a separate letter to staff, Microsoft Devices Group head Stephen Elop said the company would continue to sell the Android devices in some countries, depending on local conditions.

He also detailed where some of the job cuts would fall. Engineering work on mobile phones will continue at two locations in Finland, Salo for high-end Lumia devices and Tampere for affordable devices, but will be ramped down in Beijing, San Diego and in Oulo, Finland. Phone manufacturing will continue in Hanoi, and to a lesser extend in Beijing and Dongguan. He made no mention of former Nokia manufacturing operations in India.

There will be limited change for the teams working on Surface devices and Xbox hardware as these had already been restructured earlier in the year, Elop said.

As of June 5, Microsoft had 127,104 employees, 61,313 of them in the U.S., according to its website. The planned job cuts could affect around 14 percent of the workforce.

Peter Sayer contributed to this article.


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Windows Phone 8.1 and its first update could appear this week

This might be the first time an OS and patch came out simultaneously.

Windows Phone 8.1, the revision to Microsoft’s mobile OS that has taken longer to manifest than Windows 8.1, might finally show up this week or next, along with its first update.

Improvements in 10GbE technology, lower pricing, and improved performance make 10GbE for the mid-market

Windows Phone 8.0 came out in October 2012. That’s 20 months between major releases if 8.1 shows up this month, longer than the gap between Windows 8 and 8.1, and far, far longer than the updates between iOS and Android.

Fortunately, there’s a lot to love in this point release, which is really closer to a full revision. The big addition is Cortana, the voice assistant, along with the App Framework that makes it easier for Windows 8.1 apps to be ported between a PC and phone.

Well, the news site Neowin is claiming that Windows Phone 8.1 has been done for a while, and not only will it be pushed out soon, so will the first update to the OS, called a General Distribution Release (GDR). The GDR will be relatively minor, with a small set of enhancements, such as native folder support. That will enable users to create folders of tiles by dropping a tile on top of another, something iOS and Android have had for a while.

Of course, first thing we need is WP 8.1. Microsoft has kept the release date quiet, but someone from Microsoft India tweeted that the OS could roll out in the first or second week of July. He didn’t say if that’s for the U.S., India (where WP is popular), or worldwide.

Given the GDR hasn’t even shown up on the developer network for testing, we can only take this with a few grains of salt. If Microsoft does indeed have an update ready to go this fast, then it’s more evidence of its plans to reduce the time between software updates, something CEO Satya Nadella has promised.

I just hope it does something to get WP moving. This 3% market share is pitiful, as is the lack of apps. As a WP phone owner (Samsung ATIV SE), I’m getting tired of searching for apps and coming up empty. As Beta News noted, the Windows Phone app store is a ghost town, not an encouraging sign for a platform that is solid and should be a lot more popular than it is.

I’m not clamoring to return to the iPhone, but I’m not blindly loyal, either.


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5 key takeaways from Amazon’s big cloud day

Amazon challenges Box with file share services, attempts to woo mobile app developers

Amazon Web Services continued to push the IaaS market forward today by challenging established cloud players like Box and Dropbox with the company’s own document collaboration platform and rolling out new features to its public cloud focused on supporting mobile applications.

Here are the five biggest takeaways from Amazon’s Summit in New York City today:

Amazon’s cloud targets mobile applications
Amazon launched a number of new features to optimize its cloud for hosting mobile apps. The main new product is named Cognito and it provides shortcuts for mobile application developers. The idea is that there are a variety of core features that many mobile apps need that do not differentiate the app from others, says AWS VP of Mobile Marco Argneti. These include the ability to save user profiles and provide support across multiple devices, and save the state of the app when a user changes devices. Cognito provides these services so that app developers don’t have to build them, and it allows the developers to focus on the truly differentiated features of their app. The logon credentials integrate with Facebook, Google and Amazon usernames and passwords. Here’s a video describing the service from Amazon:

The move shows that in addition to being at the forefront of hosting startups and enterprise workloads, AWS wants to be the place to host mobile apps, too. It also shows Amazon turning into more of an application development platform as a service (PaaS) and Mobile Backend as a Service (MBaaS). Amazon isn’t alone though. Microsoft has a robust set of tools for hosting mobile applications as well. Time Warner Cable’s NaviSite rolled out new Enterprise Mobility Management tools this week for managing mobile workforces, which VMware is heavily invested.

Amazon launches document collaboration and file sharing business
Amazon announced Zocalo, a new file storage, sharing and synchronization platform based on its popular Simple Storage Service (S3). Think of it as Box or Google Drive, but in Amazon’s cloud and aimed at the enterprise market. Through a slick web interface, users can upload a variety of files — documents, PDFs, slides, spreadsheets and photos, among others — and synchronize them across devices that have a Zocalo client installed on them. Users can share documents and can also provide and solicit feedback.

Improvements in 10GbE technology, lower pricing, and improved performance make 10GbE for the mid-market
The move puts Amazon in direct competition with some darlings of the consumer cloud marketplace, like Box and DropBox and puts Amazon head to head with Google, again (those two companies compete on the IaaS cloud platform too). The move follows Amazon’s launch of Workspaces, a virtual desktop tool it debuted last year.

Amazon targets, and shows off, enterprise customers
Perhaps equally as important as the new products launched were the portions of the keynote where Amazon customers shared their experiences using the company’s platform. One perception the company is attempting to overcome is that it is focused on startups and developers, but not enterprise users. One way to get more enterprise customers is to show nervous potentially customers that their peers are using your platform.

Vogels outlined how startup Airbnb – which processes 150,000 stays per night on its site – has grown from using about 400 Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) servers a year ago to now more than 1,300. The company has a five-person IT team that manages it all in Amazon’s cloud. Siemens, which had $5.5 billion in sales last year, uses Amazon’s cloud to process HIPAA-complaint diagnostic images. Publishing company Conde Nast is selling its data center and servers because it’s moving into AWS’s cloud. It’s one thing to have enterprise customers using your cloud-based platform in some small test and development capacity; it’s another for them to be shutting down data centers in favor of using the public cloud.

Amazon eats its partners
Another new product the company launched today is named Logs for CloudWatch. Last year Amazon released CloudTrail, which is a stream of information customers can sign up for that reports every action that is made in a user’s account. That information alone is not extraordinarily valuable because it needs to be processed in a way that makes sense. A variety of third-party AWS partners have taken that data and made applications out of it that customers can use to track their cloud usage and find unusual behavior. Today, Amazon rolled out some of those features themselves.

The point here is that Amazon continues to develop features in its cloud, even if it has partnering companies who do the same thing. AWS has done this before; it made life difficult for companies that had built up cost optimization tools when it launched its own service that does the same thing named Trusted Advisor. It can be tough being an Amazon partner; the key for these vendors is staying ahead of Amazon’s fast innovation cycle.

More than 10,000 people registered to attend Amazon Web Service’s Summit in New York Today.
One of the most notable aspects of the day was the amount of interest it drew. AWS said that more than 10,000 people registered to attend the event, which included a keynote by CTO Werner Vogels and then breakout sessions throughout the afternoon. Thousands of others watched a live stream. The biggest takeaway of all is that the cloud is real, and a lot of people are interested in it.


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Microsoft says new hybrid storage options can cut costs up to 60%

Microsoft Azure StorSimple storage options mix on premises with cloud resources.

Microsoft is coming out with new hardware and cloud management features for its StorSimple hybrid storage offering that promises lower costs and better data protection.

The new products, available Aug. 1, include two models of the new StorSimple 8000 storage array that are tied into a management platform and a virtual storage appliance, both deployed within Microsoft’s Azure cloud. The package is called Microsoft Azure StorSimple.

With it, customers can cut storage costs 40% to 60%, receive faster disaster recovery and access tools that provide detailed views of storage status and trends, Microsoft says in a blog.

The hardware – StorSimple 8100 and 8600 – tier data between SSD and HHD drives, but also with storage within the Azure cloud. This hybrid architecture gives customers the ability to readily expand overall storage capacity in the cloud and add disaster protections, the company says.
ms azure diagram

StorSimple Virtual Appliance supports the functionality of the on-premises StorSimple hardware except that it is deployed on virtual machines within the Azure cloud. Paired with StorSimple hardware at customer sites, the virtual appliance can run applications in the Azure cloud by accessing virtual volumes uploaded to the cloud from the on-site storage arrays.

This arrangement enables running new applications in Azure that use cloud-based snapshots of historical data without having to access it in the corporate data center, thus avoiding disruption of existing data-center workloads, the company says. The data used in this way must be from Windows Server, Hyper-V, Linux or VMware servers, according to Microsoft.

The Virtual Appliance can play a role in disaster recovery in Azure as well. Applications that have been virtualized in an Azure StorSimple array on-prem can be restarted on virtual machines within Azure using data that has been uploaded there beforehand. Once the on-site customer data center has been restored, any changes to the data in the cloud that were made during the restoration process are downloaded from the cloud, Microsoft says.

On-premises data is up loaded to Azure as cloud snapshots, which are like traditional storage snapshots only these are stored in Azure’s cloud. The cloud data deduplicated so it takes up less space and is synched with on-site data. Once in the cloud it can be used not only for disaster recovery but also for development and testing applications, search and application migration, Microsoft says.

The cloud-based management platform gives a central console for all the StorSimple storage arrays throughout an enterprise as well as the storage within the Azure cloud. This enables applying central policies and controls and gives access to all arrays automatically, says Mike Schutz, the general manager of product marketing for Microsoft’s Server and Tools Division. The manager also supports real-time status reports.

Detroit-based construction firm Walbridge has used StorSimple 7000s for three years and has saved 40% of its storage costs vs. what it would have spent over that time if it had continued buying on-prem servers, says Cynthia Weaver, the firm’s assistant vice president for IT.

She’s not certain the company will upgrade to Azure StorSimple but is intrigued by its ability to support disaster recovery to the cloud. Currently restoration requires a second StorSimple array to recover to. She says she’ll consider Azure StorSimple the next time she replaces some of the company’s remaining on-site storage.

Walbridge’s strategy is to move storage to the cloud as it retires outdated gear, Weaver says. Between StorSimple and Office 365, the company now stores more data in the cloud than it does on-site and has actually reduced the size of its data center and reallocated the space to create two offices, she says.

Microsoft bought the independent startup StorSimple in November 2012, and the introduction of Azure StorSimple is the first new generation of its product since then. The Store Simple hardware capacity ranges from 15T to 40T Byte on premises with support for 200T Byte in the cloud. The previous hardware family StorSimple 7000 ranged from 4T to 20T Byte.

The virtual appliance and cloud-based management are not available for StorSimple 7000 devices.

Microsoft’s StorSimple products compete against products from TwinStrata, now owned by EMC, Nasuni and Panzura, which act as storage gateways to public cloud services. Microsoft has the advantage of creating unique enhancements that come from controlling both the on-prem hardware and the cloud service.

 


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Microsoft slates critical IE, Windows patches for Tuesday

One month left for businesses to migrate from Windows 8.1 to Windows 8.1 Update

Microsoft today said it will ship six security updates to customers next week, patching all versions of Internet Explorer (IE) and nearly all supported editions of Windows.

The IE update, one of two classified as “critical” — Microsoft’s most serious threat ranking — will patch IE6 on Windows Server 2003, IE7, IE8, IE9, IE10 and the newest, IE11.

It’s unlikely that July’s IE update will match June’s in size: Microsoft fixed a record 60 flaws in the browser on June 10. (Originally, Microsoft said it had patched 59 IE bugs last month, but a week later acknowledged it had forgotten to add one to the list, and so upped the count to an even 60.)

Windows 7 users who have not freshened IE11 with a mandatory April update will not receive next week’s browser fixes.

According to Thursday’s advanced notice, which briefly described the July updates, the second critical bulletin will patch all client editions of Windows — from Vista to Windows 8.1 — and all server versions except for those running on systems powered by Intel’s Itanium processors. Windows Server 2008 and Server 2012 systems provisioned by installing only the Server Core — a minimal install with many features and services omitted to lock down the machine — are also exempt from Bulletin 2, Microsoft said.

Of the remaining four updates, three were labeled “important” by Microsoft — the threat step below critical — while the fourth was pegged “moderate.” All will offer patches for some or all Windows editions, both on the desktop and in the data center.

Security researchers pointed to the two critical bulletins as the obvious first-to-deploy for most Microsoft customers.

They also remarked on Bulletin 6, the single moderate update, which will patch Microsoft Service Bus for Windows Server. The bus is a messaging and communications service that third-party developers can use to tie their code to Windows Server and Microsoft Azure, the Redmond, Wash. company’s cloud service.

“The odd one out this month is the Moderate Denial of Service in ‘Microsoft Service Bus for Windows Server,'” said Ross Barrett, senior manager of security engineering at Rapid7, in an email. “It’s part of the Microsoft Web Platform package and is not installed by default with any OS version.”

Although Microsoft did not mention it in today’s advance notice, or in the blog post by the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC), enterprises have one more month to deploy April’s Windows 8.1 Update and Server 2012 R2 Update before losing patch privileges for devices running Windows 8.1 or servers running 2012 R2.

Hardware powered by Windows 8.1 or Server 2012 R2 must be updated before Aug. 12, the next scheduled Patch Tuesday, to receive that month’s updates, as well as any future security fixes.

Or in some cases, even present patches, said Chris Goettl, a program product manager at Shavlik, in an email.

“One thing to watch out for [next week] will be [something similar to] the many exceptions we saw last month,” Goettl cautioned. “Many of the updates we saw in June required other updates to be in place, depending on the platform. For those running Windows 8.1 or Server 2012 R2, they need to be prepared for more of these updates to require Update 1 before they can apply them. Microsoft has stated they would delay a hard enforcement until August, but more and more of the patches [have] had variations that required Update 1. So look out for that cut over — it’s coming quick.

 


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Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Certification Exam

In this day and age, companies tend to hire those applicants who are not only well-qualified but have a diverse combination of skills as well. So it does not hurt if you have a certification on your resume; instead, it will help you a great deal. A certification in your profession will not only make you more qualified than the other applicants but it will also give a signal to the employers that you are a person who believes in moving forward and is determined to develop further his or her understandings and skills about the subject matter. MCSA – Windows Server 2008 certification exam is designed for IT professionals whose jobs revolve around handling Server Networks. This certification is quite an important one since Windows Server 2008 is an important program and it is needed for the proper functioning of extended programs.

Exam Topics of MCSA- Windows Server 2008: This exam consists of three papers. The first one is Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring with the certification code of 70-640. The second one is Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuring with the certification code of 70-642. Last one is Windows Server 2008, Server Administration with the certification code of 70-646.


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Exam Topics of 70-640:
This exam tests an individual’s knowledge in configuring and implementing Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Environment. This exam is divided into 6 sections.

  • First section deals with Configuration of DNS for Active Directory and this section carries 17 percent marks.
  • Second section deals with Configuration of Active Directory Infrastructure and this section carries total of 17 percent marks.
  • Third part covers Configuration of Active Directory Roles and Services and this part is worth 14 percent marks.
  • Forth part deals with creation and maintenance of Active Directory objects and this part is worth 18 percent marks.
  • Fifth part deals with maintenance of Active Directory Environment and this part carries a total of 18 percent marks.
  • Sixth part deals with Configuration of Active Directory Certificate Services and this part is worth 15 percent marks.

Exam Topics of 70-642:
This paper is all about Network infrastructure and the topics are:

  • IP addressing and Services.
  • Configuring Name Resolution.
  • Configuring Network and Remote Access.
  • File and Print Services configuration.
  • Network Infrastructure Monitoring and Management.

Exam topics of 70-646:
This paper tests the candidate’s skills on the following topics:

  • Planning of Server Deployment. (This part carries 19 percent marks)
  • Planning for Server Management. (This part carries 23 percent marks)
  • Monitoring and Maintaining Services. (This part carries 20 percent marks)
  • Planning Application and Data Provisioning. (This part carries 19 percent marks)
  • Planning for Business continuity and High Availability. (This part carries 19 percent marks)

MCSA: Windows Server 2008 certification exam is held in Pro metric testing centers. When compared with its benefits, this exam is quite inexpensive; it costs around $240. Hence, IT professionals and Systems Administrators are encouraged to register for this exam. Moreover, if you are considering on taking MCSE in the future, you should start from this exam since it counts towards MCSE.

Microsoft Certifications 2014 can you a JOB

With the new technologies coming in the market every other day, life has become advanced these days. In this modern era, you have to be on your toes all the time especially if your career in related to the field of IT: one has to stay updated with all the latest programs and their features in order to stay ahead of his peers. For instance, there was a time when Gramophone was the invention of the century but then it was replaced with mobile phones. Similarly, the invention of television and radio created quite a heap in the early 20th century but later on, the thunder was stolen by computers in the late 20th century.

In this day and age, computers and internet have become the center of attention. Consequently, IT has become the most popular field. IT experts are quite in demand these days; but with the emergence of new programs every other day, they have to keep up with the latest technology in order to stay ahead in the race. One way of staying ahead is the certification courses. These courses ensure that the candidate has attained all the latest knowledge and is ready to roll in the world of technology.

This article will discuss some of the most popular certification courses offered by Microsoft.

Microsoft Technology Associate

This is a certification course designed for the starters: people who want to start their line of business in the field of technology. Accordingly, it tests the fundamentals of IT and validates that the candidates have a basic understanding of the essentials. This course has been divided into three tracks and the candidates can choose any one of the tracks, depending on their preference. The tracks are: IT infrastructure, Database Design and Developer.

Microsoft MCSA- Windows Server 2008
This exam is designed for the IT personnel and it validates their skills in Server Networking management. IT professionals and System Administrators are suggested to take MCSA- Windows Server 2008 exam especially if they are looking forward to earning their MCSE certification.

Microsoft MCSA- Windows Server 2012
This certification exam is an advanced level exam which validates that the candidates have sufficient knowledge of Windows Server 2012 for its proper installation, configuration and working. MCSA- Windows Server 2012 certified can easily get the position of Network Administrator, Computer Systems Administrator or Computer Network Analyst.

Microsoft MCSE- Server Infrastructure
This certification course is designed for IT experts and it will get you the title of ‘Solutions Expert’. It tests individual’s skills in effectively and efficiently running a modern data center with some experience in virtualization storage and networking, identity management and systems management.

Microsoft MCSE- Desktop Infrastructure
This course validates that the individuals can manage desktops and devices, while maintaining their security and integrity, from anywhere around the globe. It also tests individuals’ expertise in application and desktop virtualization together with remote desktop services. With this certification in hand, you can easily qualify for a job of Data and Application Manager or Desktop and Device Support Manager.

Microsoft MCSE- Messaging
This certification is an expert level certification and it validates that the applicant has relevant skills in order to increase user productivity and flexibility. It also validates that the person has sufficient knowledge as to how to improve data security and reduce data loss. After passing this certification exam, candidates can easily qualify for the position of Network and Computer System Administrator.

Microsoft  MCSE- Communication
This certification validates candidates’ expertise in using Lync Server to create an effective communication path that can be accessed from all around the globe. This certification is also an expert level certification and you can easily qualify for the position of Network and Computer System Administrator with it.

Microsoft  MCSE- SharePoint

This Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert certification course verifies that the candidates have the necessary expertise to share, synchronize and organize the data across the organization. SharePoint 2013 is the updated version of Microsoft Office, and passing this certification can get you a job of Systems or Network Analyst.

Microsoft MCSD- SharePoint Application

This Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer certification course is another of expert level certification courses which validates individuals’ expertise in web programming. It also requires the individuals to design and develop applications with Microsoft SharePoint. With this certification, you can easily secure the position of Software Developer or Web Developer.

Microsoft Private Cloud

MCSE- Private Cloud certification course tests candidates’ expertise to manage Private Cloud computer technologies. It also verifies that the candidate can implement these technologies in a way to optimize service delivery. You can easily get the position of Server Administrator and Network Manager with this certification on your resume.

Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager
Microsoft System Center Certification focuses on the skills to manage computer and clients. The candidates should be able to configure, administer and deploy System Center 2012 in order to pass this exam. You can earn the title of Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist through this certification.

Microsoft Server Virtualization
This certification verifies that the candidate is familiar with Server Virtualization, both on Windows Server and System Center. This course expands individual’s expertise and skills in order for him to meet the rapidly modernizing technological business needs, and it can get him the title of Microsoft Specialist in no time.

Microsoft Office Certifications
Microsoft offers many certifications that verify candidates’ skills in handling and using Microsoft Office Applications. These certifications start from beginners level and go up to the master level. Microsoft Office Specialist is a beginner level certification whereas Microsoft Office Specialist Expert is an advanced level certification. Last but not the least; Microsoft Office Specialist Master is a master level certification.

Microsoft MCSA- Office 365
This course focuses on individual’s skills in handling Office 365 together with productivity tools and cloud-based collaboration. This certification can easily get you the position of Cloud Application Administrator or SaaS Administrator.

Microsoft Dynamics

This Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist certification confirms an individual’s expertise in Microsoft dynamics: a specific module can be chosen for this certification. However, this certification will be withdrawn from the market, at the end of this year, and replaced with the new ones.


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