Cloud Computing


Microsoft Giving $150 Per User To Switch to Dynamics CRM Online from Competition

Microsoft on Monday unveiled a promotion that pays back customers $150 per user seat for switching to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online from CRM competitors.

Microsoft Enters Open Source Cloud Deal with China Standard Software

Microsoft signed an interoperability and legal agreement on Tuesday with China Standard Software Co. Ltd. (CS2C) as part of a Linux server partnership deal. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

HP Considers Spinning Off PC Business, Gives Up webOS

HP stunned the IT world by saying it is considering the spinoff or sale of its PC division. The company also announced it is killing its webOS-based hardware business -- marking an exit from its short-lived tablet and smartphone arm -- while looking at licensing options for its webOS software business.

Microsoft Gives Office 365 Customers 25 Percent Credit for Outage

Microsoft on Thursday told Office 365 customers affected by this week's outage that it will deduct 25 percent from this month's bill.

Amazon: Dublin Cloud Outage Not Caused by Lightning

Amazon has issued an apology and explanation in response to the massive cloud outage that crippled its Dublin datacenter last week.

Office 365 Migrations Start September for BPOS Users, Will Take 1 Year

For users of Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Services (BPOS), the transition to Office 365 will begin next month, but Microsoft's latest communications indicate a few caveats.

Microsoft's Office 365, SkyDrive and CRM Online Services Hit by Outages (UPDATED)

Several Microsoft cloud services, including Office 365, SkyDrive and CRM Online, experienced major outages on Wednesday.

5 Ways Microsoft Partners Can Block Cloud Sprawl

According to a recent report by Avanade, the nightmare of "cloud sprawl" is quickly becoming a reality for a growing number of executives. Here's how to guide your clients through the cloud-services minefield.

Outages Hit Microsoft, Amazon Cloud Datacenters After Lightning Strikes

Microsoft and Amazon both suffered brief cloud outages on Sunday when lightning struck cloud datacenters run by both companies in Dublin, Ireland.

How Microsoft Partners Are Selling Office 365

Now that it's available, partners are prepared to start offering Microsoft's biggest bet in the cloud to date.

With Office 365, Microsoft's Direct Billing Drama Continues

Microsoft created a new partner category when it launched Office 365 to fix the billing problems that vexed partners with BPOS. But there's a catch.

Dimension Data Boosts Its Cloud Cache with OpSource Buy

For Microsoft global alliance partner Dimension Data, the OpSource acquisition both takes the company to the cloud, and gives it a more multivendor presence up there.

How Microsoft Dynamics Partners Are Evolving with the Cloud

With Microsoft rolling out more of its key business applications in the cloud, the channel must prepare. But in interviews at Microsoft Convergence, partners and customers are finding the cloud is just one more reason to re-emphasize good old-fashioned services.

Former Microsoft Server & Tools Chief Muglia Joins Juniper

Bob Muglia, the former president of Microsoft's Server & Tools Business, has joined Juniper Networks as the vice president of that company's Software Solutions Division.

Microsoft Deepens Cloud Partnership with Capgemini

Microsoft and Capgemini are extending their collaboration efforts on Windows Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing platform, according to a joint announcement this week.

Microsoft 'License Mobility' Extended to Amazon Cloud

The Microsoft "license mobility with Software Assurance" (SA) program can also apply to Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon announced last week.

Former Microsoft Server and Cloud Exec Goes to EMC

The former head of Microsoft's Server and Cloud Division (SCD), Amitabh Srivastava, has joined EMC Corp. as the president of that company's Advanced Storage Division.

Microsoft BPOS Recovers from Another Outage

Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) suffered outages on Tuesday may have hampered e-mail services for North American users for about three hours.

Microsoft Adds Office 365 Assessment Capabilities to MAP 6.0

Microsoft has added cloud assessment capabilities, including the ability to assess if a computing environment is ready to migrate to Office 365, to the free Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit 6.0 (MAP 6.0), which became generally available on Monday.

Microsoft Releases System Center Operations Manager 2012 Beta

The beta of System Center Operations Manager 2012, Microsoft's application and infrastructure performance monitoring tool that supports private and public clouds, became available for download on Tuesday.