M-Files has announced an expanded partnership with Microsoft, integrating its AI-powered document management system directly into the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. Using Microsoft's SharePoint Embedded API, M-Files will store content natively within Microsoft 365, enabling users to access and manage documents through familiar interfaces like Teams, Outlook and Office applications.
The integration, announced Tuesday, aims to address common challenges in enterprise content management, such as fragmented information governance and siloed systems. By combining M-Files' metadata-driven automation with Microsoft's collaboration tools and AI capabilities, including Microsoft 365 Copilot and M-Files' own Aino, organizations can enhance productivity and reduce administrative overhead.
The goal is to offer a unified solution that enhances document management, streamlines workflows and leverages AI to provide more accurate and efficient content handling. The integration aligns with broader industry trends emphasizing AI-driven document management solutions. M-Files' recognition in Gartner's 2025 Magic Quadrant for Document Management underscores its growing influence in the sector.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on July 01, 20250 comments
Guardz has introduced its Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) solution, designed to help MSPs detect and mitigate identity-based cyber threats.
The ITDR tool leverages AI and behavioral analytics to identify anomalies in user behavior, such as unusual login patterns or privilege escalations, and automates responses like account suspension to prevent potential breaches.
This launch comes as identity-based attacks become increasingly prevalent. According to IBM's X-Force Threat Intelligence Index, such attacks accounted for 30 percent of total intrusions in 2024. Traditional security measures often fail to detect these threats, as attackers use legitimate credentials to access systems. The introduction of ITDR reflects a broader industry shift toward identity-focused security frameworks, emphasizing the need for real-time monitoring and automated response mechanisms to protect against sophisticated cyber threats.
Guardz's ITDR is integrated into its existing platform and is available across all service plans, with enhanced features for Ultimate Plan subscribers, including 24/7 monitoring by the Guardz Security Operations Center.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on July 01, 20250 comments
Longtime Microsoft partner Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has expanded its collaboration with Redmond to develop new AI and cloud solutions, with the goal of helping enterprises modernize their legacy systems.
Announced last week, this new multiyear partnership will see TCS integrate Microsoft technologies (namely Azure AI Foundry, Microsoft Fabric, Power Platform and Copilot Studio) into its existing products (including TCS Cloud Exponence, Cloud Counsel, ignio for AIOps, Cloud Migration Factory, and Cloud Governance and Optimization Platform).
"This next phase of our collaboration with Microsoft spotlights the enduring role that AI and Cloud continue to play in driving business growth and transformation," said TCS vice president Krishna Mohan in a prepared statement.
The idea is to leverage AI tools and cloud scalability to overcome challenges faced by large enterprises during their digital transformation efforts, such as high costs, limited technical expertise and outdated systems.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 27, 20250 comments
AvePoint this month introduced new capabilities to its Elements Platform, targeting managed service providers (MSPs) looking to improve their SMB security offerings. The updates include marketplace integration for license management, risk user insights for enhanced security monitoring, and tools for license and storage optimization.
"These new features demonstrate the evolution of AvePoint Elements to empower MSPs to navigate challenges with confidence and create sustainable competitive advantage in today's rapidly changing business landscape," said Scott Sacket, AvePoint's senior vice president of partner strategy, in a prepared statement.
To that end, the marketplace integration allows MSPs to manage client licenses directly within the Elements dashboard, reducing administrative overhead and minimizing billing errors. The risk user insight feature continuously monitors user activities across various security dimensions, enabling MSPs to proactively detect potential threats. License optimization tools help identify unused or inactive licenses, allowing for cost recovery and better resource allocation. And finally, storage optimization features assist in managing large volumes of data, ensuring compliance and freeing up technical resources.
These enhancements come as MSPs face increasing pressure to provide robust security measures while maintaining operational efficiency. In a study cited by AvePoint in its announcement, nearly a third of small and midsized businesses experience cyberattacks, and 81 percent believe AI increases the need for additional security controls.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 26, 20250 comments
Security firm KnowBe4 announced a partnership with Microsoft this month designed to enhance email security, a persistent and frequently expensive weak spot for enterprises.
The integration, which will become generally available "soon," connects KnowBe4's Defend platform with Microsoft Defender for Office 365. The idea is to complement Microsoft's native quarantine capabilities with KnowBe4's inbound threat detection features, which the company says are powered by agentic AI.
"The technical implementation of this integration delivers immediate value to customers through seamless workflow integration," KnowBe4 said in a blog post. "When Defend identifies a message as potentially malicious, the system can now automatically push that message into Microsoft's quarantine using their established policies and procedures."
This collaboration comes as phishing attacks continue to rise; Microsoft highlighted phishing as a top threat in its 2024 Digital Defense Report, costing U.S. businesses an estimated $3.5 billion that year. By linking training tools with real-time security data, KnowBe4 and Microsoft aim to close gaps between user awareness and active defense.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 25, 20250 comments
Microsoft and careers firm Upwork announced a partnership this month to help businesses recruit AI experts to build and deploy agents using Microsoft Power Platform.
The initiative enables Upwork's network of freelancers to assist organizations in creating custom AI solutions by tapping into Microsoft's low-code solution. According to Microsoft, the goal is to make it easier for companies to implement agent-based experiences that automate workflows and customer interactions.
Upwork will also launch a dedicated Microsoft Power Platform experts listing. The move aligns with broader trends as enterprises look to low-code and no-code tools to address IT skills shortages while advancing digital transformation strategies.
The partnership comes as demand for generative AI expertise outpaces supply. A recent report from Gartner projected that by 2026, 80 percent of enterprises will have used generative AI APIs or models in production environments. By tapping freelance talent, Microsoft and Upwork aim to help companies accelerate AI adoption without significantly expanding internal development teams.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 24, 20250 comments
DNA Payments, which specializes in point-of-sale (POS) systems, is collaborating with MWC Partners to provide retail customers with a unified payment platform based on Microsoft Dynamics 365.
Under the partnership, announced this week, MWC will integrate DNA Payments' gateway with Dynamics 365. This integration is designed to help retailers process in-store, online and mobile payments through Dynamics 365 without relying on separate payment solutions.
"MWC's vast experience in integrating payment solutions with Microsoft Dynamics 365, made them the obvious partner of choice for this key Retail POS integration," said Craig Borrett, head of group product at DNA Payments, in a prepared statement. "Their deep technical expertise ensured a quality integration was delivered with speed and efficiency."
Microsoft has been actively enhancing Dynamics 365 Commerce to cater to midmarket retailers and hospitality businesses. Part of Microsoft's 2025 roadmap for the CRM product includes updates aimed at improving in-store experiences with mobile-first POS systems and modern payment methods.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 24, 20250 comments
Cayosoft, which specializes in Microsoft security and management solutions, this month announced it has inked a multiyear contract with the Internal Revenue Service to provide identity management solutions for the agency's Microsoft environments.
Under the agreement, Cayosoft's software will facilitate identity automation, security and compliance across the IRS for Active Directory, Entra ID and Microsoft 365. The overarching goal of the deal is to modernize legacy IRS systems, which are costly to manage, update and secure. Previously, the IRS worked with an unnamed "legacy vendor" to manage its Microsoft identity products, though it eventually found those tools to be ill-suited to an increasingly cloud-based environment.
"Modernizing infrastructure is a key initiative for the federal government, and we're honored that Cayosoft was selected as a trusted technology partner to support that mission," said Cayosoft CEO Bob Bobel in a prepared statement. "This implementation delivers stronger security, greater efficiency, and the resiliency needed to sustain operations during disruptions."
The IRS contract highlights the increasing focus among federal agencies on bolstering identity governance, as cybersecurity threats targeting government infrastructure continue to rise. Cayosoft's win also comes amid broader federal modernization efforts, including zero trust adoption initiatives outlined last fall by the Office of Management and Budget (PDF).
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 20, 20250 comments
Island.io, which bills itself as the maker of a secure, enterprise-grade browser, has announced a new integration with Ping Identity to enable verified device access.
The partnership connects Island's browser product with Ping's identity management platform to provide continuous device posture verification for Web applications. According to Island's announcement, this approach helps organizations apply conditional access policies based on device trust without relying on traditional endpoint management tools. The idea is to give organizations another way to address challenges around securing applications accessed via unmanaged or bring-your-own devices.
Both Island and Ping are deeply entrenched in the enterprise IT channel. Ping frequently collaborates with system integrators and MSPs to deliver zero-trust architectures. Meanwhile, Island focuses on partnering with enterprise security vendors and service providers to embed its secure browser into existing security ecosystems, including environments where Microsoft technologies are prevalent.
This collaboration between the two companies reflects a growing trend of combining browser security and identity tools to protect hybrid and remote work environments (see, for example, Google Chrome Enterprise's enhanced security controls in collaboration with Menlo Security).
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 18, 20250 comments
Sasken Technologies has partnered with Microsoft to integrate its engineering services with the Microsoft Device Ecosystem Platform (MDEP), an Android-based platform designed to enhance security and manageability in enterprise devices.
This collaboration, announced last week, follows Sasken's acquisition of Borqs Technologies' Connected Devices business, bolstering its capabilities in embedded systems and IoT solutions.
Through this alliance, Sasken will offer comprehensive product development services -- including hardware design, platform porting, application development and lifecycle support -- on MDEP. The goal is to assist OEMs and ODMs in accelerating the development of secure, collaboration-focused devices.
Microsoft's MDEP provides a standardized Android environment, addressing issues like fragmentation and inconsistent security updates that have historically challenged device manufacturers. MDEP has seen growing adoption among manufacturers such as Jabra, Yealink and Lenovo, which are leveraging the platform to deliver consistent and secure user experiences across their device portfolios.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 16, 20250 comments
A new cybersecurity company focused on securing SMB environments for MSPs is now out of stealth mode.
Launched earlier this month, CyberSentriq aims to provide security services to MSPs with SMB and midmarket customers. The startup, based in London, is backed by private equity firm Bregal Milestone and formed from the earlier merger of security firms TitanHQ and Redstor, which together counted over 3,000 MSPs as customers, reaching 150,000 SMBs globally.
CyberSentriq's offerings include cloud-based backup and recovery, intelligent threat detection, Web and e-mail security (including mitigations for ransomware, malware and phishing attacks), archiving and encryption, and security training.
"MSPs safeguarding the critical SMB economy are underserved and have been let down by vendors out of touch with their day-to-day needs," said James Griffin, CEO of the new company, in a statement. He added,
"[W]e're giving MSPs exactly what they need -- comprehensive protection without compromising quality, partnership, or performance."
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 13, 20250 comments
In a deal between two channel powerhouses, SoftwareOne said Tuesday it expects to complete its acquisition of Norwegian IT consultancy Crayon on July 2, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals.
Per the SoftwareOne announcement, "Each shareholder having accepted the offer will receive NOK 69 in cash [about $6.82 USD] and 0.8233 (rounded down) newly issued shares in SoftwareOne per Crayon share."Â
The combined entity is expected to have approximately 13,000 employees and a presence in over 70 countries. The merged firm will be led by co-CEOs Raphael Erb, a SoftwareOne veteran of 26 years, and Melissa Mullholland, current Crayon CEO and previously a cloud executive at Microsoft.
The merger follows a string of strategic partnerships and acquisitions in the IT services space, as cloud management becomes more complex and competitive. According to Gartner, global spending on public cloud services is projected to exceed $720 billion by the end of this year, making integrated advisory services increasingly vital.
SoftwareOne said it plans to continue operating both brands during a transition period while streamlining overlapping business functions.
The "RCP Channel Briefing" blog is researched, fact-checked, edited and updated by the editors of RCPmag.com, with writing assistance from AI.
Posted by Redmond Channel Partner magazine staff on June 11, 20250 comments