Microsoft Support & Discussions

This week’s roundup delivers exciting new Windows Store content, including a new Netflix original movie you can watch with the Netflix app for Windows 10, a collection of Oscar nominated films, music and more! Check it out below. App Netflix – Free Debuting exclusively on Netflix this week is Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, a new movie and a new chapter in this thrilling adventure. As duty calls again, can she keep the sword safe? And get ready for the latest season of House of Cards, premiering March 4. It’s an election year, and the stakes are higher than ever! If you don’t already have it, you can download Netflix for Windows 10 here. …

Welcome back to another edition of Weekend Reading. Our recent stories include reports from the Mobile World Congress, Bing’s new experience timed to the Academy Awards and the recent acquisition of Xamarin. This week in Barcelona a wealth of new Windows 10 devices were announced as part of Mobile World Congress, the world’s largest mobile trade show. The offerings span across device types, extending mobility of the Windows 10 experience to small screens, big screens and even devices with no screens at all – with universal apps that likewise span device types. To peruse a collection of the devices, head over to Terry Myerson’s post on the Windows Experience Blog. Also …

Attackers have always preyed on human behavior to distribute malware. Either they target persons with lower technical skills or gullible users, in the vast majority of cases, it's always our fault when we get infected with malware. In its annual Human Factor 2016 report, security firm Proofpoint detailed a few trends it noticed during the past year in terms of malware distribution across different platforms. Attackers add social media campaigns to their distribution methods "Attackers moved from technical exploits to human exploitation in 2015," said Kevin Epstein, Vice President of Threat Operations for Proofpoint. "People’s natural curiosity and gullibili…

Last November Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella highlighted the need for a new approach to enterprise security and outlined some of the investments we’re making. This new approach empowers our customers to accelerate their adoption of a protect, detect, respond security posture. Keeping our network safe, while protecting our data and our customers’ data, is paramount. As Chief Information Security Officer at Microsoft, I am constantly looking for ways to improve our security posture, through new technologies that accelerate our ability to protect, detect and respond to cyber incidents. Protecting Microsoft’s environment entails managing security for more than 1 million co…

Over the past several weeks, the Windows Server team has received a number of inquiries regarding certification and support for certain hardware platforms and questioning as to any change in policy we may have in this regard. We want to ensure there is no misunderstanding of our policies or plans for Windows Server as it relates to hardware support. The simple answer is, there is no change to our current policy. The Windows Server platform is supported on certified or logo’d hardware as listed in the Windows Server Catalog. Today, you can browse the catalog and find hardware that meets or exceeds our minimum server hardware requirements and has been successfully cer…

We are pleased to announce the public preview of Server Management tools, a set of web-based remote GUI tools that can be used to manage installations of Windows Server 2016 (now in technical preview). This is a free set of tools that allows you to manage the Windows servers in your datacenter or running in a VM in the cloud. Just log into the web-based portal in Azure using a browser from any Windows, Mac OS, or Linux PC – and begin managing your Windows servers remotely. The cloud makes remote server management so convenient. This approach is especially useful for managing headless deployment options such as Nano Server and Server Core. Currently, the tools offer the…

If you haven’t yet tried Windows Server 2016, today we hope to give you a few more reasons to try out our latest technical preview. On this week’s Microsoft Mechanics show, we feature updates to Nano Server with Jeffrey Snover, Chief Architect, Enterprise Cloud. Nano Server is the new headless deployment option for Windows Server 2016. As a deeply refactored version of Windows Server, it’s designed to give you the lightest and fastest server OS configuration with fewer patch and update events, faster restarts, better resource utilization and tighter security. To explain further, today’s show enumerates the key differences between our various server instantiations: n…

BBC TV’s Top Gear joins the popular driving and drifting game series in a thrill-packed new adventure, Top Gear: Drift Legends for Windows 10. Jump in with The Stig and hit the test track in iconic cars from favorite Top Gear episodes, then put the pedal to the metal and start drifting. Features include Xbox controller support Starring The Stig, “the Test Track”, and iconic cars from the show. Season Mode: 5 countries, 25 tracks Unlock cars, each with their own authentic oversteer physics, power, and counter-steer feel. Racers choose their ride based on speed, acceleration, and handling, and then select one of two difficulty modes. Arcade Mode is for novi…

As the role of mobile devices in people’s lives expands even further, mobile app developers have become a driving force for software innovation. At Microsoft, we are working to enable even greater developer opportunity and innovation by providing the best experiences to all developers, on any device, with powerful tools, an open platform and a global cloud. As part of this commitment I am pleased to announce today that Microsoft has signed an agreement to acquire Xamarin, a leading platform provider for mobile app development. In conjunction with Visual Studio, Xamarin provides a rich mobile development offering that enables developers to build mobile apps using C# …

Hi everyone, Today, we are releasing Build 14271 for PC to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. We’re also releasing Build 14267.1004 for mobile to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. This will be the first time we release builds for PC and mobile on the same day and at the same time. For PC, Build 14271 brings a lot of improvements and bug fixes that are based on feedback we have received from Windows Insiders. Getting feedback is an integral part of the Windows Insider Program. After each build upgrade or after certain activities, Windows will often ask for feedback. The answers to these questions is used by our engineering teams to understand how Windows Insiders fe…

If you like to explore far-out places – really far out – you’re invited to participate in Microsoft Research’s experiment of Pegasus II, slated for launch this week to the edge of space, using the Internet of Things (IoT) to achieve its mission. With the first Pegasus Mission experiment in 2015, the Microsoft Research team was able to show real-time IoT capabilities. The experiment in High Altitude Science featured Pegasus 1, a meteorological balloon that carried a payload packed with sensors, radios and video to an altitude of 100,000 feet. Pegasus II invites your participation to witness the live launch, view flight video, communicate with the spacecraft during th…

This week I’m in Barcelona, meeting with partners at Mobile World Congress, the world’s largest mobile trade show. Our more personal computing vision stretches far beyond any one device type, extending mobility of the experience to small screens, big screens, and devices with no screens at all – with universal apps that span. It’s exciting to welcome new devices to the Windows 10 family from ALCATEL, HP, Huawei, Trinity, Lenovo, Panasonic and VAIO. With new phones, 2- in-1s, and notebooks, we’re delighted to see the ecosystem continuing to embrace Windows 10. Our commitment to reinvent device categories remains strong through features like Continuum, Cortana, and Wi…

More exciting Windows 10 device news coming out of this week’s Mobile World Congress! The Panasonic Toughpad FZ-F1 tablet packs a lightweight, ergonomic design into a fantastic form-factor tailored to specific verticals and needs – helping it stand-up to anything people, or the elements, can throw at it. The Toughpad FZ-F1 model is built on Windows 10 and powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon Quad-core CPU with 2 GB RAM, 16 GB Flash storage, and a standard battery that offers up to eight hours of continuous operating time (with an optional extended battery that can extend operation up to 16 hours). This 4.7 inch connected tablet weighs in at just under 280 grams…

Today at Mobile World Congress, we were excited to see the announcement of the HUAWEI MateBook, a 2-in-1 laptop with Windows 10. The MateBook is HUAWEI’s first desktop device and is indicative of how traditional phone partners are building on their heritage of phone engineering to create truly innovative PCs. The MateBook is a wonderful addition to the PC marketplace and we’re glad to see HUAWEI bringing a full portfolio of Windows devices to the market. The MateBook was developed from the very beginning as a mobile productivity tool that seamlessly integrates a mobile lifestyle, a high efficiency work environment, and entertainment on the go, meeting the mo…

With Mobile World Congress well underway, we’re excited to showcase the newest Windows 10 devices from Lenovo, the new YOGA 710 and 510 PCs, and the ideapad MIIX 310 2-in-1 detachable tablet. Lenovo is a great example of a company embracing our more personal computing vision, with these new devices combining mobility with traditional computing. We believe the future of computing will deliver a mobility of experience, where experiences move easily across devices, and it’s exciting to see these Lenovo devices further this transition. “Technology advancements inspire us to live more vibrant and active lifestyles. Today people get connected wherever and whenever they…

Windows 10 was inspired by a vision that computing could be more personal and that your computing experience should be familiar, yet tailored, to the device you are using. With Windows 10, your experiences can move with you across any device, from traditional devices (like PCs, tablets, or phones), to next-gen computing devices that are new or newly imagined (HoloLens, IoT and beyond). We then invested in our Universal Windows Platform (UWP) to enable developers to build apps that move across devices, automatically adapting to the different device types and screen sizes. So regardless of whether you are using a 5” phone, a 13” notebook, or 24” in All-in-One, the expe…

At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week our partners are unveiling a number of new Windows 10 devices. I look forward to sharing more details on these incredible new devices here on the Windows Blog. ALCATEL announced their new ALCATEL PLUS 10, a beautiful 10 inch 2-in-1 device powered by Windows 10. This new device joins their Windows 10 phone, the Fierce XL. We’re excited about ALCATEL’s contributions to the Windows ecosystem and believe the PLUS 10 is an excellent portable 2-in-1. Click to view slideshow. “PLUS 10 is ALCATEL’s first 2-in-1 device with Windows 10, and we’re very proud of all the functionality we’ve built into it,” said Vittorio Di Maur…

This week at Microsoft saw some big Windows 10 news, more ways to connect with Skype and powerful new features for Microsoft Translator apps. Pretty busy for a week that began with a holiday. The U.S. Department of Defense, one of the largest enterprises anywhere, plans to deploy 4 million seats of Windows 10 within a year, an upgrade unprecedented in speed for a customer of that size and complexity, Microsoft announced this week. The move will lower the Pentagon’s IT costs and improve its cybersecurity and IT operating environment. The upgrade covers all combatant commands, services agencies and field activities. “It is exciting to see adoption of Windows 10 by…

Hi everyone, Today, we are releasing Windows 10 Mobile Insider Preview Build 14267 to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. While we have been releasing preview builds for PC from our development branch for a while now, this is our first new preview build for Windows 10 Mobile from our Development Branch this year. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, initially we’ll make new builds from our Development Branch available only to devices that shipped with Windows 10 Mobile. Currently this includes the Lumia 950, 950 XL, 550, and Xiaomi Mi4. We plan to expand from there as we release Windows 10 Mobile to other devices. Just to quickly recap the changes we’ve made to ring…

Great new content was added to the Windows Store this week, from popular games and a new movie to free apps, check out our roundup below to see what’s new. Apps AMC – Free February is a big month of top hits for AMC fans, with both the mid-season premiere of The Walking Dead and the season 2 premiere of Better Call Saul. The latest AMC app for Windows 10, delivers both episodes along with full episodes of all AMC original series, with video extras, too. Plumbago, a Microsoft Garage Project – Free Plumbago, a new app for Windows 10 tablets was released through the Microsoft Garage today. It is a digital notebook with technology that smooths out handw…

Race fans, rejoice! Just in time for the 58th running of the Daytona 500, the NASCAR app for Windows 10 PCs and tablets that was announced last fall is getting an update with new content for the season. The NASCAR app for Windows 10 is also now available to download on your Windows phones. Now you’ll be able to catch all the action from this weekend’s events and throughout the season like listening in with live driver audio, even purchasing tickets to events across all of your Windows 10 devices. The official app of NASCAR is the mobile destination for race fans, delivering breaking news, real-time video, live race leaderboards and video highlights straight to you.…

At Microsoft, we believe in strong partnerships to create opportunity across the ecosystem. Today, we’re pleased to join other industry leaders to create the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), which is committed to furthering industry standards for the Internet of Things. Along with founding members Cisco, Electrolux, General Electric, Intel, Qualcomm, Samsung and others, we are proud to be part of the world’s largest open IoT standard group. Together, our goal is to accelerate industry innovation for all of our customers, ultimately benefiting billions of people around the world. The OCF will create a set of open specifications and protocols to enable devices from…

Hi everyone, Today, we are releasing Build 14267 to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring. Just to quickly recap the changes we’ve made to rings for Insiders in 2016: We introduced the new Release Preview ring last week which is for Windows Insiders who want to stay on the Current Branch (currently builds based off of Build 10586), but continue to receive early access to updates, application updates, and driver updates. This is a great option for people who want to get updates early but not go all the way to installing full preview builds. Because the Release Preview ring offers updates to the Current Branch, it is only visible to devices on the Current Branch (Buil…