Microsoft Ignite 2024: Highlights from day 2

This week, consultants Daan, Daen, and Matthijs traveled to the United States to attend Microsoft Ignite 2024, the premier event for Microsoft’s latest innovations. Yesterday marked the kickoff at the McCormick Convention Center. 

Day 2 at Microsoft Ignite 2024 was packed with exciting sessions that showcased the latest innovations across Microsoft's ecosystem. Unlike yesterday, there was no general keynote today, so attendees dove straight into specialized sessions. Here's a breakdown of the highlights:

Unlocking the potential of Azure DevOps and GitHub

• Speaker: Daan
  Azure DevOps and GitHub are becoming more intertwined, bringing together their best features to enhance collaboration and streamline workflows. Here are some key takeaways:

• Azure DevOps continues to be a hub for agile project management with tools like Boards, Sprints, and Work Items.

• GitHub remains the premier platform for code repositories, offering advanced features like GitHub Advanced Security and GitHub Copilot.

• New Integrations: Work Items in Azure DevOps now seamlessly link to GitHub repositories, allowing developers to create GitHub branches directly from Azure DevOps.

Interestingly, Azure DevOps does not yet have its own Copilot integration. Developers will need to rely on GitHub Copilot through VS Code or GitHub's browser interface for AI-powered assistance.

SQL Server 2025: The AI-ready database platform

SQL Server 2025 promises to revolutionize database management with a host of groundbreaking features:

• AI Integration: SQL Server 2025 supports seamless integration with AI models, both in the cloud and on-premises, enabled by Azure Arc.

• Managed Identities: Goodbye to access keys and shared access signatures—SQL Server now supports managed identity authentication for streamlined security.

• SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21:

  • A 64-bit application with native Git integration.
  • Copilot in SSMS: This game-changing feature allows administrators to:
    • Generate database schemas automatically based on organizational needs.
    • Create test data to validate complex queries.
    • Ask natural language questions about the database, such as "When was the last backup?" or "What is the RPO of this database?"
  • Bonus: A dark theme for SSMS!

These features make SQL Server 2025 a powerful tool for database administrators and developers alike.

Trustworthy AI: Future trends and best practices

Microsoft's session on trustworthy AI tackled pressing issues of security, privacy, and governance in the AI landscape. Highlights included:

• Key AI Risks:

  • Harmful content and code.
  • Jailbreaks and prompt injection attacks.
  • Ungrounded outputs and errors.
  • IP infringement.
  • Manipulation and human-like behavior.

• Tools and Solutions:

  • AI Foundry, Purview, and Priva: Tools to manage AI risks, monitor usage, and ensure privacy compliance.
  • EU AI Act Preparation: Microsoft is rolling out documentation and testing tools to help organizations meet upcoming regulatory requirements.

The session ended on an inspiring note with ESA’s Hera.space asteroid deflection mission, where direct chat with spacecraft telemetry was showcased as a secure and reliable use case of AI-powered interactions. Try it out yourself at Hera.space.

Smarter endpoint management with Intune

Microsoft Intune continues to evolve, leveraging AI to enhance endpoint management and IT security. Notable upgrades include:

• Copilot Integration:

  • Investigate app elevation details and identify compromised apps before approving Endpoint Privilege Management requests.
  • Simplify KQL query creation for device analysis, helping IT admins retrieve device data without deep KQL knowledge.

• Windows Autopatch:

  • Copilot supports update management tasks like planning, troubleshooting, and analyzing deployment outcomes.
  • IT teams can address update issues proactively, ensuring smooth deployment.

These enhancements aim to reduce attack surfaces, streamline admin workflows, and optimize endpoint performance

Conclusion

Day 2 of Ignite underscored Microsoft’s commitment to combining AI capabilities with practical tools for developers, IT professionals, and administrators. From SQL Server 2025’s AI-driven features to Copilot’s expanded role in Intune, the future of Microsoft’s ecosystem looks more integrated, secure, and intelligent than ever.

Stay tuned for more updates as Ignite continues!