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Today’s topics include LinkedIn open-sourcing two incident-escalation tools; Microsoft putting Windows PC deployments on AutoPilot; the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update including built-in ransomware protection; and Google touting the value of its cloud services for analyzing connected car data.
Some companies don’t always get the public credit they deserve for contributing to the open-source community software and tools that can enable other developers to move their own projects along more quickly and efficiently. One such company is LinkedIn.
However, the Mountain View, Calif.-based social network is now stepping up, announcing June 29 that it has open-sourced two incident-escalation tools, called Iris and Oncall.
LinkedIn said it has seen huge internal adoption of these tools, even from non-technical teams, such as sales. Both are designed for easy adoption by other organizations and are useful for companies ranging in size from small startups to large enterprises.
Microsoft wants to make the often-laborious task of fully configuring and deploying Windows PCs a thing of the past for businesses.
To that end, the Redmond, Wash., software giant is rolling out a new set of features called Windows AutoPilot, currently present in Windows 10 Creators Update, that automates many of the tasks required to set up a Windows PC for employee use.
Backed by Microsoft’s cloud, Windows AutoPilot enables IT departments to regain the time lost to the countless deployment tools and settings screens that administrators toil with when configuring a PC for a new employee or upgrading an existing worker’s system.
In light of recent ransomware outbreaks, concerned IT executives may welcome Microsoft’s decision to provide an early look at some of the advanced security features included in the upcoming Windows 10 Fall Creators update.
Build 16232 of Windows 10 is currently available to members of the Windows Insider early-access program who are enrolled in the Fast ring. Among the many new features is a new setting in the built-in Windows Defender anti-malware feature that protects a user’s data files from ransomware.
In May, the WannaCry ransomware attack spread like wildfire, shutting down hospitals in the UK and encrypting files at Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica. Last week, European businesses and government agencies fell victim to a widespread attack by the Petya strain of ransomware.
Google claims its cloud computing technologies provide an ideal platform for collecting and analyzing data from connected cars for all kinds of new use cases.
In a just released solution guide, the company described how its cloud services can be harnessed to power new automotive applications such as usage-based insurance, predictive maintenance and new in-vehicle experiences using data collected from connected vehicles.
Modern vehicles can generate up to 560 GB of data per day, Google solution architect Charles Baer said a blog last week. While this data can be incredibly useful, there are multiple challenges that need to be overcome first, he noted, adding that Google Cloud Platform services have the capabilities to address these hurdles.