The New Microsoft SkyDrive

Today cloud computing it’s not that possible future way of getting things done. Cloud computing it’s nowadays something that a lot of times we use almost without noticing that. We use it by checking our e-mail, when viewing family pictures on Facebook, at work when we share a excel file on our Sharepoint and a lot more.

Maybe one of the last “features” of cloud computing that still needs a little push, specially on enterprises, it’s a cloud based operating system like Microsoft Windows Azure for example.

I think that Microsoft was not at the top line for a long time but this time they woke up on time and are now getting to the top and it’s now discussing the first place with Google.
After a huge revolution with Windows Live Services (special focus to Hotmail) they’ve launched a first version of SkyDrive, a solution that looked a lot to a previous thing called Live Mesh, and put the cloud services as an internal top priority.

This year Microsoft launched the new Microsoft SkyDrive. With Windows 8 coming soon and a lot of cloud based services directly embedded with it, this new SkyDrive it’s really the next step on a technological world without devices barriers.

I believe that this new era that’s knocking our doors it’s Bill Gate’s, and Steve Jobs, vision about the future of IT.
A future without barriers, where we can get access to information anytime and anywhere. Where the important it’s the “magic of software development”  and not the device used to get to it.

Now…Let’s finally get going to the new Microsoft SkyDrive.

SkyDrive has now passed from a concept or something that we could access by going to a website, for some kind of installed “agent” that makes really easy the access the information that we have on our “private cloud”.

The top 3 features or concepts are:

• Syncing
  The machines with the SkyDrive “agent” installed, we can get them all synced and have automatic access to the latest version of your files wherever you are, whatever device you’re using, including a PC or a MAC.
  
• File Sharing
  It’s possible to share photos or even large files with anyone and all they need it’s a browser and and internet connection.
  
• Mobile Access
  All photos and files in the SkyDrive folder are automatically available on your phone installing an app or simply using the phone’s browser.

You can fine more info about the present and future of Microsoft’s SkyDrive at:

Microsoft's SkyDrive Home

The Windows Blog - SkyDrive - designing personal cloud storage for billions of people

Technorati Tags: microsoft,skydrive,cloud computing,hotmail,storage,windows

Using Command Shell (CMD) Scripts with MDT

Although command shell it’s not much times used on MDT, that really possible and sometimes this could be useful to someone.

Thinking on this, Michael Murgolo, from “The Deployment Guys” blog wrote an article explaining what can be done with command shell scripts and how to give them the elasticity we have when using a normal command line during a task sequence or a powershell script for example.

Here’s the article, enjoy it:
The Deployment Guys - Using Command Shell Scripts with MDT

Technorati Tags: microsoft,deployment,toolkit,mdt,deployment guys,task sequence,variables,cmd,command shell

How Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) Does Application Installation

Continuing today on the basics for understating Windows 7 deployment using official Microsoft software, here’s a nice article from the guys at Xtreme Consulting where they explain how applications installation works on MDT.

The article written by Keith Garner explains the good and bads of using MSIs and how MDT translate and look to that kind of installer.

To read the full article:
How MDT does application installation

Technorati Tags: microsoft,deployment,toolkit,mdt,msi,installation,xtreme consulting

Deploying Windows 7 - Concepts

This is a little bit old post from TechNet about Microsoft Windows 7 deployment, but I believe it’s always good to remember the principal concepts about the main deployment options being that:

• Media
• Network
• Server

So take a look at this post from Microsoft’s Alan Le Marquand:
Deploying WIndows 7

Technorati Tags: microsoft,windows 7,deployment,concepts,media,network,server,alan le marquand,technet

Microsoft Touch Mouse – Unboxing by Brandon LeBlanc

Along the last years Microsoft didn’t create a lot of hardware but I’m a real fan of Microsoft Hardware Group since their first natural ergonomic keyboard launched years ago.

Last year Microsoft launched the Touch Mouse. An Windows 7 exclusive mouse that has a touch surf where you can use a combination of 3 fingers at the same time to work with.
Although this is not even near the fantastic Apple Magic Trackpad, it’s a ‘nice to have’ gadget that really can make you work faster.

Microsoft’s Brandon LeBlanc from the Windows Experience Blog received a the mouse and documented the unboxing on the blog.

So take a look at:
Unboxing the Touch Mouse & Announcing the Touch Mouse Artist Edition

Technorati Tags: microsoft,hardware,peripherals,mouse,touch,windows

Windows Deployment Services – Moving RemoteInstall to another location

For a bunch of reason, like disk space for example, you may need to move your RemoteInstall folder from one location to another.
Since Microsoft Windows 2008 R2, this task is very easy. So, just follow this steps:

• Launch a command prompt with elevated privileges
• Then, run the command: WDSUTIL /uninitialize-server
• Cut and paste your RemoteInstall to the new location (D:\ for example)
• At the command prompt again, run the command: WDSUTIL /Initialize-Server /RemInst: D:\RemoteInstall

And that’s it.You’ve moved your RemoteInstall folder to the new storage device and you can start using your WDS again.

Technorati Tags: microsoft,windows,deployment,services,wds,wdsutil,remoteinstall,storage