How Agic Technology deployed Supply Chain Management in 2 weeks to help Invitalia fight the pandemic

How Agic Technology deployed Supply Chain Management in 2 weeks to help Invitalia fight the pandemic

by | Jan 6, 2021 | Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365, Technology

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.

Setting up or overhauling a supply chain operation has traditionally been an arduous, complex process. Now, by deploying modern, intelligent cloud applications like Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, organizations are demonstrating just how rapidly one can transform operations, especially when guided by the right experts.

Invitalia, the Italian national agency for economic development, provided a great example of just how rapidly an organization can ramp up a supply network, especially when faced with a monumental, global crisis that won’t wait for tedious deployment or onboarding of new technologies and processes.

When the COVID-19 pandemic spread to Italy in early 2020, the country’s prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, contacted Invitalia CEO Domenico Arcuri and requested that the organization take over emergency responsibility for the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE).

“The situation in Italy was critical at the time, and the international market for PPE was complicated, with many buyers all chasing a limited supply of equipment.”Fabrizio Bellezza, Chief Information Officer, Invitalia

Invitalia took on managing the acquisition and distribution of essential PPE, medicines, medical devices, and other supplies from a variety of international sources. The agency needed a new logistics platform so that it could simplify the complex process of purchasing and distributing thousands of units of PPE from sellers in other countries.

“Because demand for PPE around the world was so high, and supply was limited, it was very often a first-come, first-served situation, so it was essential that we react as fast as possible,” Bellezza said.

Outrunning the pandemic

To help streamline management of PPE and other COVID-19 supplies, Invitalia worked with Microsoft Services and Agic Technology, a Microsoft Gold Partner, to get the new system up and running.

“The pandemic was running fast,” said Giuseppe La Mantia, partner at Agic. “Every day, Invitalia had new requirements to manage. They were really overloaded, and the solution needed to be fast and simple, but complete. To reach the objectives on time, we had to outrun the pandemic.”

Invitalia had already established a productive relationship with Microsoft that included moving all of the agency’s datacenter IT resources to Microsoft Azure, so its leadership felt comfortable bringing in more Microsoft technology at such a crucial time. Agic helped Invitalia deploy Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, which includes planning, production, inventory, and transportation features that organizations can use to build agile, resilient supply chains and maximize operational efficiencies.

Over a period of two intense weeks, the Agic and Invitalia teams worked together to install the solution. “We worked night and day, seven days a week,” La Mantia said. “In a very short time, we performed all the steps of a project plan, from analysis to deployment. We worked together to make a solution design that could be representative of COVID task force needs. Each deliverable was shared with the IT project team and then the business team to be sure they would deliver the expected results. After solution design, we made the necessary setup and simple customizations, showing defined mockups to share the intermediate results. Then we made adjustments and moved forward toward the final goals. We tested the solution and trained the users, and then we arranged everything to deploy the solution.”

Without the need to retool or replace multiple systems, Invitalia was able to maintain their existing investment while deploying SCM rapidly to meet urgent supply chain needs. In addition, Agic Technology and Invitalia streamlined the deployment process and reduced complexity, dramatically accelerating the time to value.

Invitalia expects to expand its use of Dynamics 365 into other areas of public administration. “It connects easily with other Microsoft products, giving us the opportunity to create end-to-end solutions for enterprise resource planning,” says Bellezza.

Once it was ready, the Invitalia team launched Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management with hundreds of suppliers on file. With it, the team could learn right away when any of the suppliers had products available, and Invitalia could respond appropriately. The solution also helped the Invitalia streamline the distribution of PPE from shipping locations to hospitals around the country, so they were able to get the equipment to the people who needed it most.

Better prepared for upcoming phases

Several months later, as Invitalia prepares for a new phase of the pandemic, Agic continues to offer ongoing support, helping the agency maintain the solution and providing any updates they need to comply with new government regulations.

“Now, Invitalia is able to manage worldwide suppliers, check and report about products, quantities and prices, and respect regulations from the Italian government and internal approval processes, to track in real time where materials are,” La Mantia said.

With Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management, Invitalia can now rely on a centralized solution that helps the agency assess medical needs across the country and then quickly provision and distribute critical medical equipment. The agency can process hundreds of orders a day and provide more than one thousand hospitals with the supplies they need to contain the spread of COVID-19 and help save the lives of affected individuals.

Overcoming personal limits to achieve a goal

Bellezza believes that the PPE project brought out the best in everyone involved.

“Agic and Microsoft really put forth their best resources to help us, and we very much valued their deep knowledge and expertise. We also learned a lot about our own capabilities because a critical moment like this teaches you a lot about yourself, and you discover strengths that you never knew you had.”Fabrizio Bellezza, Chief Information Officer, Invitalia

La Mantia agreed. “Each team member worked very hard, guided by the awareness of making a contribution to the most important cause for Italy in that moment,” La Mantia said. “As a company and team, we learned that we can reach very challenging goals, working together with partner and customers in the same direction. We also learned that if you are guided from a very strong motivation you can overcome personal limits and aim straight for the goal.”

Learn more

Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management is agile enough to help Invitalia address their high-stakes challenges without overhauling their entire supply chain operation. It can help you too.

Learn how your customers can use Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management to rapidly streamline their processes and get quicker time to market while utilizing their current investment.

The post How Agic Technology deployed Supply Chain Management in 2 weeks to help Invitalia fight the pandemic appeared first on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Blog.

Brought to you by Dr. Ware, Microsoft Office 365 Silver Partner, Charleston SC.

Level up with Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate

Level up with Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate

by | Jan 6, 2021 | Technology

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.

What’s one of the hottest roles in today’s fast-paced IT environment? If you guessed data scientist, you’d be right. In great demand, these professionals are empowered by AI, machine learning, and data science. A data scientist helps their organization visualize and deliver innovation, improve customer experience, grow the company’s revenue, and stay ahead of the competition. Specifically, a data scientist promotes a data-driven culture using rigorous scientific methodology and algorithms to discover and resolve business problems and to pursue opportunities to help achieve their organization’s goals. If this describes you, your skill set, and your passion for data, we have just the certification for you.


 


The Azure Data Scientist Associate certification validates that you have subject matter expertise implementing and running machine learning workloads on Microsoft Azure. You earn the certification by passing Exam DP-100: Designing and Implementing a Data Science Solution on Azure.


 


Your responsibilities include planning and creating a suitable working environment for data science workloads on Azure, and you run data experiments and train predictive models. In addition, you manage, optimize, and deploy machine learning models into production.


 


What kind of knowledge and experience should you have?


As a candidate for this certification, you should have knowledge and experience in data science and using Azure Machine Learning.


 


How can you get ready?


To help you plan your journey, check out our infographic, The journey to Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate. You can also find it in the resources section on the certification and exam pages, which contains other valuable help for Azure data scientists.


 


The journey to Azure Data Scientist Associate.png


 


To map out your journey, follow the sequence in the infographic. First, decide whether this is the right certification for you.


 


Next, to understand what you’ll be measured on when taking Exam DP-100, review the skills outline guide on the exam page.


 


Sign up for training that fits your learning style and experience:



Then take a trial run with the Microsoft Official Practice Test for DP-100: Designing and Implementing a Data Science Solution on Azure. All objectives of the exam are covered in depth, so you’ll find what you need to be ready for any question.


 


Complement your training with additional resources, like Microsoft Docs.


 


After you pass the exam and earn your certification, check out the many other training and certification opportunities. Want to add to your skill set? Explore the AI Business School.


 


Note: Remember that Microsoft Certifications assess how well you apply what you know to solve real business challenges. Our training resources are useful for reinforcing your knowledge, but you’ll always need experience in the role and with the platform.


 


It’s time to level up!


Your Microsoft Certification can help validate that you have the skills to stay ahead with today’s technology. It can also help empower you with a boost in confidence and job satisfaction—and maybe even a salary increase. Want to know more? In our blog post, Need another reason to earn a Microsoft Certification?, we offer 10 good reasons to earn your certification.


 


Ready to prove your experience and skills in this in-demand role? Take the exam, earn your Azure Data Scientist Associate Certification, and roll up your sleeves to help your organization navigate the fast pace of IT transformation. As a data scientist, you’ll bring the agility, resilience, and actionable insight of AI and Azure Machine Learning to deliver insights, innovation, and results.


 


Related announcements


Understanding Microsoft Azure certifications


Finding the right Microsoft Azure certification for you


Master the basics of Microsoft Azure—cloud, data, and AI

Azure Marketplace new offers – Volume 106

Azure Marketplace new offers – Volume 106

by | Jan 6, 2021 | Technology

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.











We continue to expand the Azure Marketplace ecosystem. For this volume, 117 new offers successfully met the onboarding criteria and went live. See details of the new offers below:































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Applications
Alevate RTP.png

Alevate RTP: Based on Microsoft Azure, Serrala’s Alevate RTP (request-to-pay) tool connects to any source system to generate payment requests and delivers them via the customer’s online payment method of choice.
AlphaVAT from Tax Systems.png

AlphaVAT from Tax Systems: This cloud-based compliance engine by Tax Systems will transform your VAT return process. With best-practice workflows built into AlphaVAT, customers benefit from improved accuracy and shorter submission times.
Alstom Mastria - Digital Mobility.png

Alstom Mastria – Digital Mobility: Enabling mobility as a service (MaaS), Mastria by Alstom is a mobility platform for transport authorities and operators. It helps optimize traffic, reduce commuting time, and increase transportation capacity.
Appen Data Annotation Platform.png

Appen Data Annotation Platform: Providing faster data annotation at scale, the Appen platform combines human intelligence with machine learning technology to annotate all sorts of raw data, including text, video, images, and audio.
ARMIS.png

ARMIS: ARMIS is an AI-powered SaaS platform that transforms print circulars into online ads for brick-and-mortar retailers to increase online and offline sales. Create store-specific ads in a few clicks and monitor the results.
Asianux Server7 SP4.png

Asianux Server7 SP4: Developed by Cybertrust Japan, this enterprise-focused Linux distribution provides high-quality technical support and full compatibility with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. This application is available only in Japanese.
bGrid Smart Buildings.png

bGrid Smart Buildings: bGrid is a smart building solution that uses the Internet of Things (IoT) to communicate and connect with everything in your building while providing valuable data insights.
BIGDAT@Viewer.png

BIGDAT@Viewer: Available only in Japanese, this application allows users without advanced knowledge in statistical or multivariate analysis to visualize and analyze big data through an intuitive user interface.
Blue.GDPR.png

Blue.GDPR: Securely anonymize personal data from documents, images, medical data, videos, and speech in just a few seconds. Make your data compliant with any industry-specific regulations, including GDPR, BDSG, CCPA, HIPAA, and CSL.
bounce2021offer.png

bounce2021offer: This is a digital platform designed specifically for schools to help them measure and continually monitor the well-being, behaviors, health, and perceptions of the school community.
Bunnyshell DevOps Platform.png

Bunnyshell DevOps Platform: Manage your Microsoft Azure virtual machines (VMs) using Bunnyshell, a managed cloud platform that automates all manual and repetitive tasks required for provisioning, deploying, and maintaining software stacks.
Cerillion Enterprise BSS-OSS.png

Cerillion Enterprise BSS/OSS: The Cerillion Enterprise BSS/OSS (business support system and operations support system) suite is a pre-integrated CRM and billing solution for fixed, mobile, cable, and multi-service communications providers worldwide.
CIS SUSE Linux 15 Benchmark L1.png

CIS SUSE Linux 15 Benchmark L1: This pre-configured image from the Center for Internet Security provides CIS SUSE Linux 15 Benchmark L1. The benchmark was developed to build, deploy, assess, or secure solutions that incorporate CIS SUSE Linux 15.
CLAPS Security.png

CLAPS Security: A software as a service solution by Midway Technologies on Microsoft Azure, CLAPS helps manage user security privileges and compliance requirements for your corporate endpoints and servers worldwide.
Closed Eyes Detection API.png

Closed Eyes Detection API: SnoozeDet is a closed-eyes-detection API meant for IT developers who are creating apps to detect snoozing car drivers, plane pilots, navigators, and others who may fall asleep on the job.
Cloudified Mediaroom.png

Cloudified Mediaroom: Mediaroom is an internet protocol television (IPTV) by MK Systems USA, known for operational excellence and large-scale multicast deployments. Cloudified Mediaroom is a hybrid cloud solution for media room operators.
COLIN.png

COLIN: Developed by Intelogy, COLIN is an easy-to-use media management tool for government and commercial organizations that enables press teams to trace all incoming and outgoing communications both to media outlets and to the public.
CraftTalk Messaging Contact Center with AI.png

CraftTalk. Messaging Contact Center with AI: CraftTalk is an omnichannel contact center powered by a team of AI and human agents to provide quick and easy customer service via chat. CraftTalk enables full automation of up to 70 percent of requests in just two to three months.
CrystalBridge – Automated Carve-out.png

CrystalBridge – Automated Carve-out: When parts of a company are divested and sold, data from different systems must be separated and transferred to a new system. CrystalBridge by the SNP Group helps execute your carve-out quickly and precisely.
CrystalBridge – Move Scenario Module.png

CrystalBridge – Move Scenario Module: Moving SAP to the cloud can be challenging. CrystalBridge by the SNP Group delivers reliable planning and transparency, visualizing the SAP landscape, creating optimal roadmaps, and simulating the effects of planned changes.
CyberPanel.png

CyberPanel: This CyberPanel image provides a one-click installer to automatically install OpenLiteSpeed, LSCache, WordPress, PrestaShop, or Joomla. CyberPanel is a next-generation hosting control panel with a friendly user interface.
De-Identification Engine.png

De-Identification Engine: Transform sensitive and personally identifiable information (PII) into an analytics-ready dataset. Ensure privacy objectives while supporting open data initiatives for data within an organization, as well as externally.
DesktopReady - The Modern Desktop as a Service.png

DesktopReady – The Modern Desktop as a Service: This is a comprehensive desktop as a service (DaaS) solution designed by Anunta for small and midsize businesses seeking fully managed desktops that are easy to deploy, secure, and cost efficient.
EM.Connect - Retail.png

EM.Connect – Retail: This centralized facilities management solution helps run your retail locations centrally, improve air quality, and reduce costs. It combines the benefits of next-generation IoT devices, secure cloud architecture, and building automation.
Emergency Vehicles Detection API.png

Emergency Vehicles Detection API: Powered by artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure, EmergDet is an API that detects and localizes the lit beacons of emergency vehicles (police, ambulances, firefighters) in photos. 
Enghouse Voxtron Communication Center.png

Enghouse Voxtron Communication Center: Enghouse Voxtron Communication Center offers advanced contact center features integrated with Microsoft Teams, including self-service, surveys, integrations with CRM, callbacks, outbound campaigns, and quality management.
Ensur.png

Ensur: Built by Provoke, Ensur empowers organizations to aggregate essential alerts and notifications from their Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 solutions, allowing customers to monitor their crucial platforms 24/7.
EverSQL - Your Database Just Faster.png

EverSQL: Your Database, Just Faster: Start optimizing your SQL queries online for free. EverSQL focuses on optimizing your experience with MySQL, PostgreSQL, Aurora for MySQL, MariaDB, and Percona Server.
Face Blur API.png

Face Blur API: FaceBlurest detects and localizes human faces on a still photo and blurs them with confidence scores and timestamps. It is recommended for people-anonymizer apps, virtual tours, and more.
FairWarning User Monitoring for Office 365.png

FairWarning User Monitoring for Office 365: Combining machine learning and AI with best practices and managed services, FairWarning’s platform helps healthcare and enterprise organizations protect sensitive data, prevent insider threats, and comply with regulations.
FreeBSD 12.2.png

FreeBSD 12.2: Advanced networking, security, storage, and monitoring features have made FreeBSD the platform of choice for managing busy websites and pervasive embedded networking and storage devices.
GeoCloud HPC.png

GeoCloud HPC: GeoCloud is a reservoir simulation solution that provides access to unlimited computing power to improve oil recovery. The app is developed by Cegal, a global digitalization partner for oil and gas, renewables, and ocean industries.
GeoData For Business.png

GeoData For Business: GeoData for Business helps analyze the geographical areas of Mexico, providing demographic data including occupations, average monthly income, and socioeconomic levels. This application is available only in Spanish.
High-Five.png

High-Five: This is a smart city Internet of Things solution to encourage children to walk or bike to school. Kids get an armband, and they can scan it at strategic places around the school. This application is available only in Dutch.
Hrvey.png

Hrvey: Integrating with Microsoft 365, Hrvey provides a hassle-free way to track vacation and sick days for all your employees with an automatically updated calendar in Outlook. Try the free starter plan.
HYPR.png

HYPR: A passwordless cloud platform, HYPR unites your security program with corporate initiatives to drive business growth. Eliminate passwords and accelerate adoption of multifactor security across all channels.
ITG MeasureSoft.png

ITG MeasureSoft: Organizations spend a lot of time trying to predict future cloud consumption. MeasureSoft by ITG provides all the information about your Microsoft Azure consumption in one place. This application is available only in Spanish.
IVIX Platform.png

IVIX platform: IVIX provides tax authorities technologies to improve tax collection and combat the shadow economy. By analyzing public data sources, IVIX can focus tax authorities’ resources on the most promising cases.
JKIT Smart Factory (MVP1).png

JKIT Smart Factory (MVP1): JKIT Smart Factory is an IoT-enabled asset and environment monitoring platform to give live updates on a wide spectrum of measurements and environments, including factory spaces or production areas.
Kurvv ML.png

Kurvv ML: Targeting the manufacturing, logistics, plant, and capital equipment industries, Kurvv’s data science as a service enables business decision-makers to build machine learning models.
Legal documents lifecycle management.png

Legal documents lifecycle management: Designed by lawyers for lawyers, the ROKH Platform manages the entire lifecycle of legal documents, including drafting, negotiation, governance, signing, and archiving.
License Plate Blur API.png

License Plate Blur API: PlateBlurer detects and localizes vehicle license plate numbers in a photo and blurs them with confidence scores and timestamps. It is recommended for vehicle anonymizer apps, virtual tours, and more.
lims eusoft.Lab 10.png

lims eusoft.Lab 10: Available in English and Italian, this laboratory management SaaS application by Eusoft enables data analysis, improves laboratory performance, and supports business growth.
Logico Cloud.png

Logico Cloud: Available only in Spanish, this app by Alto Control centralizes all information needed to manage your products, including price lists, trading conditions, discount policies, stock management, logistics, finance, and customers.
mConnect.png

mConnect: The Moodle Connect App by Skooler brings the rich learning management functionality of Moodle, a leading global open-source learning management system, into Microsoft Teams for a one-stop teaching and learning experience.
Mugato SaaS.png

Mugato SaaS: Mugato provides an overview of your entire IT infrastructure and extensive insights for your digital transformation projects. Prepare for cloud migration, optimize your IT operations, and find weak links in your security environment with Mugato.
MyService- ServiceDesk.png

MyService – ServiceDesk: Service Management Automation X (SMAX) helps meet all your service desk and IT service management needs. Increase employee and IT productivity by resolving issues faster with embedded machine learning and automation.
M-Zeit.de.png

M-Zeit.de: Available only in German, M-Zeit.de is a personal time recording app that captures when an employee is coming, going, or taking a break. 
National Cartography.png

National Cartography: Discover new territories and reach isolated communities with National Cartography, a rich, standardized source of geographic information with high-resolution satellite images. This app is available only in Spanish.
NICE inContact CXone Agent for Microsoft Teams.png

NICE inContact CXone Agent for Microsoft Teams: Powering company-wide collaboration, this pre-built unified communication and contact center integration provides full contact center controls and synchronizes Microsoft Teams contacts.
OpenText EnCase Endpoint Investigator.png

OpenText EnCase Endpoint Investigator: Identify, collect, and analyze digital data for investigations that involve network-enabled devices and endpoints. Accurately investigate target information in Microsoft Azure and boost investigation power with cloud processing.
OpenText EnCase Forensic.png

OpenText EnCase Forensic: Identify, collect, and analyze digital data for investigations that involve physical access to the target device. Accurately investigate target information in Microsoft Azure and boost investigation power with cloud processing.
Physical Security Solution Health and Safety.png

Physical Security Solution: Health and Safety: Turning smartphones into temporary security devices, Guardian Zone bridges the communication gap between on-site security, law enforcement, staff, and visitors during an emergency.
Prokuria - sourcing and supplier management.png

Prokuria – sourcing and supplier management: Prokuria is an easily customizable cloud-based platform to automate sourcing and supplier management, helping procurement teams around the world deliver significant cost and time savings.
PST_CrewPro.png

PST_CrewPro: CrewPro railroad crew management and rail crew scheduling provides real-time crew supply and demand matching, minimizes vacation bidding time, and allows for simplified travel accommodation scheduling.
QuickBooks Analytics using Microsoft PowerBI.png

QuickBooks Analytics using Microsoft Power BI (Beta): Boost your QuickBooks analytics and reporting capabilities with QBETL, a data migration service with a Microsoft Power BI dashboard. QBETL automates QuickBooks desktop data synchronization with Microsoft Azure.
Quicklart.png

Quicklart: Developed by IBB Innovations using Azure Kinect DK, Quicklart is an AI video surveillance solution that detects suspicious human behavior, gun/knife threats, fighting, and fallen bodies, then notifies authorities in real time.
Quickstarts for SAS 9.4-Grid & Viya on Azure.png

Quickstarts for SAS 9.4/Grid & Viya on Azure: Quickstarts by Core Compete deploys a well-architected SAS platform into your Microsoft Azure subscription, enabling data scientists to discover more with SAS analytics.
Rookout.png

Rookout: Dramatically reducing debugging time and time to resolution, Rookout lets developers and DevOps teams debug remote applications without adding code or stopping the application.
SAP M365 ArchiveLink Integration.png

SAP M365 ArchiveLink Integration: docuflow is a no-code solution by VersaFile that facilitates streamlining and automating time-consuming SAP processes. It provides seamless SAP archiving, linking, and process automation across your Microsoft 365 environment.
SAS Event Stream Processing Trial.png

SAS Event Stream Processing Trial: Analyze streaming data and uncover hidden insights with AI to drive real-time intelligent decisions. SAS ESP elevates SAS solutions to include streaming data in deep analytical assessments, case management activities, and workflows.
Scormium LMS.png

Scormium LMS: Developed by Sense4code, Scormium is a scalable, customizable, and user-friendly learning management system (LMS) for e-learning courses, student management, and course planning.
Scormium Studio.png

Scormium Studio: Scormium Studio is a cloud-based platform by Sense4code designed to facilitate the creation, distribution, and licensing of e-learning material. The content is securely saved in Microsoft Azure, where you can create, edit, or connect catalogs.
SensorMine.png

SensorMine: Maintaining mining equipment is one of the largest expenses for mine operators. The introduction of sensors and IoT capabilities to mining provides an easy-to-implement, low-cost, end-to-end predictive maintenance solution.
SepiaCMS - Multilingual Content Management System.png

SepiaCMS – Multilingual Content Management System: This multisite content management system by Sepia Solutions is more than a marketing website. It provides a platform with a wide variety of modules for portal management.
Shohoz Truck Rental.png

Shohoz Truck Rental: Powered by Microsoft Azure cloud services and Azure Machine Learning, this SaaS platform can make it easier for shippers, transporters, and brokers around the world to connect with verified truck owners and fleet operators.
Skooler Learning Tools.png

Skooler Learning Tools: This web app facilitates onboarding and management of Skooler installations. Skooler is a set of tools that integrates with Microsoft 365 to provide a full learning portal for K-12 schools and school districts.
SmartMailAI.png

SmartMailAI: SmartMailAI uses machine learning to train itself to respond to email inquiries with speed and accuracy. Newwave’s vision is to empower knowledge workers to focus on their more important work by automating email and chat inquiries.
SMX 365 Dual layer email security for Office 365.png

SMX 365 Dual layer email security for Office 365: SMX 365 delivers targeted, regional threat detection for enterprise and government organizations in Australasia. It is architected to deliver dual-layer security with Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft Defender for Identity.
Testportal for Higher Education.png

Testportal for Higher Education: Powered by the scalable infrastructure of Microsoft Azure and featuring seamless integration with Microsoft Teams, this leading examination platform enables you to conduct advanced online tests and proctored exams.
TigerGraph Version 3 (Enterprise Edition).png

TigerGraph Version 3 (Enterprise Edition): TigerGraph is a scalable analytics platform for creating big graph applications. It offers a native enterprise massively parallel processing database and GraphStudio, a visual software development kit.
TIM - Predictive Analytics with InstantML.png

TIM – Predictive Analytics with InstantML: Tangent Information Modeler (TIM) is a predictive model-building engine that automates the forecasting and anomaly detection process by analyzing time series data and generating accurate models.
TIS_RoboticBase on Azure.png

TIS_RoboticBase on Azure: Providing integrated robot and IoT infrastructure services, RoboticBase by TIS centrally manages facilities by not only linking robots, but also drones, IoT devices, cameras, and elevators. This app is available only in Japanese.
Vehicles Lit HeadLights Detection API.png

Vehicles Lit HeadLights Detection API: LightsLitDet is a cross-browser REST API that detects and localizes vehicles’ lit headlights in an input photo with a confidence score and timestamp.
Vendavo Pricing Intelligence.png

Vendavo Pricing Intelligence: With an annual margin improvement totaling more than $2.5 billion across companies in various industries, Vendavo powers the shift to digital business, unlocking value, growing margin, and accelerating revenue.
Voicy Conversational SMS.png

Voicy Conversational SMS: Voicy is a two-way conversational text message solution that interacts with customers and automates customer service. Empower your customers to resolve their queries and generate orders automatically.
Wavefront Container Image.png

Wavefront Container Image: This pre-configured image from Bitnami provides Wavefront, a high-performance streaming analytics platform for monitoring and optimizing your environment and applications.
Workspace Booking for iOS & Android.png

Workspace Booking for iOS & Android: Workspace by Add-On Products can help you return safely to the office by automating new procedures, such as blocking off desks, pre-booking workspaces, viewing floor plans, finding team members, and tracing contacts.
WorkyBe.png

WorkyBe: WorkyBe by Servissoft helps manage your team efficiently. Colleagues can see their own assignments and to-do lists on the calendar monthly, weekly, and daily.

Consulting services
2 Week Application Migration Implementation.png

2-Week Application Migration Implementation: Newt Global Consulting offers end-to-end application migration for small and midsize businesses to migrate (lift and shift) on-premises applications and databases to Microsoft Azure.
10 hours cloud readiness assessment.png

10-hour cloud readiness assessment: Vaporvm offers 10 hours of free consulting services in data analytics and DevOps on Microsoft Azure, legacy application modernization, or cybersecurity to show how you can solve your business problem with Azure.
Application Modernization 10-Day Assessment.png

Application Modernization: 10-Day Assessment: Catapult can simplify the process of moving your applications to Microsoft Azure through a variety of workshops where you discuss current and future goals, map your objectives, and discover risks.
Azure App Modernisation Assessment 6 Weeks.png

Azure App Modernisation Assessment: 6 Weeks: Many existing applications can be enhanced significantly by moving them to a cloud-first architecture. Content+Cloud will review your current application to determine how it could be rebuilt using Microsoft Azure.
Azure Cloud Catalyst 4-Wk Imp.png

Azure Cloud Catalyst: 4-Wk Implementation: Start your journey to the cloud with Azure Cloud Catalyst, an agile delivery approach by Datacom Systems. The cloud adoption framework is the basis for a well-governed and secure cloud platform.
Azure Migrate Service - 4-Week Assessment.png

Azure Migrate Service – 4-Week Assessment: Advania Finland’s four-step assessment program is designed to help transfer your existing workloads to Microsoft Azure, leading to faster time to market and lower total cost of ownership.
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Azure Migration: 1-Week Assessment: Trying to decide if you’ll get value by moving your apps or infrastructure to Microsoft Azure? Artic will work with your team to determine the time, effort, and cost for your organization to migrate to the cloud.
Azure Security Model Design 8wk Implementation.png

Azure Security Model Design 8-week Implementation: Protiviti will help you understand how Microsoft Azure security services fit into your wider organizational security model, how your company could utilize each service, the cost implications, and the scope of service.
Azure Synapse Analytics 1-Day Assessment.png

Azure Synapse Analytics 1-Day Assessment: In the Azure Synapse Analytics assessment, FyrSoft’s experts will review your current data platform and provide a roadmap on how to successfully implement a modern data warehouse and data analytics infrastructure.
Azure Synapse Analytics 1-Day Workshop.png

Azure Synapse Analytics 1-Day Workshop: Azure Synapse brings together approaches of data lakes and data warehouses in a service, providing limitless analytics. In this workshop, FyrSoft will teach you how to create an analytics pipeline.
Azure Windows Virtual Desktop 6-Wk POC.png

Azure Windows Virtual Desktop: 6-Week Proof of Concept: With Windows Virtual Desktop, you can deploy and scale your Windows desktops and apps on Microsoft Azure in minutes. Inviso will help you quickly unlock the full scope of Windows Virtual Desktop on Azure.
BC Best Practices for Azure 1-Day Workshop.png

BC Best Practices for Azure: 1-Day Workshop: In this workshop, you will learn how to build a resilient business continuity practice. Sayers will take you through six established best practices, and you will learn how to apply the power of Microsoft Azure to each practice.
BrillioOne Supply Chain360 2-Wk Free Assessment.png

BrillioOne Supply Chain360: 2-Week Free Assessment: Brillio will help implement a digital experience solution centered on key Microsoft Azure IaaS/PaaS components, such as Azure Data Lake Analytics, Azure Synapse, Azure Cosmos DB, or Azure Machine Learning.
CAF Quickstart - 6 Day Workshop.png

CAF Quickstart – 6-Day Workshop: The Cloud Adoption Framework Quickstart engagement ensures the success of your platform and application modernization journey by designing your cloud architecture correctly, right from the beginning.
Chmura Krajowa-Road to Cloud 3-week assessment.png

Chmura Krajowa-Road to Cloud: 3-week assessment: In this three-week assessment, Chmura Krajowa will work with you to develop an efficient migration plan for your organization’s move to Microsoft Azure, reducing the required time and impact of migration processes on your business.
Cloud Adoption Framework 6 week Implementation.png

Cloud Adoption Framework: 6-week Implementation: Inviso Corporation’s free implementation uses the Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF), Microsoft’s best-practices approach to Azure cloud adoption, to provide insights on how to create a reliable, auditable, and flexible governance framework for your organization.
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Cloud Desktop (powered by Windows Virtual Desktop): ITON offers Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD) technology as a managed service on Microsoft Azure. This service is available only in Dutch.
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Troubleshooting expired certificate Azure Service Fabric Standalone Cluster

Troubleshooting expired certificate Azure Service Fabric Standalone Cluster

by | Jan 6, 2021 | Technology

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.

Sometime either primary or secondary cluster certificates get expired before you can rotate with new certificate which can cause cluster to be inaccessible or unreachable then you can follow these steps to recover standalone Service Fabric cluster. If you looking to rotate a near expiry certificate refer to previous article : Certificate rotation Azure Service Fabric Standalone cluster – Microsoft Tech Community. 


This article assumes you are running cluster with thumbprint approach. In general, the common name approach is recommended for easy certificate management. More information about certificate on Standalone cluster refer to Secure a cluster on Windows by using certificates – Azure Service Fabric | Microsoft Docs


 


Recover Azure Service Fabric Standalone Cluster which is inaccessible or unreachable due to expired cluster certificates:


 



  1. Create or get the new certificate.  

  2. Deploy the new cert to all nodes manually by following https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/pkiclient/import-pfxcertificate?view=win10-ps  


     3. RDP into each VM and make sure certificate is present and the private key is already ACL’d to  ‘Network Service’ 


          a ) Run certlm.msc 


          b) Find the new certificate


          c) Right click cert, Manage Private Keys, ensure NETWORK SERVICE has full permissions 


 


    4. Stop  and disable “Microsoft Service Fabric Host Service” service in command prompt with administrative rights. 


         Set-Service -ServiceName FabricHostSvc -StartupType disabled 


         net stop FabricHostSvc 


   5.  Locate ClusterManifest.current.xml in the cluster root folder like “C:ProgramDataSFFabricClusterManifest.current.xml” according to actual datapath deployed, and copy to somewhere like C:TempclusterManifest.xml 


   


   6.  Remove clusterManifest.xml read-only attribute and Modify the C:TempclusterManifest.xml and update with new thumbprint. 


     a) Replace all occurrences of old cert with the new thumbprint .


  


   7. Locate InfrastructureManifest.xml from .FabricFabric.DataInfrastructureManifest.xml path, for my case, it is C:ProgramDataSFvm0FabricFabric.DataInfrastructureManifest.xml as dataroot is at C:ProgramData, and copy to c:temp too.  


 


  8. Modify the C:TempInfrastructureManifest.xml and update with new thumbprint. 


      a) Replace all occurrences of old cert with the new thumbprint 


 


   9.  Run following cmdlet to update the Service Fabric cluster, replace the SvcFab path according to the actual path.   


New-ServiceFabricNodeConfiguration “C:ProgramDataSF” -FabricLogRoot “C:ProgramDataSFlog” -ClusterManifestPath “C:TempclusterManifest.xml” -InfrastructureManifestPath “C:tempInfrastructureManifest.xml” 


 


  10.  Look  for  ”C:ProgramDataSFvm0FabricFabric.Package.current.xml”  and note  the “Configuration version” 


GetImage.png


 


Cd into the corresponding folder 


GetImage (1).png


 


Edit “C:ProgramDataSFvm0FabricFabric.Config.0.131572537807340469Settings.xml”  and Replace all occurrences of old cert with the new thumbprint .


 


11. Set the services “Microsoft Service Fabric Host Service” startup type and start it again 


Set-Service -ServiceName FabricHostSvc -StartupType automatic 


net start FabricHostSvc 


 


12. Repeat the above steps on every cluster node. 


 


13. After step 12 you should able to reconnect to the cluster over SFX and PowerShell.   


 


14. Now, even the SFX is working, and you can call Connect-ServiceFabricCluster from one of cluster node and secure connection is fine, but Get-ServiceFabricClusterConfiguration still give you the old cluster thumbprint in deployment JSON file. 


 


Get-ServiceFabricClusterConfiguration still outputs the old cluster cert thumbprint expired as expected. 


GetImage.jpeg


 


15. We will have to use  set-ServiceFabricUpgradeOrchestrationServiceState to get into the cluster state  



  1. Connect-ServiceFabricCluster 

  2. Get-ServiceFabricUpgradeOrchestrationServiceState | Out-File .state.json 

  3. Replace the old thumbprint in state.json file with the new thumbprint. 

  4. Set it back “set-ServiceFabricUpgradeOrchestrationServiceState -StateFilePath c:60CU2state.json


16. Run Get-ServiceFabricClusterConfiguration cmdlet again, you should see the updated cert info. 


 

Simplify Your Lakehouse Architecture with Azure Databricks, Delta Lake, and Azure Data Lake Storage

Simplify Your Lakehouse Architecture with Azure Databricks, Delta Lake, and Azure Data Lake Storage

by | Jan 6, 2021 | Technology

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.

Today’s companies are dealing with data of many different types, in many different sizes, and coming in at varying frequencies.  These companies are looking beyond the limitations of traditional data architectures to enable cloud scale analytics, data science, and machine learning on all of this data.  One architecture pattern that addresses many of the challenges of traditional data architectures is the lakehouse architecture.


 


MikeCornell-Databricks_0-1609787730990.png


 


Lakehouses combine the low cost and flexibility of data lakes with the reliability and performance of data warehouses.  The lakehouse architecture provides several key features including:



  • Reliable, scalable, and low-cost storage in an open format

  • ETL and stream processing with ACID transactions

  • Metadata, versioning, caching, and indexing to ensure manageability and performance when querying

  • SQL APIs for BI and reporting along with declarative DataFrame APIs for data science and machine learning



Lakehouse Principles and Components


MikeCornell-Databricks_0-1609642899750.png


 


When building a lakehouse architecture, keep these 3 key principles and their associated components in mind:



  1. A data lake to store all your data, with a curated layer in an open-source format.  The data lake should be able to accommodate data of any type, size, and speed.  The format of the curated data in the lake should be open, integrated with cloud native security services, and it should support ACID transactions.

  2. A foundational compute layer built on open standards.  There should be a foundational compute layer that supports all of the core lakehouse use cases including curating the data lake (ETL and stream processing), data science and machine learning, and SQL analytics on the data lake.  That layer should also be built on open standards that ensure rapid innovation and are non-locking and future proof.

  3. Easy integration for additional and/or new use cases.  No single service can do everything.  There are always going to be new or additional use cases that aren’t a part of the core lakehouse use cases.  These new or additional use cases often need specialized services or tools.  This is why easy integrations between the curated data lake, the foundational compute layer, and other services and tools are key requirements.


Let’s look at how Azure Databricks along with Azure Data Lake Storage and Delta Lake can help build a lakehouse architecture using these 3 principles.


Open, Transactional Storage with Azure Data Lake Storage + Delta Lake


MikeCornell-Databricks_1-1609643048644.png


 


One part of the first principle is to have a data lake to store all your data.  Azure Data Lake Storage offers a cheap, secure object store capable of storing data of any size (big and small), of any type (structured or unstructured), and at any speed (fast or slow).  The second part of the first principle is to have the Curated data in the data lake be in an open format that supports ACID transactions. Companies often use Delta Lake to build this curated zone of their data lake.  Delta Lake is simply an open file format based on Parquet that can be stored in Azure Data Lake Storage.  Among other things, it supports ACID transactions (UPDATE, DELETE, and even MERGE), time travel, schema evolution/enforcement, and streaming as a source and a sync.  These features make the Delta Lake format used in Azure Data Lake Storage an ideal component for the first principle of the lakehouse architecture.


Azure Databricks for Core Lakehouse Use Cases


MikeCornell-Databricks_2-1609643124571.png
The 2nd principle discussed above is to have a foundational compute layer built on open standards that can handle all of the core lakehouse use cases.  The Photon-powered Delta Engine found in Azure Databricks is an ideal layer for these core use cases.  The Delta Engine is rooted in Apache Spark, supporting all of the Spark APIs along with support for SQL, Python, R, and Scala.  In addition, Azure Databricks provides other open source frameworks including:



  • Always the latest and greatest version of Spark which is ideal for ETL/ELT, stream processing, distributed data science and ML, and SQL analytics on the data lake

  • Optimized compute for the Delta Lake file format which includes data skipping and data source caching capabilities for faster queries

  • A machine learning runtime with pre-installed, optimized libraries for model development and training.  This also includes the open-source Koalas, which provides data scientists the ability to work on big data with a Pandas API that runs on top of Apache Spark

  • Tightly integrated MLflow to help develop, train, and operationalize (batch, stream, or API) data science and machine learning models


Azure Databricks also provides a collaborative workspace along with the Delta Engine that includes an integrated notebook environment as well as a SQL Analytics environment designed to make it easier for analysts to write SQL on the data lake, visualize results, build dashboards, and schedule queries and alerts.  All of this makes Azure Databricks and the Delta Engine and ideal foundational compute layer for core lakehouse use cases.


Integrated Services for Other/New Use Cases


MikeCornell-Databricks_3-1609643200870.png
The final principle focuses on key integrations between the Curated data lake, foundational compute layer, and other services.  This is necessary because there will always be specialized or new use cases that are not “core” lakehouse use cases.  Also, different business areas may prefer different or additional tools (especially in the SQL analytics and BI space).  A lakehouse built on Azure Data Lake Storage, Delta Lake, and Azure Databricks provides easy integrations for these new or specialized use cases. 



  • Azure Data Lake Storage is a storage service that is supported by all of the data and AI services in Azure.

  • Delta Lake is an open source storage format with supported interfaces for Spark, Hive, Presto, Python, Scala, and Java.  It also has native connectors in Azure services like Azure Synapse and Data Factory and it can be used with other services like Power BI, HDInsight, and Azure Machine Learning. 

  • Azure Databricks is tightly integrated into the rest of the Azure ecosystem with optimized, secure connectivity to services like Azure Data Factory, Power BI, and Azure Synapse.  The service also includes REST API, Command Line, and JDBC/ODBC interfaces allowing for integrations with just about any tool or service.


To conclude, the lakehouse architecture pattern is one that will continue to be adopted because of its flexibility, cost efficiency, and open standards.  Building an architecture with Azure Databricks, Delta Lake, and Azure Data Lake Storage provides the foundation for lakehouse use cases that is open, extensible, and future proof.


 


To learn more about Lakehouse architecture, check out this research paper and blog from Databricks and join an Azure Databricks event.