Visual Studio makes debugging multithreaded applications easier with Parallel Stacks Window

Debugging multithreaded applications can be complex, but Visual Studio is making it easier than ever. A new update enhances the debugging experience, helping developers gain clearer insights into their code’s behavior. Stay ahead with tools designed to simplify multithreaded development.

Here’s how you can use these features:

- AI-Generated Thread Summaries: Instantly understand thread activity with AI-powered summaries, providing a high-level overview to help you quickly gain context.

- App Summarization with Copilot: Leverage Copilot Chat to explore and resolve debugging challenges interactively. Ask questions, get explanations, and receive AI-driven suggestions tailored to your debugging scenario.

February 2025 Copilot Studio updates

Microsoft has announced the latest updates to its Copilot Studio, enhancing customization and integration capabilities for users. These improvements aim to streamline workflows and bolster security measures within the platform.

Here are some of the updates:

• Publish to Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat: Seamlessly deploy custom agents directly into Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat.

• Expanded Microsoft Graph Connections: Connect your agents to data from Stack Overflow, Salesforce Knowledge, GitHub, and Unily, enabling richer, more informed responses.

• Effortless Import & Export of Agent Components: Use Component Collection to streamline workflows by eliminating the need for manual copying of messaging templates, content sources, and more.

• New Microsoft 365 Agents SDK for JavaScript: Empower developers with essential building blocks to create intelligent agents that handle user interactions efficiently.

• Enhanced Embedded Agent Builder: Makers can now ground agents on publicly available websites and collect valuable end-user feedback for continuous improvement.

• See the full list here.

Microsoft rolled out the GPT-4o Copilot code completion model in Visual Studio public preview

Microsoft is bringing the power of GPT-4o to Visual Studio, enhancing AI-driven development like never before. Now available in public preview, this latest update promises smarter, more efficient coding experiences for developers.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Enhanced Model – Built on GPT-4o mini, the model has undergone additional training on 275,000+ high-quality public repositories across 30+ popular programming languages for improved accuracy and suggestions.

• How to Enable It – Navigate to Tools > Options > GitHub > Copilot > Copilot Completions and select GPT-4o Copilot from the dropdown.

• Quick Access – You can also adjust settings by clicking the GitHub Copilot badge in the top-right corner and selecting Settings > Options.

Microsoft launches AI Accelerator for Sales and two new agents

Microsoft is set to transform sales operations with the introduction of its AI Accelerator for Sales, aiming to enhance efficiency and productivity across sales teams. This initiative underscores Microsoft's commitment to integrating advanced AI solutions into business processes, offering organizations innovative tools to optimize their sales strategies.

Here’s what you need to know:

• AI Accelerator for Sales: Launching on April 1, 2025, this exclusive program helps customers experience a new way of working with Copilot and AI agents.

• Sales Agent: This agent automates lead research, prioritization, meeting scheduling, and customer outreach, ensuring no lead is unattended.

• Sales Chat: This agent delivers actionable insights from CRM data, pitch decks, meetings, emails, and the web, allowing sales reps to spend less time searching and more time selling.

Power Apps February 2025 Updates

Microsoft has announced the general availability of Code View in Power Apps Studio, marking a significant advancement in their mission to enable seamless collaboration between citizen and professional developers. This update reflects Microsoft's commitment to enhancing user experience and productivity within the Power Platform ecosystem.

Here’s a summary of the new features:

• Code View: Work seamlessly with fellow developers in Power Apps Studio for faster, more efficient app creation.

• Power CAT Tools: Enhance your development across the Power Platform with a comprehensive suite of features.

• Power Fx functions: Easily create Power Fx functions for use in Canvas apps and Power Automate.

• Enterprise-grade Governance: Gain more control over critical environment settings with three powerful new rules for Environment Groups.

• Visualize with Copilot: Instantly transform business data into interactive charts for deeper insights.

Microsoft introduces .NET AI template preview to streamline AI development

Microsoft has unveiled the first preview of the .NET AI Template, marking a significant step toward simplifying AI integration for developers. This new initiative aims to streamline the process of building AI-powered applications within the .NET ecosystem. Stay tuned for more details on how this enhances AI development workflows.

Here’s how:

• Install the template: Run dotnet new install Microsoft.Extensions.AI.Templates in your terminal to make it available in Visual Studio, VS Code, or your working directory.

• In Visual Studio:

  • Go to File > New Project and search for AI Chat or select the AI project type.

  • Choose your project name and location, then select an AI model provider and vector store to begin.

• In VS Code with C# Dev Kit:

  • Install the C# Dev Kit extension.

  • Use the .NET New Project command to create a new project with GitHub Models.

Code View in Power Apps Studio now generally available for faster, collaborative development

Code View is now generally available in Power Apps Studio, making it easier than ever to collaborate and accelerate app development. This update enhances the development experience, giving teams more flexibility and control over their apps.

Here’s what’s new:

• Code View: Easily inspect the code for each control, making app functionality clearer and more accessible.

• Effortless Copy & Paste: Copy any control as YAML + Power Fx Code and paste it into a code editor for quick modifications. Plus, you can now copy and paste entire screens!

• Enhanced Code Format: Dataverse Source Control Integration lets you version-control your apps, while multi-screen snippets help you create reusable templates.

Microsoft introduces open-source AI evaluations for .NET with new tools and DevOps integration

Microsoft has introduced the AI Evaluations Library, a new tool designed to help developers assess the performance of AI models with ease. This release aims to streamline evaluation workflows, making it simpler to measure model accuracy and effectiveness. Whether you're optimizing existing AI solutions or developing new ones, this library provides a structured approach to ensure reliable results.

Here's what you need to know:

• Open-Source Library : The Microsoft.Extensions.AI.Evaluations library is now open source in the dotnet/extensions repo, giving developers greater flexibility to leverage AI effectively.

• GitHub Repository: New sample projects have been added to the library, providing both beginners and experienced developers with valuable insights and practical guidance.

• Azure DevOps Plug-in: Seamlessly integrate AI evaluations into your Azure DevOps pipeline, enabling continuous assessment of your AI models as part of your CI/CD workflows.

• Automated AI Evaluation: The AzDO plug-in streamlines the evaluation process, ensuring your applications meet performance criteria before deployment.

Microsoft releases new productivity features in Visual Studio

Microsoft Visual Studio just got even better with a fresh set of updates aimed at enhancing developer productivity. These improvements make coding more efficient and seamless, reinforcing Visual Studio’s commitment to delivering a top-tier development experience.

Here’s what’s new:

• Customize file encoding – Set a default file encoding for saving files, ensuring consistency with your preferred format.

• Indent word wrap – Gain greater control over wrapped lines in the editor with optional indentation for improved readability.

• Preserve font preferences across themes – Maintain your preferred font face and size, even when switching themes.

• Enhanced horizontal scrollbar – The scrollbar now repositions above the system tray for improved accessibility.

Microsoft increases the connection limits for custom Dynamics 365 Contact Center reports

Microsoft is making it easier for IT professionals to optimize their custom contact center reports in Dynamics 365. With increased connection limits, organizations can enhance reporting performance and scalability, ensuring smoother data analysis and decision-making. This update empowers businesses to gain deeper insights without constraints.

Here’s how you can increase the limit:

1. Download the Dynamics_365_Omnichannel_Realtime_Analytics schematic model from the Power BI portal and open it in Power BI Desktop.

2. Go to Options and Settings > Options.

3. Under DirectQuery, increase the Maximum connections value to above 300, then click OK.

4. Save and publish the schematic data model to the same workspace where you downloaded it.

5. Acknowledge the warning that this change will apply to all reports and dashboards referencing the model, then proceed with publishing.