Microsoft Introduces Entra ID Single Sign-On for the Denodo Connector in Power BI

Microsoft has announced support for Microsoft Entra ID single sign-on (SSO) for the Denodo connector in Power BI, simplifying how users securely access Denodo data sources. The update allows report viewers to query data using their own identities, reducing the need for additional authentication configuration while strengthening security and governance.

Here's what you need to know:

• What was the challenge before?

  Previously, Denodo SSO relied on Kerberos Constrained Delegation (KCD), which required a synchronised on-premises Active Directory environment. This added infrastructure complexity and made cloud-first deployments more difficult to manage.

• How does Entra ID SSO work?

  Power BI can now pass a user's Entra ID identity through the gateway directly to Denodo when using DirectQuery. Denodo then validates the user and applies its own security policies, including row-level and column-level security.

• When should you use it?

  Entra ID SSO is ideal when you want data access policies enforced against the actual report user rather than a shared account. It also helps meet audit and compliance requirements while reducing credential management overhead.

• Getting started

  To use the feature, ensure your Denodo environment supports Entra ID token validation and that your data gateway is up to date. Then enable the required SSO settings in Power BI and bind your DirectQuery semantic model to the Denodo connection.

Want to learn what else you can do with Power BI? Explore Business Intelligence and get in touch with our team to discuss your requirements.

Customer Experience Leadership Enters a New AI Era with Dynamics 365

As customer service teams increasingly work alongside AI, Microsoft is expanding Dynamics 365 to support a new approach to customer experience leadership. The latest updates combine workforce engagement management, AI-driven coaching, and real-time performance visibility to help organizations optimize operations across people and AI agents.

Here's what you need to know:

• Optimise Workforce with Workforce Engagement Management

  As AI becomes a bigger part of customer service operations, leaders need a unified way to manage both AI and human agents. Dynamics 365 provides a single system to plan, staff, monitor, and improve performance across your entire workforce.

• A System That Works for You—and With You

  Dynamics 365 Contact Center continues to expand its AI capabilities by embedding coaching skills directly into existing workflows. Supervisors can access real-time guidance, analytics, and operational insights that help them effectively manage a blended workforce and scale operations with confidence.

• Turn Data Into Actionable Decisions

  New real-time wallboards give supervisors instant visibility into operational performance. With up-to-date insights at their fingertips, teams can respond faster, maintain service levels, and reduce the need for manual monitoring and status checks.

Want to discover what more you can achieve with Dynamics 365? Explore Customer Relationship Management solutions and contact us today!

Microsoft Introduces Protection Policies for Power BI

Microsoft has introduced Protection Policies for Power BI, providing organizations with a more consistent way to safeguard sensitive data across reports and analytics workflows. The new capability aims to simplify governance by applying protection rules that travel with data wherever it is used in Power BI.

Here's what you need to know:

• Why isn't traditional security always enough?

  Power BI already offers workspace roles, row-level security, and item permissions to control access. But what if you need protection based on how sensitive the data is, not just where it's stored?

• What are Protection Policies?

  Protection Policies, powered by Microsoft Purview Information Protection, let you control access based on sensitivity labels. For example, if a dataset is labeled "Highly Confidential," only the users and groups defined in the policy can access it. Everyone else is automatically blocked—even if they have access to the workspace. Think of it as: label it once, protect it everywhere.

• Why do semantic models matter?

  Semantic models sit at the heart of Power BI's data layer, making them the perfect place to enforce protection. Since one semantic model can power multiple reports, applying a sensitivity label to the model (or upstream Fabric assets such as a Lakehouse or Warehouse) helps ensure protection follows the data wherever it's used.

• How do you get started?

  Simply configure Protection Policies in Microsoft Purview, apply sensitivity labels to your semantic models, and let Power BI handle the enforcement automatically.

Explore what Power BI can do for your organisation. Discover Business Intelligence and contact us today.

Microsoft Brings Entra ID Single Sign-On to Starburst Connector in Power BI

Microsoft has announced the preview of Microsoft Entra ID single sign-on (SSO) for the Starburst connector in Power BI, enabling report viewers to access Starburst using their own identities. This enhancement allows security policies to be evaluated against the actual end user rather than a shared connection account, improving governance and access control. The feature is designed for DirectQuery scenarios and strengthens security for organizations using Starburst as a data source in Power BI.

Here's what you need to know:

• What does it mean?

  Users querying semantic models in DirectQuery mode can authenticate to Starburst using their own Entra ID identity. This allows Starburst to enforce row-level and column-level security based on the individual user.

• Which connector should you use?

  Two Starburst connectors appear in Power BI's Get Data experience. The original connector remains available for existing reports, while the new Starburst secured by Entra ID connector enables the end-to-end SSO experience and should be used for new implementations.

• How does it work?

  When a user opens a DirectQuery report, their Entra ID token is passed through the on-premises data gateway to Starburst. Starburst validates the identity and applies its own authorisation policies based on the authenticated user.

• How do you enable it?

  Administrators need to enable Starburst SSO and Microsoft Entra single sign-on for data gateway in the Power BI admin portal. Once configured, DirectQuery semantic models can pass each user's Entra ID identity directly to Starburst.

• When should you use it?

  Use Entra ID SSO when you want Starburst security policies to be enforced per user, improve auditing capabilities, or meet compliance requirements that prohibit shared connection credentials.

Want to unlock the full potential of Power BI? Discover how Business Intelligence can turn your data into actionable insights and contact us today.

Microsoft Expands Copilot Cowork with Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Service Plugins

Microsoft has announced the general availability of new Dynamics 365 Sales and Dynamics 365 Customer Service plugins for Copilot Cowork. The integrations enable Copilot Cowork to access and work with business data from these applications, helping users complete more complex tasks across sales and service workflows.

Here's what you need to know:

• What is Copilot Cowork?

  Now generally available, Copilot Cowork helps users delegate multi-step tasks across records, knowledge articles, emails, and meetings. It works within Microsoft 365, keeps users in control, and ensures every action is grounded in your business data and governed by existing permissions.

• What can the plugins do?

  For Sales, the plugins support account and opportunity preparation, deal risk analysis, expansion insights, and pipeline visibility. For Customer Service, they assist with case triage, resolution drafting, escalation handoffs, and queue management.

• How can you use them?

  Simply ask Copilot questions in natural language to get insights, summaries, recommendations, and next steps from your Dynamics 365 data. Whether you're preparing for a customer meeting or resolving a support case, the plugins help surface the information you need faster.

• How are the plugins governed?

  Copilot Cowork does not access your database directly. Instead, it uses Microsoft-managed Model Context Protocol (MCP) plugins that respect your existing identity, security, and permission model on every interaction.

• What does this mean for IT?

• Human approval remains in place for actions and updates, responses are grounded in source data, existing security controls are enforced, and administrators maintain control over deployment and access.

• Getting started

  Copilot Cowork is now generally available for Microsoft 365 Copilot customers worldwide. Dynamics 365 Sales and Customer Service plugins can be managed through the Microsoft 365 admin center, where admins can deploy and configure access for users.

Build stronger customer relationships with a powerful Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Contact us today to discover how Dynamics 365 can help you better engage, understand, and support your customers.

Strengthen Data Governance in Power BI with Workspace Outbound Access Protection

Microsoft has introduced Workspace Outbound Access Protection (OAP) for Power BI reports, expanding workspace-level security controls in Microsoft Fabric. The feature helps organizations manage how report data can connect to external resources, supporting stronger governance and reducing the risk of unintended data exposure.

Here's what you need to know:

• What is OAP?

  Workspace Outbound Access Protection (OAP) is a workspace-level control in Microosft Fabric that allows administrators to restrict outbound data access helping enforce stricter data boundaries.

• Why does it matter?

  Power BI reports are tied directly to semantic models, and those models can reside in different workspaces. This can create unintended data flows across workspace boundaries. OAP closes that gap by ensuring reports in protected workspaces can only access semantic models within the same workspace.

• How does it work?

  OAP enforces a simple rule: reports in a protected workspace can only connect to semantic models within the same workspace, preventing cross-workspace bindings. Semantic models continue to enforce OAP policies for their underlying data sources, extending protection across the data ecosystem.

• Publishing and authoring

  Publishing reports to an OAP-enabled workspace works as normal, provided the report connects to a semantic model in the same workspace. Reports that reference models in another workspace can be published but won't be able to render data.

• Getting started

  Assign the workspace to a Fabric Capacity (F SKU), enable workspace-level outbound network rules, and turn on OAP for the workspace. Then configure semantic model connection rules and ensure reports and semantic models are located within the same workspace.

Discover how Power BI helps the Independent Police Conduct Authority manage thousands of cases efficiently. Read our case study and contact us to learn how Power BI can transform your data management processes.

Power BI Simplifies Oracle Connectivity with New Preview Features

Microsoft is making it easier for organizations to connect Power BI to Oracle data sources with new preview capabilities designed to simplify setup and administration. The update introduces a bundled Oracle Managed ODP.NET provider in Power BI Desktop and enables direct cloud connections from the Power BI service to supported Oracle databases, reducing reliance on traditional configuration steps. Together, these enhancements aim to streamline Oracle connectivity and accelerate access to business data.

Here's what you need to know:

• Simplified Oracle connections in Power BI Desktop

  Enable the new Oracle preview features under File > Options and settings > Options > Preview features, restart Power BI Desktop, and connect using the existing Oracle database connector.

• Direct cloud connectivity in Power BI Service

  You can now connect to Oracle cloud databases directly from the Power BI service by creating a cloud connection in Manage connections and gateways, eliminating the need for a data gateway in supported scenarios.

• Changes for personal gateways

  The updated Oracle connector no longer supports personal gateways. Organisations using Oracle data sources should plan a transition to an enterprise on-premises data gateway or VNET gateway to maintain support and future compatibility.

• Gateway configuration updates

  Administrators can enable the bundled Oracle Managed ODP.NET provider on enterprise gateways through a simple configuration change, helping standardise Oracle connectivity across environments.

• Single Sign-On support

  Microsoft Entra ID Single Sign-On is available for supported Oracle databases when using an enterprise gateway, making authentication more secure and seamless for users.

Ready to make smarter, data-driven decisions? Discover our Business Intelligence solutions and contact us today to see what's possible with Power BI.

Visual Studio Introduces New Theme Color Customisation Experience

Microsoft is expanding Visual Studio's customisation capabilities with a new Theme Colors options page that enables live editing of Fluent color tokens. The feature gives developers a more flexible way to tailor the IDE's appearance, helping create a workspace that better matches individual preferences and workflows.

Here's what you need to know:

• Where to find it

  Navigate to Tools > Options > Environment > Visual Experience > Theme Colors. You'll see all Fluent color tokens for your active theme in a searchable grid. Simply select a token, choose a new colour, and see the change applied instantly.

• Customisations stay with each theme

  Your changes are saved per theme rather than globally. Create a unique version of Dark Mode, customise Light Mode differently, or experiment with tinted themes. Switching themes automatically brings your customisations with it. Made a change you don't like? Individual color tokens can be reset without affecting the rest of your setup.

• More granular control with new tokens

  Microsoft has also added new color tokens that provide greater control over Visual Studio's appearance. One standout improvement is the ability to customise tab and window headers independently from the rest of the interface, opening the door to more personalised and even retro-inspired designs.

• Share your custom themes

  Customisations are stored as JSON files, making them easy to share with teammates or the wider community. Simply place the file in the appropriate Visual Studio ColorThemes folder, restart Visual Studio, and your customisations will be applied.

• Why this matters

  Until now, changing a Visual Studio theme often meant installing an extension or replacing an entire theme just to tweak a few colours. With the new Theme Colors page, developers can make quick, targeted adjustments in seconds, creating a workspace that's more comfortable and productive without the extra overhead.

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Microsoft Brings Full Pull Request Reviews Directly into Visual Studio

Microsoft has introduced a new pull request review experience in Visual Studio, allowing developers to review, comment on, approve, and merge pull requests without leaving the IDE. The update supports both GitHub and Azure DevOps repositories, helping teams streamline code reviews and reduce context switching. Available in Visual Studio 18.7, the feature marks a significant step forward in Microsoft's ongoing efforts to improve developer productivity and collaboration.

Here's what you need to know:

• Find and open pull requests faster

  Access pull requests from the Git Repository window, Git Changes window, or Git menu. If your current branch already has an active PR, you can open it directly and view the overview, changes, commits, and reviewers all in one place.

• Review code your way

  Inspect pull requests without checking out the branch to preserve your current work, or check out the branch for a deeper review using Visual Studio’s navigation, build, and debugging tools. You can also switch between active pull requests with ease.

• Browse changes efficiently

  View code differences inline or side-by-side, use the multi-file summary view for a high-level overview, and review changes commit by commit to better understand how the code evolved.

• Collaborate without context switching

  Leave comments, reply to discussions, and resolve conversations directly within Visual Studio. Everything stays synced with GitHub and Azure DevOps. Plus, Copilot can help generate fixes based on review comments, helping you move from feedback to implementation faster.

• Approve and merge in one place

  Review status checks, approvals, and merge conflicts, then approve, complete, merge, convert to draft, or close pull requests—all from within the IDE.

• Available now in Visual Studio 18.7

  This release marks a significant step forward in streamlining code reviews and reducing context switching for developers. Microsoft is also working on additional enhancements, including comment filtering, PR activity timelines, and an improved checkout experience.

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.NET Day on Agentic Modernization: Learn How to Modernise Applications with AI

Organisations looking to modernise their .NET applications can gain valuable insights at Microsoft's upcoming .NET Day on Agentic Modernization livestream. The event will explore real-world approaches to cloud migration, AI integration, and application modernisation using the latest Microsoft technologies.

Here's what you need to know:

• What is the event all about?

  .NET Day on Agentic Modernization is a dedicated livestream for engineering teams looking to reduce legacy maintenance, accelerate cloud migration, and unlock AI-powered capabilities within their existing applications.

• Why attend?

  Learn how to modernise .NET applications using GitHub Copilot-assisted workflows, build intelligent agentic experiences with Microsoft Agent Framework and Microsoft Foundry, and streamline migration and deployment processes with GitHub Copilot for Azure (Azure MCP).

• Session highlights

  Discover practical approaches to modernising .NET applications with GitHub Copilot, Aspire, and real-world migration strategies. You'll also learn how to add agentic functionality and AI-powered experiences to applications after migration.

• When is the event?

  The livestream takes place on June 16, 2026, from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM UTC. Register now and learn how to modernise existing applications while preparing for the next generation of AI-powered development.

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