The ITAM Roundup: 9/29/24
š° News
Flexera unveils Technology Intelligence Platform to bridge ITAM and FinOps
Flexeraās Technology Intelligence Platform, powered by TechnopediaĀ®, unifies ITAM and FinOps data to provide comprehensive visibility into hybrid IT environments, addressing the growing challenges of managing technology assets efficiently. The platform integrates enriched, normalized data to improve decision-making, reduce waste, and mitigate risks while supporting collaboration across IT, security, procurement, and other teams. With advanced analytics, enhanced extensibility, and faster integrations to tools like ServiceNow, the platform empowers organizations to optimize performance, reduce costs, and drive business value.
Kevin Miller
GoTo Resolve Introduces Software Asset Management for Comprehensive IT Asset Visibility and Control
GoTo has introduced new software asset management features for GoTo Resolve, enhancing its existing hardware asset management capabilities to provide comprehensive IT inventory oversight. This new functionality allows IT teams to track software licenses, application usage, and manage the entire software lifecycle efficiently, addressing issues like underutilized licenses and potential security gaps. By centralizing management and providing automated insights, GoTo Resolve aims to help businesses reduce costs, improve compliance, and streamline onboarding and offboarding processes.
Business Wire
Broadcom responds to AT&Tās VMware support lawsuit: AT&T has āother optionsā
Broadcom is defending itself in a lawsuit filed by AT&T, which claims Broadcom refused to renew support for its VMware perpetual licenses, arguing that AT&T had other options as VMware moved to a subscription model. AT&T contends that losing VMware support will cause significant harm, including to critical public safety services, and is seeking a court injunction to prevent Broadcom from discontinuing support. Broadcom counters that AT&T had ample notice to migrate to a subscription or alternative solution and rejected favorable proposals, framing AT&T's lawsuit as sensationalism.
Scharon Harding
Salesforce snatches up Zoomin, a tool for organizing company knowledge
Salesforce is acquiring Israeli startup Zoomin, which specializes in AI and big data to enhance self-service documentation and customer support experiences, with customers like McAfee, Dell, and Burger King. Post-acquisition, Zoomin will integrate with Salesforce's Data Cloud to improve AI-driven customer service and leverage unstructured data. This acquisition follows Salesforce's commitment to invest $500 million in AI startups through Salesforce Ventures.
Kyle Wiggers
Microsoft to Begin Testing Windows Recall Feature with Security and Privacy Improvements in October
Microsoft will begin testing its Recall feature in October with Windows Insiders, focusing on enhanced security and privacy measures. The feature, which captures screenshots and uses OCR to help users locate content, will now be disabled by default and require Windows Hello authentication for access. Additionally, Recall will operate within a Virtualization-based Security Enclave, ensuring data isolation and protection from malware, and will be optional for Windows 11 Enterprise users with full encryption of stored data.
https://petri.com/microsoft-windows-recall-october/
Google files EU antitrust complaint against Microsoft over software licensing
Google has filed an antitrust complaint against Microsoft with the European Commission, alleging that changes to Windows Server's licensing terms in 2019 have harmed competition and increased costs for customers, particularly when transferring licenses from Azure to rival platforms like Google Cloud. The complaint highlights that these changes could raise operational costs by up to 400% and limit access to security patches and interoperability for users on third-party cloud platforms. This action follows a previous complaint by a trade association representing EU cloud providers, which was settled earlier this year, and Microsoft has expressed confidence that Google's complaint will not succeed either.
Maria Deutscher
Supermicro shares drop on reported Justice Department probe
Supermicro's shares fell over 12% following reports of a U.S. Justice Department investigation related to allegations of accounting violations made by a former employee. The inquiry appears to be linked to previous claims by a short seller, Hindenburg Research, which highlighted "glaring accounting red flags" and potential issues with revenue recognition and related-party transactions. In response to these developments, Supermicro has announced plans to delay its annual 10-K filing and formed a committee to review its internal controls, while asserting that the allegations made by Hindenburg are false or inaccurate.
Maria Deutscher
š Tips
How to get a better return on your FinOps investment
Many organizations investing in FinOps to manage cloud costs have not seen the expected savings, often due to challenges with data access and visibility, as well as implementation issues. Utilizing an open integration platform can enhance collaboration among teams, provide real-time visibility into cloud spending, and streamline workflows, ultimately leading to better decision-making and identification of savings opportunities. While an open integration platform isn't a complete solution for cloud spending issues, it can significantly improve the effectiveness of a FinOps strategy when integrated into a broader plan.
Why you are likely on the wrong M365 licenses
Microsoft 365 offers various licensing options tailored to organizations of all sizes, ranging from individuals and small businesses to large enterprises. Navigating licensing involves numerous considerations, and selecting the wrong plan can lead to wasted time, money, and resources. Aligning your M365 license with your organization's needs goes beyond complianceāit's about maximizing your investment and equipping your team with the tools they need to thrive.
https://licenseq.com/microsoft-365-licensing-explained/
Oracle Database Enterprise Edition Options Licensing
Oracle Database Enterprise Edition (EE) offers optional features like RAC, Data Guard, and Partitioning, which require separate licensing. These options are licensed per processor, adding to the total cost, and must follow the "matching principle," meaning all processors or users must be licensed if any feature is used. Best practices for managing EE licensing include regular audits, proper documentation, and evaluating alternatives to ensure compliance and cost efficiency.
Fredrik Filipsson
Webinar ā Navigating SaaS Management: Enhancing Security and Operational Efficiency
This webinar focused on the challenges of managing SaaS environments, providing practical strategies to enhance security, operational efficiency, and cost-effectiveness amid growing SaaS adoption. Experts discussed key topics, including current trends, common security threats, best practices for data protection, and the benefits of using a SaaS management platform to streamline processes and improve resource management.
Published By:
The importance of multi-source data to effectively manage your SaaS visibility
Managing a SaaS portfolio effectively requires integrating data from multiple sources, as relying on a single source often leaves gaps in visibility. Vendor APIs, SSO integrations, browser extensions, and CASBs each provide valuable insights but come with limitations, such as incomplete usage data, inconsistent application recognition, or noisy information. To overcome these challenges, consolidating data from various streams into a SaaS management platform ensures full visibility, enabling cost reduction and optimized usage.
Flexera
šBugs & Exploits
Intel thinks it's got a final microcode fix for recalcitrant Raptor Lake processors
Intel has finally identified the cause of instability in its 13th and 14th Gen Core desktop processors, narrowing it down to a "Vmin shift" issue within the IA coreās clock tree circuit, exacerbated by heat and voltage stress. After nearly a year of investigation, Intel has issued several microcode updates to address the problem, with the latest patch (0x12B) consolidating previous fixes and aiming to stabilize chips under default power settings. This prolonged issue has highlighted Intelās performance-over-stability approach, leading to user frustration and potential CPU damage in extreme cases.
Gavin Bonshor
