This week, Microsoft formally announced that its delayed Windows XP SP2 will be released to manufacturing in August, with OEM shipments and general availability in the fourth quarter of 2004. The NAP technology, however, isn't expected out until the second half of 2005.
Microsoft also announced the general availability of its ISA 2004 firewall Standard Edition, but it acknowledged that the ISA 2004 Enterprise Edition won't be ready until later this year.
Moreover, the Windows Update Services patch management server code--formerly known as SUS 2.0--has been delayed until the first half of 2005, executives also said this week. It was originally due in mid-2004.
Only one VPN company, SyGate, announced support for Microsoft's NAP. Microsoft acknowledges that it currently has a VPN quarantine function that exists as an undocumented API in the Windows Server 2003 server code. The company will expose and document that VPN quarantine feature in the upcoming Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1. Its inclusion would enable developers to limit or define policies for remote users coming in on a VPN.
Microsoft executives said the company intends to make the NAP technology robust and straightforward for IT administrators to implement at customer sites, but it won't be an out-of-the-box solution. That will give service providers additional security opportunities, they noted.
To realize the benefits of cloud-native software, an application must actually be cloud-native—designed to run in the cloud, interacting with disaggregated cloud services, fully manageable as code—to deliver the expected benefits.
By combining resources and expertise, the AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium will offer a blueprint for how industries can adapt to an AI-dominated future.
IT leaders should heed the guidance of cybersecurity insurance providers who think businesses should prioritize security education, incident preparedness, regular internal audits, and ongoing vulnerability scanning and patching.
