Technologies explained

Plain-language overviews of 67 products IT professionals work with every day: what each one is, its key features, and where to learn more.

All Microsoft Copilot & agentsChatGPT, Claude & promptingMicrosoft 365 securityActive Directory & domain controllersEntra join, hybrid join & MDMMicrosoft 365 & collaborationIdentity & Zero TrustThreat detection & responseASD Essential EightAzure & multi-cloudBackup & disaster recoveryTeams Phone & VoIPServers & virtualisationNetworking & firewallsStorage, hardware & CCTVEmail securitySQL Server, databases & ERPPowerShell & automationService desk & IT operations

Microsoft Azure

Microsoft, Azure & multi-cloud

Microsoft’s cloud platform for virtual machines, networking, storage, databases, apps and AI.

  • Virtual machines and Azure Virtual Desktop
  • Virtual networks, firewalls and VPN gateways
  • Storage accounts and backup
  • Azure SQL and App Service
  • Azure Policy, Monitor and Defender for Cloud

Best for: Moving servers and apps to the cloud securely.

Guides and scripts Official docs

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Microsoft, Azure & multi-cloud

Cloud security posture management and workload protection for Azure, AWS and Google Cloud.

  • Secure score and recommendations
  • Defender plans for servers, storage and SQL
  • Regulatory compliance dashboard
  • Multi-cloud connectors

Best for: Hardening cloud workloads across providers.

Guides and scripts Official docs

Amazon Web Services

Amazon, Azure & multi-cloud

The largest public cloud platform, often used alongside Azure in multi-cloud environments.

  • EC2 virtual machines and VPC networking
  • S3 object storage
  • IAM users, roles and policies
  • RDS managed databases

Best for: Supporting workloads that live outside Azure.

Guides and scripts Official docs

Google Cloud

Google, Azure & multi-cloud

Google’s cloud platform for compute, storage, data and AI.

  • Compute Engine virtual machines
  • Cloud Storage
  • IAM and organisation policies
  • Google Workspace integration

Best for: Multi-cloud environments and Google Workspace shops.

Guides and scripts Official docs

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