March update: What’s new in Security for partners
Navigate to News and Announcements, Incentives and Offers, Skilling and Events, Go-To-Market, Customer Success News and Announcements Introducing Microsoft 365 E7: The Frontier Suite— The challenge isn’t building AI agents—it’s operating them securely at scale. Microsoft 365 E7 unifies M365 E5, Entra Suite, Copilot, and Agent 365, creating new partner opportunities across deployment, governance, and optimization. Join the Agent 365 AMA on March 18 and the Digital Partner Airlift for SI and CSP partners on March 31 to learn more. Microsoft is launching “Cyber Pulse,” a new Microsoft Security thought leadership series, starting with Issue 1: An AI Security Report. The report provides business and security leaders with practical insights and guidance on emerging AI security risks, with a focus on the rapid rise of AI agents and the urgent need for observability, governance, and Zero Trust security to manage them safely at scale. New small and medium-sized businesses (SMB)-focused customer pages are now available for Microsoft Purview Suite for Business Premium and Microsoft Defender Suite for Business Premium—making it easier for partners to articulate the value of integrated data protection, compliance, and threat protection on Microsoft 365 Business Premium. Unlock new attach and renewal revenue with Microsoft Defender Suite for Business Premium and Microsoft Purview Suite for Business Premium, now available as attach SKUs for Microsoft 365 Business Premium and fully integrated into the Security Business Case Builder (BCB). Start quantified, value-based security conversations. To support high-volume deals and reduce friction, we’re increasing the maximum license cap for eligible Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) promotions from 2,400 to 9,999 licenses. This update simplifies large transactions, aligns guidance across Core, Security, and Copilot, and can accelerate upsell momentum. Experience the new Partner Marketing Center Pro, which supports the activation of ready-to-use Microsoft campaigns and assets as well as customization and launch of demand generation with AI. Partners can now unlock new revenue opportunities by building Security Copilot agents and publishing them in the Microsoft Security Store. Agents published in the store are discoverable within Security Copilot and Microsoft Security products—empowering partners to reach new customers, expand solution visibility, and deliver differentiated, AI-powered security outcomes. Check out the Quick Start Development Toolkit for detailed guidance on developing your Security Copilot agent. Microsoft Sentinel Accelerator updates: Beginning March 1, 2026, Microsoft Sentinel Accelerator has increased payments (up to $60,000 1 ) and shifted from a daily ingestion model to a monthly usage model. The qualification, activation, and stabilization criteria are also updated. Partners will now qualify customers using 0–1,500 GB/month usage, earn activation at 1,500 GB/month, and receive increased activation and stabilization payment amounts designed to provide a more predictable and growth-aligned incentive experience. Download the latest IncentivesGuide for details. Security Immersion Briefings for Threat Protection and Data Security include updated delivery guidance, refreshed resources, and new briefing kits for Microsoft Defender Suite and Microsoft Purview Suite for Business Premium. The Advanced Security for Business Premium Immersion Briefing is not a standalone engagement and must be nominated through a Threat Protection or Data Security Immersion Briefing. Briefings now include localized, ready-to-use content in multiple languages, empowering partners to deliver high-value security sessions that showcase Microsoft data protection capabilities and accelerate customer intent. Incentives and Offers Microsoft Partner investments community calls Join us for interactive discussions about the latest updates in Security partner investments. These events begin with a presentation from Microsoft partner investments experts, followed by audience Q&A. Current promotions and offers related to security and compliance Strengthen data security for Copilot at lower cost: Microsoft Purview Suite for Microsoft 365 Copilot customers is now available at 50% off, so enterprise organizations can reduce costs and strengthen data security through June 30, 2026. Microsoft 365 E3, E5, Defender Suite, and Purview Suite promotions: Transition customers from on-premises solutions or upgrade from Office 365 with 10% discount promotions for new-to-E3 or new-to-E5 customers or Defender and Purview Suites on CSP three-year subscription terms through June 30, 2026. Accelerate with Microsoft 365 E5 promotion: CSP authorized partners can offer new Microsoft 365 E5 customers 15% off with this promotion, which has been extended through June 30, 2026. Microsoft Sentinel 50GB promotion: Customers can now purchase a 50GB commitment tier for Sentinel with promotional pricing through March 31, 2026. Microsoft Sentinel pre-purchase plan (P3): Get Sentinel pre-commit units (CUs) at a discounted rate and save 44% when you buy a 5K CUs plan for Sentinel. Microsoft Purview Suite for Business Premium: Customers who have licensed Business Premium with Microsoft 365 Copilot Business or Microsoft 365 Copilot qualify for 50% off enhanced data protection on Purview Suite for Business Premium. This is a limited-time offer available until March 31, 2026. Security Envisioning Workshops: The Security Portfolio Performance Measure has been adjusted from 33% to 15%, lowering the baseline requirement for partner eligibility; earning cap extension criteria remain unchanged. Skilling and Events Visit the Skilling Resources page to discover the latest security skilling event calendars, playbooks, and updates, plus register for training sessions that match your business needs. For a full view of the events calendar, download the Partner Skilling Calendar on the above Skilling Resources page. For all your skilling questions, contact AskSkilling. Upcoming Security events Join the Advanced Security Growth Engine community call on March 25, 2026: Discover the latest momentum in Microsoft Security and learn how partners can accelerate growth using ASPX (AI Business Solutions & Security Insights)—our data-driven targeting platform to identify the right customers, drive adoption, and deliver measurable results. Get practical insights to sharpen your go-to-market strategy and strengthen your security business. Register now: 8:00 AM–9:00 AM Pacific Time (Americas/EMEA), 7:00 PM–8:00 PM Pacific Time (Asia) Protect Cloud, AI Platform, and Apps by Implementing Microsoft Defender for Cloud - March 10–12 (IST, GMT, PST) Implement Identity and Access Management with Microsoft Entra - March 30–April 2 (IST, BST, PST) Level Up CSP: Win with Microsoft Security (Americas, EMEA, Asia) - March 18 or March 19 (PDT, IST) Upcoming: Security Certification Weeks Being Credential Ready matters. Certifications build credibility, support Solutions Partner designations, and enable Project Ready and Sales & Tech Deal Ready skilling. Certification Weeks for Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program offer regionally delivered, live instructor-led training—now including new Pre-sales and Sales tracks—with labs, exam prep, and expert support. Cloud & AI Platforms + Security Certification Weeks April 13–17 (Asia - English, Japanese, Korean), April 13–17 (EMEA - Spanish), April 13–17 (Americas - Portuguese), April 20–24 (EMEA - German, Italian), April 20–24 (Americas - Spanish) For on-demand certification prep, visit Certification Prep On-Demand – LevelUp. Access self-paced Microsoft certification training available in English and nine local languages, along with hands-on labs and exam preparation resources to build practical skills and prepare for certification. Microsoft Security partners are invited to kick off RSAC 2026 early at the Microsoft Security Pre-Day on Sunday, March 22, featuring executive insights on AI-driven threats, emerging trends, and the future of security, plus exclusive networking, a keynote, and an evening reception. In addition, on March 23, join our Security Reborn in the Era of AI workshop for actionable guidance for building your Security Copilot agent and publishing it on the new Microsoft Security Store. Join us on March 31 for The Agentic System of Work: Discover how Copilot, Agents, and Agent 365 are shaping the next evolution of work. In this March 31 webcast, Microsoft experts will walk partners through the Agentic System of Work and what it means for driving customer value at scale. Tailored sessions are available for both SI and CSP partners, with clear guidance on how to get started and where to engage next. Register today for the session built for you. Empower your customers with the value of Microsoft Security by attending Level Up CSP: Attendees can expect to gain clarity on Microsoft Security licensing, explore Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Purview Suites, tap into go-to-market resources and skilling paths, stay current on promotions and incentives, and get actionable insights directly from Microsoft Security sales experts during live Q&A. Register now. Threat Protection and Incident Response with Microsoft Sentinel within Unified Platform: Learn how to implement end-to-end threat protection and incident response using the new unified Microsoft Defender portal. This course equips technical teams to deploy, investigate, automate, and integrate Microsoft Sentinel with the Microsoft Security suite—using a single, streamlined SecOps experience enhanced by AI, UEBA, SOAR, and Security Copilot. Please note that accessing on-demand content does not meet the criteria for earning a badge. Sign in to view the on-demand version now. Go-To-Market Discover the full portfolio of Microsoft Security Campaign in a Box assets designed to protect customers across security operations, cloud and AI platforms, data, and Microsoft 365 Copilot. These campaigns equip you with partner-ready messaging, assets, and guidance to address modern security threats, improve visibility and compliance, and deliver unified, AI-powered protection across customers of all sizes. Explore all available Security campaigns on Partner Marketing Center and choose the ones that best align to your customer needs. We are excited to announce the availability of an expanded library of compliance assets for partners that’s designed to help articulate differentiated Microsoft capabilities in compliance, security, and risk management, as well as to address customer concerns with confidence. These assets cover a broad range of topics, including security assessments, regulatory readiness, data governance, risk management, and AI compliance. Learn more below: Data Security Modern SecOps with Unified Platform Protect Cloud, AI Platforms, and Apps Advanced Identity Security Copilot Customer Success Allegis Group offers a useful example of what secure and practical AI adoption can look like in action. As they modernized operations and scaled AI, they paired Microsoft 365 Copilot and Azure AI Services with governance and security capabilities, including Microsoft Purview and Microsoft Sentinel. That combination empowered the organization to pursue productivity gains while also addressing compliance requirements and employee concerns about AI adoption. Submit your partner success story to showcase your impact, highlight your expertise, and demonstrate the measurable success you’re delivering to customers. Go to the Partner Success story submission form to get started. Follow the tag Security partner news to stay updated on monthly Security partner news.Default browser setting keeps reverting to Edge
I'm experiencing an issue where my default web browser keeps reverting back to Microsoft Edge despite setting a different browser as default. Every time I restart my computer or sometimes even after a short period, the default browser switches back to Edge without my permission, which disrupts my workflow and browsing preferences.Windows 11 really isn't THAT bad
Just a disclaimer, I am not a shareholder of Microsoft. I am going to get flamed for this. I will admit, Windows 11 is a horribly bloated mess. It has so many things that could be improved and using 8gb of RAM with 4 browser tabs open and nothing else is ridiculous. But it's also really not as bad as people say it is. One of the biggest complaints is Copilot everywhere, but I just... uninstalled it and ignored it everywhere it stayed. It's pretty easy to just not click the button for it. Also, it's actually pretty useful in Paint, the background remover is incredibly good, and again, I ignore the generative part. Would Windows be better without Copilot? Yes. Is it the end of the world? No. Another common complaint is pop ups on startup. These are a mild inconvenience at worst. I just click not now or Remind Me in 3 Days. I would certainly prefer them to just shut up because I'm not using OneDrive and never will, but it takes me about 2 seconds to say no and move on. The last one to address is the start menu. I will never understand the hate this gets. 99% of the time it's faster for me to just type like 4 letters of the program I want and press enter than it is to click a specific program. Now I will say, if your computer can't support Windows 11 because of the absolutely ridiculous requirements I can understand the anger. That's the worst part of Win11 and there's no defense, it's stupid. Also, if you switched to Linux and everything was super fast and amazing, great, more power to you. But you're trading the incredible ease and seamlessness that Windows offers for it. Personally, I will click away from a pop up for being able to just download an .exe and execute it with no command prompts or anything.HELP, cargo run FORGETS how to build on win11 restart
so, i'm a supernoob with rust, and i am learning from a guide i found on youtube that follows the official book. so please forgive me if this is a stupid question (this feels infuriatingly stupid.) `cargo run` *builds and runs* the program that i coded. but when i restart windows11, `cargo run` just *forgets* how to build, and runs with the old code. (see image 1) it doesn't run the "main.exe" as i expected, as i deleted it, and it just gives me the same old results. going directly into /src and running `cargo build` doesn't work either. i tested this after making a new project with `cargo init`, copypasting my own code, and running `cargo run` inside the new directory, and it works just fine. so i reset my PC, and the same thing happens. test confirmed. cargo just forgets how to build when i run the `cargo run` command. magically, strangely, the second project just began working again, and idek what i did to fix it aside from taking a screenshot. (can't post image 2 i guess) am i going insane? is my rust installation broken? why can't `cargo run` build after a PC restart? is windows playing with me? i feel like rust is pointing at me and laughing at this point, with how it just stops working, and then starts working again when it wants.Regarding this post > I fixed my Windows 11
I had lot's of issues with it and couldn't understand what was happening, but I found the culprit! I had stock cooler that had these really ugly clips that weren't easy to plug into motherboard. After trying to click them in, I accidentally broke one of clipses and had to buy new cooler. After I bought new cooler, I montaged it in and computer showed the screen! Of course my first thing was to update bios :) That way I actually saved up to around 100€ that they said they would take in computer service!
