Dear developers, We’re thrilled to announce that Visual Studio 2026 is now generally available! This is a moment we’ve built side by side with you. Your feedback has helped shape this release more than any before. Since the introduction of the Insiders Channel in September, more developers have downloaded and tested this preview than any […] The post Visual Studio 2026 is here: faster, smarter, and a hit with early adopters appeared first on Visual Studio Blog.

Announcing the release of .NET 10, the most productive, modern, secure, intelligent, and performant release of .NET yet. With updates across ASP.NET Core, C# 14, .NET MAUI, Aspire, and so much more. The post Announcing .NET 10 appeared first on .NET Blog.

A recap of the latest servicing updates for .NET and .NET Framework for November 2025. The post .NET and .NET Framework November 2025 servicing releases updates appeared first on .NET Blog.

Since its launch at Microsoft Ignite 2019, Azure Ultra Disk has powered some of the world's most demanding applications and workloads. The post The new era of Azure Ultra Disk: Experience the next generation of mission-critical block storage appeared first on Microsoft Azure Blog.

As organizations accelerate their adoption of generative AI, the need for secure, scalable, and business-aligned solutions within familiar tools like Excel has never been greater. Excel’s new Agent Mode (Frontier) empowers users to build intelligent agents that automate workflows, enhance productivity, and uphold responsible AI principles. What is Frontier or a Frontier firm? A Frontier firm refers to a business that prioritizes the use of AI to solve enterprise and business challenges first, only turning to other services or solutions when AI alone cannot address the problem. This blog explores how technical and business leaders can leverage Agent Mode in Excel to create extensible, trustworthy AI solutions, drawing on best practices from recent learning paths and community feedback. Why Agent Mode in Excel Matters Agentic AI: From Automation to Autonomous Intelligence Traditional Excel automation relies on fixed rules. Agentic AI, through Agent Mode, adds autonomous agents capable of context-aware decision-making in dynamic business environments. These agents: Use thread-based memory and learn from workbook interactions. Collaborate with other agents and tools. Execute tasks autonomously from natural language prompts. Excel’s Agent Mode lets organizations build smart agents for workflow automation and advanced reasoning, using core Excel features and Microsoft’s Frontier program. What Makes Agent Mode Unique Natural Language Interaction: Users describe tasks in plain English, and Agent Mode executes complex workflows. Deep Excel Integration: Agents work natively with Excel features, keeping outputs editable and synced. Contextual Awareness: Understands workbook structure and selection for precise results. Multi-Step Reasoning: Orchestrates tasks beyond simple commands, like merging sheets or building reports. Expanded Technical Capabilities Workbook Manipulation: Add, rename, and delete sheets; manage ranges and visibility. Data Creation & Transformation: Generate synthetic data, apply formulas, and summarize datasets. Artifact Generation: Build charts, PivotTables, dashboards, and templates linked to source data. Formatting & Presentation: Apply consistent styling and conditional formatting to highlight trends. Integration & Extensibility: Connects to APIs, databases, and supports multi-agent collaboration for complex needs. Key Business Benefits Rapid Innovation: Build agents quickly to address business needs. Scalability: Share agents with individuals, teams, or organizations for automation at any scale. Security and Compliance: Operates in Microsoft’s secure environment, respecting data boundaries and compliance. Responsible AI: Governance, lifecycle management, and content safety support ethical AI solutions. Access and Requirements Available in Excel for the web under the Frontier program or via Excel Labs add-in. Requires a Microsoft 365 Copilot license or a Personal/Family/Premium subscription. Admins can enable Frontier features in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center. Technical Capabilities Goal-Oriented Design: Agents are configured with clear objectives and constraints, ensuring alignment with business outcomes. Tool Integration: Agents connect to APIs, databases, and external services for specialized tasks. Multi-Agent Collaboration: Enables coordinated strategies for complex scenarios. Advanced Fine-Tuning: Techniques like supervised fine-tuning and reinforcement learning allow agents to be tailored for domain-specific needs and compliance. Spotlight: The Copilot function Formula in Excel Agent Mode A game-changer in Excel’s Agent Mode is the new Copilot function formula, which brings the power of generative AI directly into your spreadsheets. With Copilot function, you simply type plain English prompts into a cell and receive intelligent, context-aware answers, no coding required. This means anyone can automate tasks, analyze data, and generate reports using natural language, making advanced AI accessible to everyone, regardless of technical expertise. How to Use Copilot function: Step-by-Step Click any cell where you want your AI answer to appear. Type the following =Copilot(natural language prompt) using the Copilot function formula. For example: =Copilot ("Summarize sales trends for Q3 using the data in Table1") 3. Press Enter. Excel’s Copilot function analyzes your prompt and the referenced data, returning a concise summary or actionable insight in the cell. More Example Prompts: =Copilot ("Generate an onboarding checklist for new hires in the Marketing department") =Copilot ("Find anomalies in expense report data (Sheet2)") =Copilot ("Visualize monthly revenue and highlight significant changes") When to Use Copilot function: Transformative Scenarios Summarizing Complex Data: Instantly generate executive summaries, trend analyses, or key insights from thousands of rows, no formulas or pivot tables needed. Automating Routine Tasks: Create checklists, draft emails, or generate reports with a single prompt. Exploring Data Context: Ask Copilot function to explain anomalies, suggest next steps, or answer “what-if” scenarios specific to your spreadsheet’s content. Whether you’re a business analyst, HR manager, or finance leader, the Copilot function formula unlocks a new level of productivity and insight, making advanced AI accessible to everyone in Excel. Responsible AI: Governance, Ethics, and Agent Mode Safeguards As organizations embrace Agentic AI to drive business transformation, it becomes essential to foster a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. By encouraging regular reviews of agent decisions, establishing clear guidelines for ethical use, and promoting collaboration between technical and governance teams, businesses can proactively identify and mitigate risks. This holistic approach not only supports regulatory compliance but also builds trust among stakeholders, creating a strong foundation for the effective integration of autonomous intelligence within dynamic enterprise environments. Call to Action As you navigate the evolving landscape of AI in the enterprise, prioritize secure, responsible, and extensible agentic solutions. Leverage Excel’s Agent Mode to build agents that not only automate tasks but drive meaningful business outcomes, while upholding the highest standards of security, compliance, and ethical AI. Developer and Business Requirements To build and deploy agentic AI solutions in Excel, organizations need: Microsoft 365 Subscription: Access to the latest Excel features. Agent Mode Activation: Enable Agent Mode in Excel settings. Development Skills: While setup is streamlined, agent logic may require custom code or scripting. Policy Configuration: Control model deployment and connector usage to align with organizational standards. Compliance Readiness: Ensure solutions meet regulatory and ethical requirements. Getting Started: Learning Paths and Resources Microsoft provides comprehensive learning paths and documentation to guide teams through every stage of agent development in Excel: Build secure and responsible AI solutions and manage generative AI lifecycles Create Agentic AI solutions by using Azure AI Foundry https://support.microsoft.com/excel About the Author: Hello, Jacques “Jack” here! I am a Microsoft Technical Trainer dedicated to assisting learners and organizations in implementing intelligent automation using Microsoft technologies. This blog reflects my experience guiding teams in building agentic AI solutions that are not only powerful but also secure, ethical, and scalable. #SkilledByMTT #MicrosoftLearn

The world of software development is rapidly evolving, especially with the rise of AI-assisted coding tools. One key certification that’s gained attention is the one for GitHub Copilot, the AI-pair programmer developed by GitHub (in conjunction with Microsoft). This blog dives deep into the exam blueprint — what domains it covers, what skills are measured, and how you can prepare effectively. https://dellenny.com/understanding-the-github-copilot-exam-blueprint-skills-measured-topics-covered/

The GitHub Copilot Certification Exam is an exciting new way to prove your skills in using one of the most innovative AI tools for software development. Designed for developers, DevOps engineers, administrators, and technical leaders, this certification tests your ability to use GitHub Copilot effectively and responsibly in real-world scenarios. The best part? You don’t have to pay for premium courses or third-party study materials. GitHub and Microsoft provide free, official learning resources that cover everything you need to know. This guide breaks down those resources, how to use them, and how to structure your preparation to maximize your success. https://dellenny.com/free-official-learning-resources-for-the-github-copilot-certification-exam/

When you build conversational agents using Copilot Studio, deploying them is only half the job. To deliver reliable and useful bots, you must invest time in testing and debugging—and do so efficiently. This guide walks you through structured strategies for testing and debugging Copilot Studio bots, highlights built-in tools and practices, and offers expert tips to help you identify and resolve issues quickly. https://dellenny.com/debugging-and-testing-your-copilot-studio-bots-efficiently/

Nearly a billion commits later, the way we ship code has changed for good. Here’s what the 2025 Octoverse data says about how devs really work now. The post What 986 million code pushes say about the developer workflow in 2025 appeared first on The GitHub Blog.

Have you joined our Customer Hub webinar sessions? In today's hybrid work environment, modern communication and solutions are essential. Leveraging AI and cutting-edge technology, our goal is to help you explore what you can achieve with Microsoft solutions—empowering smarter collaboration, streamlined workflows, and innovative ways to work. Customer Hub webinar series | adoption.microsoft.com/customer-hub/ Join us for one or more of the upcoming sessions, including the launch of several new Copilot webinar series. We also have all past session recordings so you can watch any that you miss. Sign up today by clicking on any of the session titles below. Microsoft 365 Copilot Sessions Nov 13 Talent Transformed: AI-Powered Hiring & Performance with Microsoft Copilot Nov 18 Champion Copilot Adoption Dec 9 Champion Copilot Adoption: Strategies, Skills, and Resources for Success Dec 10 Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat for Manufacturing Dec 11 Holiday Hustle, Copilot Style: Stay Productive While You Unplug Microsoft Teams Phone Sessions Dec 3 Microsoft Teams Phone extensibility for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center and CCaaS Dec 10 Getting Started with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center Other Microsoft Sessions Dec 2 Modernize and Transform your Device Estate: Why Windows in the Cloud is the Game-Changer for IT Our up to date Customer Hub website lists all future sessions and past recordings available to watch on demand! Customer Hub is a virtual journey of webinars designed to help you understand and envision what you can achieve - and we are here with you every step along the way. - Harumi Togo, Technical Program Manager, Microsoft

Curious about using GitHub Copilot in your terminal? Here's our guide to GitHub Copilot CLI, including a starter kit with the best prompts for a wide range of use cases. The post GitHub Copilot CLI 101: How to use GitHub Copilot from the command line appeared first on The GitHub Blog.

TypeScript just became the most-used language on GitHub. Here’s why, according to its creator. The post TypeScript’s rise in the AI era: Insights from Lead Architect, Anders Hejlsberg appeared first on The GitHub Blog.

Today, we’re excited to share our public roadmap, which outlines the next steps in evolving Visual Studio with AI-powered agentic experiences. With every month, we aim to deliver smarter, faster, and more intuitive tools that enhance your coding experience. Disclaimer: The items outlined here represent ongoing work for the month. They are not commitments or […] The post Roadmap for AI in Visual Studio (November) appeared first on Visual Studio Blog.

Learn how Microsoft Copilot Studio uses .NET to provide a consistent AI agent execution across platforms, including on the web via WebAssembly. The post How Copilot Studio uses .NET and WebAssembly for performance and innovation appeared first on .NET Blog.

How GitHub Copilot works today—including mission control—and how to get the most out of it. Here’s what you need to know. The post GitHub Copilot tutorial: How to build, test, review, and ship code faster (with real prompts) appeared first on The GitHub Blog.

The biggest .NET event of the year is just one week away! Join us November 11-13 for .NET 10 and Visual Studio 2026, plus a Student Zone on November 14th. The post Get Ready for .NET Conf 2025! appeared first on .NET Blog.

Have an idea but need a collaborator that can build it for you? Or wish you could visually explore topics through dynamic, interactive experiences instead of scrolling through long pages of text? Now, Copilot can write code using the latest LLM models and let you preview it directly in a Copilot Page, enabling rich, immersive experiences—with zero coding skills required. If you can imagine it, you can build it. With the model’s advanced reasoning capabilities, the possibilities are wide ranging. Whether it’s rapid prototypes for your ideas, concept visualizations or even interactive reports, Copilot rapidly generates high-quality web pages rendered securely in Copilot Pages. The result? Increased productivity by helping you visualize ideas, accelerate decisions, and understand complex concepts faster. Getting started is simple: begin in Copilot Chat by enabling the GPT-5 toggle at the top in the web tab and describe your idea in plain language. Copilot rapidly generates an interactive page side-by-side where you can preview, edit, and collaborate with others via a share link. Evolve your vision by iterating directly in chat—without leaving Copilot. Here are some prompts to try: “Create a simulator explaining how bacterial growth changes with temperature and antibiotics.” “Build a conference agenda page with session details, speaker info, and a live tracker for current and upcoming sessions.” “Generate a prototype of an app to rate vendors post-project on delivery time, quality, and communication.” This new capability is available today for all Frontier users with M365 Copilot licenses and is coming soon for broader availability. Want to take it further? Convert the Copilot page from the last prompt example into a managed app with governance and storage by publishing it to App Builder. You can learn more about this experience announced recently (Microsoft 365 Copilot now enables you to build apps and workflows | Microsoft 365 Blog). Have more questions? Check out our help article (Build lightweight apps within Microsoft 365 Copilot Pages - Microsoft Support).

In boardrooms and leadership meetings, a similar question is being asked: “What returns are we really getting from AI?” The release of a new whitepaper — Unlocking AI’s Impact: Measuring Adoption and Business Value with Copilot Analytics — tackles that question head-on. With Copilot Analytics, a part of the Copilot Control System, this whitepaper shows how business and AI transformation leaders can move beyond surface-level usage metrics to demonstrate tangible impact from Microsoft 365 Copilot and agents. Why measurement matters Copilot integrates directly into the Microsoft 365 apps your teams already use — Word, Excel, Teams, PowerPoint — bringing AI to where work happens. But potential isn’t proof. To justify investment and sustain momentum, organizations need a framework that connects Copilot usage with business outcomes. The whitepaper breaks measurement into three tiers of maturity: 1. Foundational: track license utilization and active users to establish a baseline. 2. Productive: quantify hours saved, adoption intensity, and sentiment. 3. Strategic: link outcomes to business KPIs like revenue growth, customer satisfaction, or time-to-market. This approach turns AI deployment into a disciplined, phased practice of business transformation. From usage to outcomes Deploying Copilot is just step one. Real transformation happens when adoption becomes intentional and measurable. The Microsoft 365 admin center and Copilot usage report surface data like active users and application-level trends — insights you can act on immediately. The whitepaper recommends a few key steps: Identify early adopters as internal champions. Compare adoption benchmarks across departments. Expand licensing where success is proven. Tailor enablement where usage lags. By focusing on adoption patterns, leaders can move from “we turned it on” to “we’re scaling value.” Demonstrating business impact An important tool for measuring AI’s value lies in advanced analytics in Viva Insights, now available for organizations with over 50 Microsoft 365 Copilot licenses. This capability goes beyond standard dashboards, enabling leaders to correlate Copilot usage with key operational and financial KPIs. At the center is the Copilot Business Impact Report—a customizable Power BI template that merges Copilot telemetry with business performance data. Leaders can import metrics from systems like sales, service, HR, or finance to uncover where Copilot drives measurable gains. With this framework, organizations can analyze adoption trends, compare high- and low-usage groups, and reveal clear links between AI engagement and outcomes such as revenue growth, cost savings, or cycle-time reduction. Your playbook for action 1. Activate the Copilot Dashboard in Viva Insights for your organization. 2. Define your key business metrics and connect them to Copilot usage data. 3. Establish a reporting cadence that keeps leaders informed and engaged. 4. Celebrate and share success stories to build momentum. The takeaway In the AI era, success isn’t about deploying tools — it’s about proving transformation. By grounding Copilot adoption in measurable outcomes, you move from anecdotes to evidence and from hype to impact. Start now: download the whitepaper and learn how to measure, scale, and sustain AI-powered productivity across your organization. 👉 Read the whitepaper: Unlocking AI’s Impact – Measuring Adoption and Business Value with Copilot Analytics

Hello, We have a .NET based application built using the .NET framework 8.0. The application runtimeconfig.json file shows this: MyApp.runtimeconfig.json "tfm": "net8.0", "frameworks": [ { "name": "Microsoft.NETCore.App", "version": "8.0.0" }, { "name": "Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App", "version": "8.0.0" } ], Please note that we have Published the application and verified that only .NET version 8.0.16 components, DLLs etc are required. Anything higher than this does not show up. From the cmd prompt, the following runtimes are shown to be installed on the system: >dotnet --list-runtimes Microsoft.AspNetCore.App 8.0.21 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.AspNetCore.App] Microsoft.NETCore.App 8.0.20 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.NETCore.App] Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App 8.0.20 [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App] However, when we try to start a Windows service which is installed as part of the application, it does not start up, and the Windows Event Viewer shows the following error: "Description: A .NET application failed. Application: MyAppControllerService.exe Path: C:\MyApp\MyAppControllerService.exe Message: You must install or update .NET to run this application. App: C:\MyApp\MyAppControllerService.exe Architecture: x64 Framework: 'Microsoft.NETCore.App', version '8.0.21' (x64) .NET location: C:\Program Files\dotnet\ The following frameworks were found: 8.0.20 at [C:\Program Files\dotnet\shared\Microsoft.NETCore.App] Learn more: https://aka.ms/dotnet/app-launch-failed To install missing framework, download: https://aka.ms/dotnet-core-applaunch?framework=Microsoft.NETCore.App&framework_version=8.0.21&arch=x64&rid=win-x64&os=win10" So, the issue is, even with Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App 8.0.20 being installed on the system, it still asks for the .NET 8.0 Runtime (v8.0.21) to be installed. Please let me know why this is so? Since, as per this: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/install/windows .NET Desktop Runtime includes the .NET runtime as well, and Microsoft.WindowsDesktop.App 8.0.20 is installed. Thanks in advance, JY

Introducing voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot! Now you can talk to Copilot, interrupt naturally, and get real-time spoken responses grounded in your work and web data—just click “Start a new voice chat” in the input box. Because work doesn’t stop at your desk, voice helps you stay productive anywhere—hands-free, on the go, or while multitasking. Available today in the Microsoft 365 Copilot mobile app for Copilot-licensed users, with desktop and web coming soon. Voice lets you quickly capture your ideas in a natural way, whether you’re preparing for a meeting or your day, brainstorming some ideas or drafting a response. It’s especially powerful on the go, like during a walk or commute. Copilot can also turn your words into polished drafts, ask clarifying questions, and suggest next steps— helping you move faster and lighten the cognitive load. How voice in Copilot works Users can speak freely during voice chats and interrupt Copilot at any time. When interrupted, Copilot will stop speaking, listen to the new input, and respond accordingly. Users can adjust how Copilot speaks by just asking it to make it faster, slower, louder, more energetic. To mute, select the “Mute” button. To end the conversation, select “End voice chat” and Copilot will leave the voice chat and stop listening. For the best response quality, users are encouraged to reduce background noise during active voice chats. Chat transcripts are saved under Conversations in Copilot Chat, so users can resume the conversation when needed. Security and privacy Voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot adheres to the same enterprise‑grade commitments to data security and privacy that Copilot takes with text interactions. Text transcripts from voice chats are stored and managed like regular Copilot conversations, so your existing retention, eDiscovery, and audit policies apply to the transcript content. No user or Copilot audio is stored. Microsoft applies additional checks for intellectual property, jailbreak attempts, harmful content, and other risks in alignment with our AI Safety practices. Frequently asked questions about voice. Availability Today, voice chat in Microsoft 365 Copilot is available in the Microsoft 365 Copilot app on mobile (iOS and Android). It will be rolling out to the desktop, web, and across the Microsoft 365 Copilot ecosystem by the end of the year. Voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot is subject to service capacity. Users will be informed in product when they are approaching service capacity for the day. In the next few months, we will bring voice capability to Copilot users without Microsoft 365 Copilot license. How to provide feedback Microsoft 365 Copilot voice features are continuously evolving. Your feedback helps improve the experience. After ending the voice chat, use the thumbs-up or thumbs-down icons next to responses to share feedback. For more information: Providing feedback about Microsoft Copilot with Microsoft 365 apps - Microsoft Support

Bear with me please, I have not touched this stuff in a few years. Trying to upgrade Xamarin project to .Net Maui using CLI (latest version of VS 2022 cannot find the Upgrade assistant extension). I have downloaded the upgrade-assistant, but am not familiar with how to reply\how to make a selection of what is displayed after I enter "upgrade-assistant upgrade project-name" (it does not execute and instead displays information...see attached image). Is what is being display telling me that I need to ctrl-c out of this and re-enter the command using what they are showing? Please give me an example of using the Side-by-side upgrade. Is is also telling me that I need to do something with NuGet also on the command line? Thanks.

Empowering organizations to shape the future of cloud with resilient, always-on solutions. The post Resiliency in the cloud—empowered by shared responsibility and Azure Essentials appeared first on Microsoft Azure Blog.

At GitHub Universe 2025, the theme was clear: the ability to see, steer, and build across agents will bring the greatest impact. The post GitHub Universe 2025: Where developer innovation took center stage appeared first on Microsoft Azure Blog.

GitHub’s annual month-long game jam is back for its 13th year! This November, make a game inspired by the theme WAVES—literal, digital, or emotional. 👋🏻 🌊 📡 The post GitHub Game Off 2025 theme announcement appeared first on The GitHub Blog.

We’re thrilled to invite you to one of the most exciting events in the .NET ecosystem: .NET Conf. It runs from November 11th through the 13th and you’re invited! This annual virtual conference is a must-attend for developers, architects, and enthusiasts looking to level up their skills and stay ahead of the curve in .NET […] The post Join us at .NET Conf: Dive into the future of development with Visual Studio 2026 appeared first on Visual Studio Blog.