Insights
In the course of creating customer solutions and improving our own infrastructure, we gain experience with the technologies and practices that hold up in production. These articles are our way of sharing what we learn, so it can be useful to the community as a whole.
Recent articles
From Authenticator MFA to multi-device passkeys
Organizations that already require Microsoft Authenticator remain exposed to phishing that relays push approvals and one-time passwords. Multi-device passkeys are FIDO2 credentials held on the user's devices rather than as shared secrets. A sound Entra ID design assigns methods by role and migrates the tenant in sequence so that a lost or replaced phone does not interrupt access.
Four days to a production ERP: staying the customer
Adoption of a new technology stack has historically consumed a week or more of familiarization with the development environment, host, and database before product work could begin. In the cycle described here, an agent performed the implementation while the owner remained the customer. The result was a production-ready enterprise system, with data migration complete and verified, in four calendar days.
Business Standard, Business Premium, and Intune
Microsoft 365 Business Standard and Business Premium include substantially the same productivity applications. Premium adds Intune, Conditional Access, and Defender, which constitute the identity and device controls most small and mid-size firms require. Standard remains sufficient only where those controls are not part of the operating requirement.
Intune and authentication that people will actually follow
Authentication and device management must be implemented together. Multifactor authentication, Intune enrollment of company computers, application protection on personal devices, and tested emergency administrator accounts are the controls that make Business Premium effective. Policy that users can route around is not a substitute for that design.
Using AI in software development
GitHub Copilot, Cursor, and Grok Build occupy different positions in a software delivery workflow and are not substitutes for one another. Copilot completes work in the editor already licensed; Cursor supports supervised multi-file edits; Grok Build can execute a full implementation loop from the repository. Selection among them is a function of the task rather than of a preferred brand.
Teams Phone: shared devices, desk phones, and the Teams client
Relocation of the telephone system into Microsoft Teams is not equivalent to the purchase of a handset for every desk. Most staff should place and receive public-network calls in the Teams client. Shared numbers, shared devices, and personal direct numbers are separate decisions, and hardware should be ordered against those personas rather than against headcount.
A purpose-built books app: when QuickBooks or Made2Manage is the wrong tool
Packaged accounting systems such as QuickBooks and Made2Manage fail when cash-basis posting, multiple legal entities, distributor billing, and a customer portal must coexist without a body of workarounds. A purpose-built application can hold those requirements in one design. That class of system is warranted when the package has become the work rather than the books.
Browse by topic
Microsoft 365
How small and mid-size firms should use Business Standard, Business Premium, Intune, and Entra authentication — without buying more license than they will actually run.
Security
Phishing-resistant authentication for Microsoft 365 tenants: why Authenticator push is no longer enough, how passkeys actually work, and how to migrate without locking people out.
Artificial intelligence
Practical use of AI in real delivery work: how the current coding tools compare, and what happens when the owner stays the customer.
Telecommunications
Microsoft Teams as the phone system: shared devices, dedicated handsets, and when the Teams client is enough.
Custom software
When a purpose-built app is a better answer than stretching QuickBooks, Made2Manage, or another package that was never written for how you sell.