Microsoft intends to enhance Windows' resilience in response to the 2024 IT failure.

Microsoft has announced a series of platform upgrades scheduled for July 2023, aiming to enhance operational resilience in Windows. These upgrades are part of a broader Windows overhaul announced by the tech giant in November, with the goal of building a more secure environment.

The upgrades will feature quick machine recovery and capabilities for Microsoft 365 users to access the cloud in a protected environment. David Weston, corporate vice president of enterprise and OS security at Microsoft, announced the changes in a blog post on Thursday.

The upgrades are not directly linked to the July 2024 outage, which caused significant disruptions across a wide variety of critical infrastructure providers, including emergency services, major hospitals, airlines, and banks. CrowdStrike identified a problem in their Falcon platform as the cause of the outage that affected approximately 8.5 million Windows systems.

In a bid to prevent such operational disruptions in the future, Microsoft is focusing on creating a more collaborative and transparent environment through the Microsoft Windows endpoint security program. This program encourages partnerships with security firms to drive improvements in platform resilience.

One such partnership is with CrowdStrike, where through collaboration, CrowdStrike has driven substantial improvements to the planned capabilities for WESP, paving the way for a more integrated high-performing security solution. Alex Ionescu, chief technology innovation officer at CrowdStrike, has seen significant customer interest in this effort.

Trellix, another security firm, believes that the Microsoft Windows endpoint security program will strengthen cyber resilience for all customers. Jim Treinen, senior vice president of engineering at Trellix, stated that the MVI 3.0 introduction has met all new standards, strengthening the overall ecosystem.

Microsoft met with major security firms, including CrowdStrike and Trellix, in September to discuss the overhaul. The overhaul aims to prevent software updates from causing widespread operational disruptions for enterprise customers.

The upgrades are not mentioned as a reason for Microsoft's partnership with CrowdStrike to drive substantial improvements to the planned capabilities for WESP. However, the partnership is expected to contribute to a more secure and resilient Windows platform.

Microsoft's partners have welcomed the changes, stating they will create a more secure environment for customers. The upgrades are expected to bring significant benefits, reducing potential losses due to operational disruptions and enhancing productivity for businesses worldwide.