Microsoft EA and MPSA Online Services are moving to standardised pricing. This change could impact costs and make CSP a better option for flexibility and value.
Table of Contents
VENDOR RELATIONSHIPS
CLIENT CASE STUDIES

DB Administration, Security and Compliance for First Distribution
First Distribution’s Database Administration, Security and Compliance needs lead it to trusted advisor, Ascent Technology. For any large organisation, Database Administration (DBA) is a vital part of maintaining their Data Platform Operations effectively. As it has...
Ascent Technology helps Bidfood SA migrate to Microsoft Azure
When Bidfood SA chose to modernise and migrate its data platform to Microsoft Azure, it turned to Ascent Technology for help. In a world that is digitally transforming, it is more vital than ever to an organisation’s success to utilise the latest platforms to drive...
Ascent Technology helps migrate Phumelela Gaming to Azure
A Windows Server and SQL Server consolidation, optimisation and migration to Microsoft Azure enables the company to reduce costs, modernise its data platform and boost its innovation capabilities. As an operator running two distinct betting businesses, Phumelela...
CAMPAIGNS

Prepare for SQL Server 2014 End of Support
On July 9, 2024, support for SQL Server 2014 ended. That means the end of regular security updates. Don't let your infrastructure and applications go unprotected. We're here to help you migrate to current versions for greater security, performance and innovation....
Database System Health Check Service from Ascent Technology
A Database System Health Check assesses if your Database is running optimally, and can help diagnose challenges before performance issues, and/or down time affect your users. That’s where Ascent's Database Health Check Service comes in. Our Database Health Check...
Database Security and Compliance with DB Shield
The growing number of threats to databases and unauthorised access to the data within, is clearly creating on-going headaches for CIOs. Solving these headaches may not be easy, but by asking the right questions, CIOs can begin to overcome their Database Security and...
AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

Microsoft Data and Analytics Partner of the Year Finalist
Ascent Technology continues its strong showing in the Microsoft Partner of the Year awards, as a finalist in the Data and Analytics Partner of the Year award. Finalist Data and Analytics Partner of the Year "It is always gratifying to be recognised by Microsoft as one...
NEWSFLASHES

Microsoft Tiered EA/MPSA Pricing Ends – Explore the CSP Advantage
Standardised pricing will replace Microsoft’s long-standing tiered discount model - prompting many organisations to review the CSP programme for its cost savings, licensing flexibility, and simplified management. Microsoft Tiered EA/MPSA Pricing Ends Microsoft will...
Ascent Technology’s clients benefit from Data Platform Modernisation
Facing platform ‘end of life’ issues together with increasing pressures to digitise processes, increase profitability and innovate on product and service, organisations are finding Data Platform Modernisation projects can deliver significant value by enabling IT cost...
FROM THE DESK OF THE MD

Transitioning from Microsoft EA to CSP
Explore why Microsoft is moving Enterprise Agreement (EA) clients to the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) model, and how Ascent Technology ensures a smooth, strategic transition. Key Takeaways Microsoft is shifting Enterprise Agreement (EA) customers toward the...

Building the Microsoft Cloud Foundation for AI Success
Discover how Ascent Technology’s Modernise–Optimise–Protect framework, powered by Microsoft Fabric, OneLake, and Copilot, builds secure, AI-ready platforms that unlock business value.
Key Takeways
- AI success starts with a modern, unified foundation – Microsoft Fabric provides a single, cloud-native platform built on OneLake, enabling a true “single source of truth.”
- End-to-end integration drives efficiency – Fabric unifies data movement, engineering, science, analytics, real-time intelligence, and visualisation within one environment.
- AI optimisation is built in – With Copilot, Data Activator, and Azure Machine Learning, organisations can accelerate insights and embed AI directly into decision-making.
- Governance and security are embedded from day one – Fabric integrates Purview, Defender for Cloud, Entra ID, and Key Vault to ensure compliance, trust, and protection at scale.
AI Data Platform Framework
AI success doesn’t start with models – it starts with the foundation those models rely on.
At Ascent Technology, our Modernise–Optimise–Protect framework ensures that your AI initiative is built on a secure, high-performance, and business-aligned data platform.
At the centre of this is Microsoft Fabric, a unified, SaaS-based platform powered by OneLake to provide a single source of truth, embedded governance for compliance, and seamless integration of AI capabilities.
By modernising infrastructure, optimising analytics and AI workflows, and protecting data with enterprise-grade security, we help organisations create AI-ready platforms that turn innovation into measurable business value.
Modernise
Modernisation begins by replacing fragmented, outdated systems with a unified, cloud-native environment.
In the Microsoft ecosystem, Microsoft Fabric provides the foundation for this transformation – a SaaS-based platform that brings together data movement, storage, engineering, science, analytics, and visualisation under one integrated framework.
At the heart of Fabric is OneLake, a single, open data lake that stores all information in Delta format and enables a true “single source of truth.” With OneLake and its shortcut connectors, organisations can unify data across Azure, on-premises, and even other cloud providers without duplication.
Fabric spans multiple workloads, including:
- Azure Synapse Analytics – enterprise-grade data warehousing and analytics.
- Azure Data Factory – scalable data integration and ETL pipelines.
- Power BI – business intelligence and interactive reporting.
- Azure Data Explorer – lightning-fast exploration of large datasets.
- Data Engineering and Data Science – Spark-based processing and machine learning capabilities.
- Real-Time Intelligence – streaming ingestion and event-driven analytics.
By adopting Fabric as the backbone, organisations can modernise their data platform in a way that reduces complexity, embeds governance, improves scalability, and creates an AI-ready environment for innovation.
Optimise
Once the modern platform is in place, the focus shifts to optimisation – ensuring that data, analytics, and AI workloads deliver maximum business value.
This means aligning technology capabilities with strategic priorities, improving performance, and streamlining access to insights.
Within the Microsoft Cloud, optimisation leverages:
- Power BI – Delivering real-time, interactive dashboards that make data accessible to decision-makers at every level.
- Azure Machine Learning – Enabling the rapid development, training, and deployment of AI models directly integrated with business data.
- Microsoft Fabric’s Data Activator – Automating workflows and triggering actions based on data events, turning insights into immediate outcomes.
- Azure Monitor – Providing comprehensive visibility into system performance, enabling proactive tuning and resource optimisation.
- Copilot in Fabric – Embedding generative AI directly into workloads, from data preparation to reporting, allowing users to ask natural-language questions, generate pipelines, and create visualisations without writing code.
By optimising at this stage, organisations turn raw data into actionable intelligence and empower teams with AI-driven assistance.
The result is an environment where insights are faster, decisions are smarter, and AI initiatives are not only technically successful but also commercially impactful.
Protect
No AI or analytics strategy is complete without a strong security and governance framework.
With Microsoft Fabric, governance and protection are embedded from day one. Built-in integration with Microsoft Purview ensures that data is catalogued, labelled, and access-controlled across all workloads, creating consistency and compliance without adding complexity.
Protecting data means safeguarding its integrity, ensuring compliance with regulations, and managing access so that the right people have the right information at the right time – and no one else.
Microsoft technologies central to this stage include:
- Microsoft Purview – Unified data governance, compliance management, and cataloguing across the Fabric environment and beyond.
- Microsoft Defender for Cloud – Advanced threat protection across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.
- Microsoft Entra ID – Secure identity and access management with least-privilege enforcement.
- Azure Key Vault – Safeguarding encryption keys, certificates, and secrets essential to protecting sensitive data.
By embedding these protections directly into the data platform, organisations create an AI-ready environment that meets the highest standards of security and compliance – critical for building stakeholder trust and sustaining innovation over time.
How Ascent Technology Can Help
The journey to AI success begins with a modern, optimised, and secure data foundation.
At Ascent Technology, we combine deep Microsoft expertise with a proven framework to help organisations unlock the full potential of the Microsoft Cloud.
From strategy to implementation, we ensure your platform is ready to deliver measurable business value today and in the future.
Contact Us to discuss how we can help your organisation modernise, optimise, and protect its data environment for AI success.
Also See
> Your Data Platform Partner: An Ascent Technology A to Z
> Selecting the Right Microsoft CSP for Your Business
By: Johan Lamberts