A bit of news has been made recently that I thought was worth packaging up into a post. As Lync Server 2013 Preview gets more use out in the field and we edge closer to RTM, more exposure is being generated for the product around the world in the lead up. Here’s what’s happened in the last 2-3 weeks that you should be aware of.

Lync Server 2013 VDI Plugin

Support for VDI was announced when the Preview was released, but the required bits weren’t available right away. They are now, so you can test-drive using Lync over RDP. I’ve had a chance to give it a go and it’s quite impressive to see the media being redirected to the local machine rather than staying in the remote desktop session. Download the plugin here and learn how to deploy it here.

Lync on Windows 8

Announced as part of a post on the Lync Team Blog, we now know that a Lync app is coming for Windows 8.

Image: Microsoft

It’s going to be optimised for touch to run on Windows 8 RT and Pro, and will support all Lync functionality like voice and video, online meetings and of course IM/Presence. Can’t wait to get my hands on a Microsoft Surface when they come out to give this a go.

TechEd Australia 2012 Lync Videos

Ah I remember TechEd Australia.. The last one I went to was in 2008 in Sydney and it was always great to see the UC folks and learn about what was OCS 2007 R2 back then. Lync 2013 was covered in a few great sessions, and the videos are available online to view:

• Lync 2013 Architecture (EXL314) – here
• Lync 2013 Meeting Improvements (EXL316) – here
• Lync 2013 Deployment (EXL321) – here
• Lync 2013 Voice Improvements (EXL325) – here
• Demystifying Integration of Lync to your Existing PABX (EXL231) – here
• Lync 2013 and Enterprise Networking (EXL334) – here

Microsoft Lync Conference

And last but not least, to compete with those Exchange guys at MEC, there’s now got a completely Lync focused conference to attend next year!

It’ll be in San Diego on February 18th-21st and looks primed to be chock-full of great content from the product group themselves and also fellow MVPs. If you work with Lync either as an administrator or as a specialist, this is not to be missed. Unfortunately I’m unable to attend, but can’t wait to hear about how it goes. Registration and more info here