Microsoft adds enterprise data from Salesforce, others to Windows search bar

Microsoft has announced new data sources are coming to the Windows search bar, giving business users personalized results from Microsoft and third-party enterprise tools.

The Windows search bar, located at the bottom left-hand side of a Windows’ screen, is typically used to search for apps, files, or folders located locally on a machine or to find answers to general questions from the web. But when users are signed in with an Azure Active Directory account, Microsoft’s cloud-based identity and access management (IAM) service, they can use the search bar to search through additional sources, such as conversations in Microsoft Teams or data on SharePoint sites.

Moving forward, company admins will be able to configure new connections to Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, and Microsoft SQL Server, among others, allowing employees to search for more enterprise content directly from their desktops.

Microsoft made the announcement at its annual developer-focused Build conference, which was hosted virtually today for the second year running.