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On April 22, 2026, one day after sambaXP, the first official Himmelblau Workshop will take place in Göttingen.

At last year’s sambaXP, David Mulder presented “Azure Entra ID authentication in Samba using the Himmelblaud daemon.” 
Since then, the project has evolved rapidly and moved from technical introduction to practical deployment.

The 2026 workshop builds on that foundation and is aimed at:

• Linux system administrators
• Identity and Entra ID engineers
• Intune and device management teams
• IT professionals managing hybrid Linux environments

Participants will work hands-on with Linux clients, both with and without GUI, and configure:

• Entra ID authentication
• Multi-factor login
• Policy enforcement
• License management
• Intune-based device management

The session uses the current stable Himmelblau release. Entra ID accounts are provided, so no personal tenant or prior setup is required.

If you are responsible for integrating Linux systems with Entra ID and want to move from protocol discussion to implementation, this workshop provides a structured, practical environment.

Registration for the workshop is required and available here: sambaxp.org

From April 21–23, 2026, immediately following sambaXP, the SNIA SMB3 Interoperability (IO) Lab EMEA will take place at the Hotel Freizeit In in Göttingen, Germany.

The IO Lab is hosted by SNIA and organized by Microsoft. It provides a structured environment where vendors can bring their SMB3 implementations to test interoperability, identify issues, and resolve them collaboratively.

The objective is practical and clear: improve cross-vendor interoperability and strengthen the SMB ecosystem through direct technical collaboration.

A Hands-On Interoperability Lab 

The IO Lab is designed for hands-on testing. Participants connect their implementations to a shared infrastructure provided by SNIA and work through defined test scenarios. The testing process is jointly agreed upon by participants to ensure clear objectives and measurable results.

The environment enables focused interoperability testing using:

• The latest Windows client and server software
• Microsoft Windows protocol test suites for SMB3 validation
• Direct access to Microsoft’s Windows Protocol Support team
• Engagement with members of the Windows development team

This setup allows vendors to test against reference implementations and resolve issues in real time.

Schedule

Set-up: April 21, 2026 Testing: April 22–23, 2026 Tear-down: April 23, 2026
Each participant receives a dedicated test bench including power and network connectivity.

Please note: Participation is subject to a non-disclosure agreement. Lab access is restricted to registered attendees.

Participation

The participation fee is €350 per person and includes dinner on April 21 and breakfast and lunch on April 22–23. Registration and further logistics information are available via SNIA.

On April 20–21, 2026, the 25th sambaXP will take place in Göttingen, Germany. For those working with Samba in production environments, sambaXP remains the place where development, operations, and architecture intersect.

Early Bird tickets are only available until the end of February.
Details and registration: sambaXP.org

Where Development and Deployment Meet
sambaXP is a technical working forum. Core developers, enterprise operators, integrators, and architects meet to examine protocol evolution, deployment realities, and architectural trade-offs.

Recent milestones, including advances in Active Directory integration, authentication, and modern transports such as SMB over QUIC, show how quickly infrastructure requirements are evolving. sambaXP provides the space to discuss what comes next, from protocol-level improvements to operational scalability.

Two Days of Technical Depth
Expect focused sessions on:

• SMB3 and protocol development
• Active Directory and identity integration
• Performance, scalability, and automation
• Governance and long-term sustainability

Immediately following the conference, the SMB3 IO Lab (April 22–23) offers a dedicated environment for interoperability testing and collaborative engineering.

Call for Presentations Open – Take your chance
The Call for Presentations is open, a few spots are still available. We welcome proposals that provide technical insight, real-world deployment experience, or forward-looking architectural perspectives.

If Samba is part of your infrastructure strategy, sambaXP 2026 is where the technical direction for the coming years is discussed in depth.

This sambaXP jubilee edition is once again organized by SerNet GmbH. Special thanks to our sponsors TranquilIT and Microsoft.