Azure updates

Log search alert rules using linked storage will require using a managed identity staring July 2024

Starting July 2024, alert rules using linked storage will require a managed identity to access the linked storage. This requirement will be enforced on alert rules created with API version 2023-12-01 or newer. Creating or updating linked storage rules using an older API version will be blocked.

• Alerts
• Security
• Features
• Compliance

General Availability: Audit logging in Azure API Management developer portal

Target availability: Q2 2024

We are excited to announce that audit logging for user actions in the Azure API Management developer portal is now generally available. API administrators and managers can now enable a diagnostic setting in Azure API Management to send developer portal audit logs to a storage account, event hub, or Log Analytics workspace.

• API Management
• Features

Public Preview: Analyze data using Log Analytics Simple mode

Azure Monitor Logs is excited to introduce the next leap in log experience: Simple mode.  Simple Mode allows users to utilize Azure Monitor Logs in a simple, point-and-click experience, eliminating the need for KQL for most common use cases. 

• Azure Monitor
• Log Analytics
• Microsoft Build
• Features

Feature Update: Azure Action Groups

Customers using action groups with the notification type Email Resource Manager Role may see that different or more users are getting emails than were previously.

• Azure Monitor
• Action Groups
• Services
• Features

Public preview: Azure Load Balancer now supports Admin State

Override Azure Load Balancer’s health probe behavior on a per backend pool instance basis using the new Load Balancer Admin State feature to make taking your VM out of rotation for maintenance easy.

• Load Balancer
• Features

Public preview: Azure NetApp Files support for Active Directory connection per NetApp account

Azure NetApp Files support for one Active Directory connection per NetApp account now enables connecting a NetApp account to its own distinct Active Directory Forest and Domain. Azure NetApp Files can now be used with more than one Active Directory Forest and Domain in a region under a subscription.

• Azure NetApp Files
• Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD)
• Security
• Features

Azure Virtual Network Manager’s virtual network verifier is now in public preview

Azure Virtual Network Manager’s virtual network verifier feature is now in public preview, enabling you to check if your network policies allow or disallow traffic between your Azure network resources.

• Azure Virtual Network Manager
• Security
• Services
• Management
• Features

Public preview: Azure Bastion Premium

Azure Bastion Premium SKU secures customers’ highly sensitive workloads with advanced monitoring and security features

• Azure Bastion
• Security
• Services
• Features

Public Preview: Kubernetes Metadata and Logs Filtering in Azure Monitor - Container Insights

Target availability: Q2 2024

Kubernetes Metadata and Logs Filtering is now in Public Preview. Gain richer context and improved visibility into their workloads!

• Azure Monitor
• Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
• Azure Managed Grafana
• Microsoft Build
• Features

General Availability: Azure NetApp Files backup

Azure NetApp Files backup expands the data protection capabilities of Azure NetApp Files by providing fully managed backup solution for long-term snapshot archive, recovery, and compliance.

• Azure NetApp Files
• Pricing & Offerings
• Features

Public preview: Azure Load Balancer health event logs

Azure Load Balancer now supports health event logs to help you identify and troubleshoot ongoing issues affecting your load balancer resource’s health.

• Load Balancer
• Services
• Features

Generally Available: Azure Chaos Studio supports a new Pause Process fault for Windows virtual machines

Azure Chaos Studio supports a new Pause Process fault for Windows virtual machines.

• Services
• Features

Public preview: Advanced Container Networking Services for Azure Kubernetes Services (AKS)

Advanced Container Networking Services for Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a suite of services that tackles observability, security, and compliance challenges in your containerized applications. Gain deep insights with Advanced Network Observability, our first feature of the suite that unlocks Hubble metrics, CLI, and UI for powerful traffic monitoring and performance optimization.

• Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
• Network Watcher
• Security
• Services
• Management
• Features
• Compliance

General availability: Azure NetApp Files support for large volumes up to 500TiB in size

You can now create Azure NetApp Files large volumes between 50TiB to 500TiB in size.

• Azure NetApp Files
• SDK and Tools
• Regions & Datacenters
• Features

General availability: Activity log alerts can now run in EU Data Boundary

Activity log alert rules can now be saved in European regions, ensuring the alert metadata and processing remains within EU Data Boundary. 

• Azure Monitor
• Features
• Compliance

General Availability: VM Hibernation for General Purpose VMs

Hibernate VMs when not in use to save compute costs, while persisting the in-memory state.

• Virtual Machines
• Features

General Availability: Azure API Center Extension for VS Code

Target availability: Q2 2024

The Azure API Center extension for Visual Studio Code is now generally available. You can use this extension to build, discover, try, and consume APIs in your API center. 

• API Management
• Features

Public Preview: Azure HDInsight on AKS is now available for preview in 6 new regions

Azure HDInsight on AKS is a modern, reliable, secure, and fully managed Platform as a Service (PaaS) that runs on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). HDInsight on AKS allows you to deploy popular Open-Source Analytics workloads like Apache Spark™, Apache Flink®️, and Trino without the overhead of managing and monitoring containers. For more information about Azure HDInsight on AKS, see the documentation

• HDInsight on AKS
• Regions & Datacenters
• Open Source
• Features