Microsoft Azure | August 2019 updates

Microsoft Azure is the cloud computing solution that offers a vast range of services that mean the sky is the limit for businesses of any size. Its directory includes databases, backups, file storage, mobile/web app services and even full virtual machines. And, best of all, it is frequently updated by Microsoft to optimise and extend its capabilities. Here's what came in from the August 2019 updates.

High availability add-on updates

High availability is fundamental to effective production environments, and the Red Hat Enterprise Linux High Availability add-on has been improved. Users will see enhanced performance and image updates around this Azure feature, including:

• Pacemaker performance improvements
• New pay-as-you-go RHEL images
• New pay-as-you-go RHEL for SAP images

Azure reservations

New features for Microsoft Azure Reservations can help cut your Azure costs whilst easily managing reservations and creating quality internal reporting. The following features have been added:

• Pre-purchase plan for Azure Databricks
• Reservations for App Service Isolated Stamp Fee
• Automatic renewal of reservations
• Scoping of reservations to resource groups
• Enhanced usage data, helping with savings, chargeback and utilisation
• API for price and purchase reservations

Previews and Azure SDKs

You can now preview the latest Azure SDKs that follow up-to-date Azure API Guidelines/Patterns (.Net, Python, Java, JavaScript). These include various bug fixes, exciting new features and extra work guidelines adherence.

Expanded capabilities for Azure Archive Storage

Archive Storage is a scalable service for the cost-effective storage of rarely accessed data over extended time periods. So cold data that may otherwise be deleted can instead be stored here in an offline state, to be accessed later if needed. With the August update, its capabilities have been expanded for faster, simpler and better overall performance. It's all based on user feedback - Microsoft always aims to deliver on the requests of its user base.

Planning the process of migrating Hyper-V servers with Azure Migrate Server Assessment

Azure Migrate is focused on streamlining the journey of migrating to Azure. The August 2019 update has added the upgrades to Server assessment for scaled assessments of VMware and Hyper-V virtual machines. The assessments analyse the suitability of servers, estimate costs and sizing and perform dependency analysis, resulting in an assessment of your Hyper-V servers in a simple 3-step process. This is part of an ongoing evolution of Azure Migrate, helping users make the move smoothly and efficiently.

So there it is, Microsoft Azure's August 2019 updates. It is all quite technical, but your IT department will understand the ins and outs. Accessing the power of Azure cloud computing can really open up your business to a new level of capabilities, no matter the size. And with Microsoft's commitment to ongoing updates and optimisation, you can make your voice heard for tools that would benefit your business. Stay tuned for the next batch of updates.