Azure Weekly
Issue #438 - 1st October 2023
An end of month issue, means there are quite a few product announcements. I'm quite excited by the announcement that Azure Functions extension for Dapr is in public preview. There's also an interesting post about Infrastructure as Code Testing with Azure Policy.
In Analytics: Sending data to Synapse Real-Time Analytics in Fabric from Apache Kafka Ecosystems using Java and Parameterize your Databricks notebooks with widgets, and Azure Databricks Tables - Delta Lake, Hive Metastore, TempViews, Managed, External.
In the AI space highlights include: Azure Open AI: generate article metadata with TypeScript (I did something similar with the endjin blogs last month!), Using Azure Database for PostgreSQL as a vector store, and finally a particularly interesting use case: Revolutionizing Requirement Gathering: Azure DevOps Meets Azure OpenAI using Semantic kernel.
⚙️ AI + Machine Learning
- Lee Stott (@lee_stott) discusses Register today for Microsoft Build: AI Day in London. This free, one-day event 19th October
- Ben Roberts covers Azure MLOps Challenge Blog: Part 8
- On the Microsoft Mechanics show, Mary David Pasch describes How Microsoft 365 Copilot can work with your external data
- James Nguyen walks through Building Real-Time, Intelligent AI Copilots with Confluent Cloud, Azure OpenAI & Azure Data Services
- Mike Tholfsen discusses Azure OpenAI for Education: Prompts, AI, and a guide from Ethan and Lilach Mollick
- John Reilly (@johnny_reilly) covers Azure Open AI: generate article metadata with TypeScript
🔎 Analytics
- On Microsoft Fabric Blog, Pawel Potasinski discusses Microsoft Fabric MVP Corner – September 2023
- Salil Kanade announces SQL Projects support for Warehouse in Microsoft Fabric
- On Microsoft Fabric Blog, Alvaro Videla (@old_sound) walks through Sending data to Synapse Real-Time Analytics in Fabric from Apache Kafka Ecosystems using Java
- Meagan Longoria (@mmarie) describes how to Parameterize your Databricks notebooks with widgets
- Temidayo Omoniyi delves into Azure Databricks Tables - Delta Lake, Hive Metastore, TempViews, Managed, External
- Sam Panda blogs about Metadata driven data ingestion pipeline using the SAP CDC connector.
- Sucharita Das walks through Sending Multiple Attachments in Email from Azure Data Factory Pipeline
- Marc Bushong writes about Metadata Driven Pipelines for Dynamic Full and Incremental Processing in Azure SQL
- John Folberth (@j_folberth) covers Part 5 - Unlock the Power of Azure Data Factory: A Guide to Boosting Your Data Ingestion Process
🖥️ Compute
- The Azure Updates Team announces GA: Support for Python 3.11 in Azure Functions, and Generally Available: Azure Functions v4 Programming model for Node.js, and Public preview: Azure Functions Support for Node.js 20 and Public preview: Azure Functions extension for Dapr
- Ajay Kundnani discusses Breaking Change for VM & VMSS PowerShell/CLI Customers
- Amy Colyer describes Optimizing your Azure VMs – 3 Simple Steps to Cloud Efficiency
- Alan Kinane (@Azure_Alan) covers Using Azure Compute Gallery to help deliver a managed multi-customer desktop solution
- Madhura Bharadwaj writes about Azure Functions: Node.js v4 programming model is Generally Available
🚢 Containers
- The Azure Updates Team announces Public preview: AKS support for Kubernetes version 1.28, and GA: Node OS patching - NodeImage feature in AKS, and GA: Vertical Pod Autoscaling add-on for AKS, and GA: AKS image cleaner, and GA: Azure Container Apps in Azure China cloud, and GA: Dedicated table support for AKS diagnostics logs, and Generally Available: Artifact cache for Azure Container Registry and Generally Available: KEDA add-on for AKS
- Karol Pieciukiewicz covers Azure Container Apps – traffic splitting part 4
- Massimo Crippa (@mas_que_crippa) does a Dive into Azure Container Apps Workload Profiles
- Richard Fennell (@richardfennell) blogs about SonarQube Docker Container will not start
🗄️ Databases
- The Azure Updates Team announces Generally available: Custom partitioning in Azure Synapse Link for Azure Cosmos DB, and General availability: Azure SQL updates for late-September 2023, and Public Preview: Azure SQL Database free offer, and Public Preview: Additional cache sizes for Azure Cache for Redis Enterprise and Public preview: Azure Database for MySQL flexible maintenance
- Karla Escobar blogs about Azure Database for MariaDB is being retired on 19 September 2025
- On the Redmond magazine site, Kurt Mackie (@kurmac) covers Microsoft Ending Azure Database for MariaDB Service in 2025
- Geert Baeke (@GeertBaeke) walks through Using Azure Database for PostgreSQL as a vector store
- Kevin Gatimu (@_kevincomba) walks through Migrating Google Firebase Firestore Database to Azure Cosmos DB
- Brent Ozar (@BrentO) writes Oops, I Lost My Indexes in Azure SQL DB.
- Tyler Becker discusses Creating and Monitoring Read Replicas in Azure Postgres Flexible Server
- Paloma Garcia Martin covers Configuring backups retention for all Azure SLQ Managed instances under same subscription
- Sandro Pereira (@sandro_asp) writes a Note to myself: How to reset the Azure SQL Server adminaccountpassword
- Jose M Jurado (@jmjuradodiaz) describes lessons learned: 433:Azure SQL Pre-login Handshake Error 64:The specified network name is no longer, 434:Adjusting NSG Port Ranges:Azure SQL Manage Instance Tier Migration from GP to BC and 435:How to Know the Status of Your Azure SQL Database:Service Health-Resource Health
- Vikas Singhvi writes about New capabilities for Elastic Cloud Elasticsearch – An Azure native ISV service
🛠️ Developer Tools
- Vikas Singhvi writes about New capabilities for Elastic Cloud Elasticsearch – An Azure native ISV service
- Naveen Kumar Nooka covers Whats new in MSIX: September 2023
- On Visual Studio Magazine - Blogs, David Ramel (@dramel) covers Community Dev Gives VS Code Python Some YAPF
- Nik Karpinsky writes A unit of profiling makes the allocations go away
- Antti K. Koskela (@koskila) explains How to find out dependency versions in your .csproj files using PowerShell
🔩 DevOps
- The Azure Updates Team writes about Generally available: Azure Load Testing in Southeast Asia, Canada Central, Germany West Central and Central India
- On the Microsoft DevOps blog, Angel Wong explains how to Managed identity and service principal support for Azure DevOps now in General Availability GA and writes about New Azure DevOps scopes now available for Microsoft Identity OAuth delegated flow apps
- Dan Hellem writes about New Boards Hub Rollout Update
- Anthony Watherston blogs about Infrastructure as Code Testing with Azure Policy
- On episode 1865 of the .NET Rocks podcast, Carl Franklin (@carlfranklin) and Richard Campbell (@richcampbell) are joined by Arpil Edwards (TheAprilEdwards) to talk about Azure and GitHub
- Don Koning explains how to Achieve Code Consistency: MegaLinter Integration in Azure DevOps
- Harshitha Putta writes about Efficient Identity Management in Azure Chaos Studio for Secure Fault Injection
- Vivek Garudi blogs about Revolutionizing Requirement Gathering: Azure DevOps Meets Azure OpenAI using Semantic kernel
- Danidu Weerasinghe walks through Deploying an Automation Account with a Runbook and Schedule Using Bicep
⚙️ Hybrid + Multicloud
- Thomas Maurer (@thomasmaurer) blogs about Premier Solutions for Azure Stack HCI
🔌 Integration
- The Azure Updates Team discusses Public Preview: Azure Communication Services Job Router
- Bryan Grimm covers Azure Communications Gateway: Fall Update
- On the Microsoft Mechanics show, Jeremy Chapman and Bob Serr (@deployjeremy) explain how to Build GPT-automated customer support with Azure Communication Services
📚 Learning
- Rishona Elijah blogs about Microsoft Learn: Four key features to help expand your knowledge and advance your career
- Daniel Calbimonte covers AI-900: Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals Certification Exam Tips and Tricks
- On episode 264 of Azure DevOps podcast, Jeffrey Palermo (@jeffreypalermo) is joined by Jimmy Bogard to talk about .NET 7 and Azure Modernization
⚖️ Management and Governance
- Akanksha Agrawal writes about Generally available: Secure critical infrastructure from accidental deletions at scale with Policy
- Panu Oksala provides Five Tips and Tricks for Application Monitoring with Application Insights
- Issa Khoury provides a Skilling snack: Cloud-based printing with Universal Print
- Billy York (@SCAutomation) explains how to Query Azure Resource Graph from Log Analytics
- Vivek Garudi walks through Running natural language queries against Log analytics using Semantic function
🌐 Networking
- The Azure Updates Team announces General availability: Domain fronting update on Azure Front Door and Azure CDN and General availability: Gateway Load Balancer IPv6 Support
- Felipe Binotto provides Azure Firewall Tips from the Field
- George Bittencourt walks through Optimizing Azure Firewall logging costs
- Danidu Weerasinghe writes Ever Been Baffled About How to Auto-Cleanup AzureBastionSharable Links.
🔐 Security
- Mariano Titanti writes about New Tools to Elevate Video Security
- Sean Wesonga blogs about Enriching Anomali and Other TIPS with MDTI Feeds
- On episode 205 of the Ctrl+Alt+Azure podcast, Tobias Zimmergren & Jussi Roine (@CtrlAltAzure) refelect on relevant skills to work with security in Azure
📦 Storage
- The Azure Updates Team writes about Generally available: Zone Redundant Storage for Azure Disks is now available in more regions
- Charbel Nemnom (@charbelnemnom) proivdes an Azure Storage Mover Comprehensive Guide – A New Way To Migrate To Azure File Shares
🔗 Web
- The Azure Updates Team announces Ungated Public Preview: Azure API Center
- Hang Wang explains how to Build and deploy your full-stack Spring app with JHipster Azure Spring Apps
- Denver Brittain writes about Recently Announced: Advanced Clustering Features for JBoss EAP on Azure App Service
- On Code Project, Nish Nishant explains Exiting an Azure WebJob programmatically and describes How to get Azure WebJobs logging to Application Insights
⚙️ Azure Virtual Desktop
- Derek Liu discusses Windows 365 Boot is now generally available
- Ben Murphy talks about Azure Virtual Desktop Insights Powered by the Azure Monitor Agent