Azure Updates
2026-03-18
The Emissions Impact Dashboard for Azure, hosted by Power BI, will be retired on March 31, 2027. After that date, it will no longer be accessible and technical support will end.
Azure Red Hat OpenShift now generally supports managed identities and workload identities. This lets clusters and applications run on Azure without long-lived service principal credentials.
Azure SQL received mid-March 2026 updates including direct publishing of SQL database projects from Visual Studio Code and the ability to view and edit SQL table data directly in MSSQ.
GitHub Copilot is now generally available in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22. It adds AI-powered assistance inside SSMS, including natural-language help to develop, explain, and fix SQL-related tasks.
Azure announced a public preview of SQL MCP Server, an MCP connector for production databases. It is part of Data API Builder and is intended to provide a simple, predictable, and secure way to connect AI agents to data workflows.
The MSSQL extension for Visual Studio Code adds a public preview of GitHub Copilot integration in Schema Designer. This expands the visual schema design workflow with AI-assisted help based on developer feedback.
SQL Database Projects are now in public preview in SSMS, bringing schema-as-code workflows for database development. The preview supports source-controlled schemas, repeatable deployments, and code quality checks in the development process.
Azure SQL Database now supports versionless keys for transparent data encryption (TDE). This removes the need to reference a specific key version in Azure Key Vault or Managed HSM, simplifying customer-managed key setup and reducing maintenance.
Azure Databricks has launched a Lakeflow Connect Free Tier in Azure Databricks. Each workspace gets 100 free DBUs per day for ingestion from SaaS applications and databases, which is described as supporting roughly 100 million records per workspace per day.
The MSSQL extension for Visual Studio Code adds Data API builder in public preview with built-in GitHub Copilot integration. It provides a guided experience for generating backend APIs directly in the development workflow.
2026-03-17
Microsoft announced general availability of the next-generation Foundry Agent Service. It introduces a redesigned API format and runtime experience for building and operating agents from prototype to production.
Azure WAF has made Default Rule Set (DRS) 2.2 generally available on Azure Application Gateway and Azure Front Door. The managed ruleset support policy is being updated to reflect this release and provide more predictable support guidance.