Generated on: September 03, 2025 Target period: Within the last 24 hours Processing mode: Details Mode Number of updates: 6 items
Published: September 02, 2025 18:45:30 UTC Link: Retirement: Confidential VM SKUs DCesv5, DCedsv5, ECesv5, ECedsv5 SKUs
Update ID: 502039 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Compute, Virtual Machines, Retirements, Services
Summary:
What was updated
Microsoft announced the retirement of the Confidential VM SKUs DCesv5, DCedsv5, ECesv5, and ECedsv5. These SKUs will be replaced by the next-generation Confidential VM sizes DCesv6 and ECesv6.
Key changes or new features
The new DCesv6 and ECesv6 SKUs represent an upgrade over the retired versions, offering improved performance, enhanced security features, and better hardware capabilities tailored for confidential computing workloads. The DCesv6 and ECesv6 SKUs are currently in public preview, enabling developers and IT professionals to test and validate their applications on the latest confidential VM technology.
Target audience affected
Developers and IT professionals who deploy confidential computing workloads on Azure using the DCesv5, DCedsv5, ECesv5, or ECedsv5 VM SKUs will be affected. They need to plan migration to the DCesv6 and ECesv6 SKUs to continue receiving support and leverage improved capabilities.
Important notes if any
Users should begin transitioning workloads to the DCesv6 and ECesv6 SKUs ahead of the retirement date to avoid service disruption. Testing in the public preview environment is recommended to ensure compatibility and performance benefits. Detailed timelines for the retirement and migration guidance are available in the official Azure update link.
Details:
Microsoft has announced the retirement of the Confidential VM SKUs DCesv5, DCedsv5, ECesv5, and ECedsv5, which will be replaced by the next-generation Confidential VM SKUs DCesv6 and ECesv6. This update reflects Microsoft’s ongoing effort to enhance confidential computing capabilities on Azure by providing improved security, performance, and compliance features in virtual machines designed to protect sensitive data in use.
Background and Purpose of the Update
Confidential VMs on Azure leverage hardware-based Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs), such as Intel SGX or AMD SEV, to ensure data confidentiality and integrity while it is processed in memory. The DCesv5 and ECesv5 series were among the earlier Confidential VM SKUs that enabled customers to run sensitive workloads with enhanced security guarantees. However, as confidential computing technology evolves, Microsoft is retiring these older SKUs to focus on the newer DCesv6 and ECesv6 SKUs, which incorporate advancements in hardware and software security, better performance, and expanded capabilities. This transition encourages customers to migrate to the latest VM sizes to benefit from improved security assurances and operational efficiencies.
Specific Features and Detailed Changes
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation Methods
Confidential VMs use hardware-based TEEs to create isolated execution environments within the CPU, preventing unauthorized access to data even from privileged system software or cloud administrators. The v6 SKUs leverage the latest generation of these TEEs, such as AMD SEV-SNP or Intel TDX, which provide stronger guarantees against attacks like memory snooping, replay attacks, and privilege escalation. Migration to the new SKUs involves redeploying workloads on the updated VM sizes and ensuring compatibility with the updated confidential computing SDKs and attestation services. Azure’s attestation services continue to provide cryptographic proof of the VM’s trusted state, enabling secure key provisioning and workload authentication.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios
Important Considerations and Limitations
Published: September 02, 2025 18:00:44 UTC Link: Retirement: Azure CDN – Migrate to Azure Front Door on December 1, 2025
Update ID: 501174 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Networking, Security, Azure Front Door, Retirements
Summary:
What was updated
Microsoft announced the retirement of Azure CDN services operated by 21Vianet in China, effective December 1, 2025.
Key changes or new features
Azure CDN in China, which relies on local CDN providers’ Points of Presence (POPs), will no longer be available after the retirement date. Customers must migrate their CDN workloads to Azure Front Door, which offers global application delivery and security features.
Target audience affected
This update impacts all Azure customers using Azure CDN services within the China region operated by 21Vianet, including developers managing content delivery and IT professionals responsible for network and application infrastructure.
Important notes if any
Customers should plan and execute migration to Azure Front Door well before the December 1, 2025 deadline to avoid service disruption. Azure Front Door provides enhanced capabilities such as global load balancing, SSL offloading, and web application firewall integration, making it a recommended replacement. Review migration guidance and test thoroughly to ensure seamless transition.
Reference: https://azure.microsoft.com/updates?id=501174
Details:
The announced retirement of Azure CDN operated by 21Vianet in China, effective December 1, 2025, mandates that all customers currently using Azure CDN within the China region transition to Azure Front Door, reflecting Microsoft’s strategic consolidation of its global content delivery and application acceleration services.
Background and Purpose:
Azure CDN in China, delivered through partnerships with local CDN providers under 21Vianet’s operation, has served as a content delivery solution optimized for the Chinese market. The retirement aligns with Microsoft’s effort to unify its edge and application delivery capabilities under Azure Front Door, which offers enhanced performance, security, and global scalability. This migration aims to provide customers with a more integrated, feature-rich platform that simplifies management and improves user experience.
Specific Features and Detailed Changes:
Azure Front Door is a modern, scalable, and secure application delivery network that combines global load balancing, SSL offloading, web application firewall (WAF), and application acceleration. Unlike Azure CDN, which primarily focuses on static content caching, Azure Front Door supports dynamic site acceleration, SSL termination, URL-based routing, session affinity, and enhanced security features. The retirement means that customers will no longer be able to provision or manage Azure CDN endpoints in China after the cutoff date and must migrate existing workloads to Azure Front Door to maintain content delivery and application acceleration services.
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation Methods:
Migration involves reconfiguring endpoints and routing rules from Azure CDN to Azure Front Door. Azure Front Door uses Anycast IP addresses and a global network of edge POPs, including those in China operated by 21Vianet, to deliver low-latency content and route traffic intelligently. Customers will need to recreate CDN endpoint configurations as Front Door frontend hosts and backend pools, define routing rules, and configure WAF policies if applicable. DNS updates will be necessary to point to the new Front Door endpoints. Azure Front Door supports integration with Azure Traffic Manager and Azure Application Gateway for hybrid routing and advanced security scenarios.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios:
Azure Front Door is suitable for scenarios requiring global load balancing, secure application delivery, and dynamic content acceleration. Typical use cases include e-commerce platforms, media streaming, SaaS applications, and APIs that demand high availability and low latency. Customers currently leveraging Azure CDN for static content caching in China will benefit from Front Door’s additional capabilities such as SSL offloading and WAF protection, enhancing both performance and security.
Important Considerations and Limitations:
Integration with Related Azure Services:
Azure Front Door integrates natively with Azure Monitor for telemetry, Azure Security Center for threat detection, and Azure Active Directory for access control. It can be combined with Azure Web Application Firewall for enhanced security and Azure Traffic Manager for DNS-based traffic routing. Additionally, Azure Front Door supports integration with Azure DevOps and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools for automated deployment and management.
In summary, the retirement of Azure CDN in China operated by 21Vianet requires customers to migrate to Azure Front Door by December 1, 2025, to leverage a unified, secure, and scalable application delivery platform that enhances performance and security while aligning with Microsoft’s global Azure networking strategy.
Published: September 02, 2025 17:00:13 UTC Link: Generally Available: Playwright Workspaces in Azure App Testing
Update ID: 501953 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Launched, Developer tools, DevOps, Azure Load Testing, Features
Summary:
What was updated
Azure App Testing now generally supports Playwright Workspaces.
Key changes or new features
Playwright Workspaces enables running highly parallelized end-to-end tests across multiple browsers and devices. This capability helps validate application functionality efficiently by scaling test execution and covering diverse environments simultaneously.
Target audience affected
Developers and QA engineers focusing on automated UI testing, as well as IT professionals responsible for application quality assurance and release pipelines.
Important notes if any
The general availability of Playwright Workspaces means it is production-ready and supported for integration into existing Azure App Testing workflows. Leveraging this feature can significantly reduce testing time and improve confidence in cross-browser and cross-device compatibility. For detailed usage and integration guidance, refer to the official Azure documentation.
Details:
The recent general availability of Playwright Workspaces in Azure App Testing introduces a robust capability designed to enhance automated end-to-end testing by enabling high parallelization of test executions across multiple browsers and devices. This update addresses the growing need for scalable, cross-platform functional validation in modern application development and deployment pipelines.
Background and Purpose
As applications increasingly target diverse environments—ranging from desktop browsers to mobile devices—ensuring consistent functionality across these platforms is critical. Playwright, an open-source testing framework from Microsoft, supports automated testing for Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit browsers. Integrating Playwright Workspaces into Azure App Testing provides a managed, cloud-based environment that simplifies running large-scale, parallelized Playwright tests. The purpose is to accelerate test execution, improve coverage, and reduce the complexity of managing test infrastructure.
Specific Features and Detailed Changes
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation Methods
Playwright Workspaces leverage containerized test agents orchestrated by Azure App Testing’s backend services. When a test run is initiated, the system dynamically allocates resources to spin up isolated environments configured with the required browser engines and device emulators. Tests written in Playwright scripts are dispatched to these environments, executed in parallel, and results aggregated centrally. The platform supports test artifacts collection, including logs, screenshots, and videos, facilitating detailed analysis. Authentication and access control are managed via Azure Active Directory, ensuring secure and compliant operations.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios
Important Considerations and Limitations
Integration with Related Azure Services
Published: September 02, 2025 17:00:13 UTC Link: Generally Available: Azure Ultra Disk Price Reduction in UK South
Update ID: 499411 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Launched, Storage, Azure Disk Storage, Features, Pricing & Offerings
Summary:
What was updated
Azure Ultra Disk storage pricing has been reduced and is now generally available in the UK South region.
Key changes or new features
The update introduces a price reduction for Ultra Disks, Azure’s highest-performance block storage option, which delivers consistent low sub-millisecond latency and extremely high throughput and IOPS. This makes Ultra Disks more cost-effective for workloads requiring ultra-low latency and high I/O performance.
Target audience affected
Developers and IT professionals running latency-sensitive and high-performance enterprise applications on Azure VMs in the UK South region will benefit from lower storage costs while maintaining premium disk performance.
Important notes if any
The price reduction applies specifically to the UK South region. Ultra Disks remain ideal for demanding production workloads such as databases, analytics, and transaction-heavy applications that require consistent high performance. Users should review their storage configurations to optimize costs with the new pricing.
For more details, visit: https://azure.microsoft.com/updates?id=499411
Details:
The recent Azure update announces the general availability of a price reduction for Azure Ultra Disk storage in the UK South region, enhancing cost efficiency for enterprises leveraging high-performance block storage on Azure virtual machines (VMs). Azure Ultra Disks are designed to deliver consistent sub-millisecond latency and extremely high throughput and IOPS, making them suitable for mission-critical workloads requiring top-tier storage performance.
Background and Purpose of the Update
Azure Ultra Disks provide some of the highest-performing persistent storage options in Azure, targeting workloads such as databases, SAP HANA, and transaction-heavy applications that demand low latency and high IOPS. Historically, the cost of Ultra Disks has been a consideration for customers balancing performance and budget. This update reduces the price of Ultra Disks specifically in the UK South region, aiming to make ultra-high-performance storage more accessible and cost-effective for customers operating in that geography, thereby encouraging adoption and optimizing total cost of ownership (TCO).
Specific Features and Detailed Changes
The core feature of this update is a price reduction on Ultra Disk storage in UK South, without changes to the technical capabilities or performance characteristics of the disks. Ultra Disks continue to offer:
The update does not introduce new features but improves the economic aspect, enabling customers to run demanding workloads more cost-effectively.
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation Methods
Ultra Disks are implemented using Azure’s high-performance storage infrastructure, leveraging NVMe SSDs and a distributed storage architecture to deliver consistent performance. Customers provision Ultra Disks via the Azure portal, CLI, or ARM templates, specifying the desired size, IOPS, and throughput independently. The disks attach to supported VM sizes that expose Ultra Disk capabilities. The price reduction is reflected automatically in billing for Ultra Disk usage in the UK South region, requiring no configuration changes from customers.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios
Ultra Disks are ideal for:
With the price reduction, customers in UK South can optimize costs while maintaining these demanding performance levels.
Important Considerations and Limitations
Integration with Related Azure Services
Ultra Disks integrate seamlessly with Azure VMs that support them, including the latest generation of compute instances optimized for storage-intensive workloads. They also work with Azure Backup and Azure Site Recovery services, although snapshot and backup operations may have specific constraints due to the high-performance nature of Ultra Disks. Additionally, Ultra Disks can be used in conjunction with Azure Monitor for performance and health monitoring, enabling proactive management of storage resources.
In summary, the general availability of a price reduction for Azure Ultra Disks in the UK South region enables enterprises to leverage ultra-low latency and high-throughput block storage at a lower cost, facilitating the deployment of demanding workloads with improved cost efficiency while maintaining the same high-performance
Published: September 02, 2025 17:00:13 UTC Link: Generally Available: Azure Ultra Disk Price Reduction in Central US
Update ID: 499406 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Launched, Storage, Azure Disk Storage, Features, Pricing & Offerings
Summary:
What was updated
Azure Ultra Disk storage pricing has been reduced in the Central US region.
Key changes or new features
The update introduces a price reduction for Ultra Disks, which are Azure’s highest-performance block storage offering. Ultra Disks provide consistent low sub-millisecond latency and extremely high throughput and IOPS, making them suitable for demanding enterprise workloads.
Target audience affected
This update primarily benefits developers and IT professionals managing performance-sensitive applications and virtual machines in the Central US region that rely on Ultra Disk storage for high I/O performance.
Important notes if any
The price reduction applies specifically to the Central US region and can help optimize storage costs for workloads requiring ultra-low latency and high throughput. Users should evaluate their storage needs to leverage Ultra Disks cost-effectively. No changes to performance or features were announced—only pricing adjustments.
For more details, visit: https://azure.microsoft.com/updates?id=499406
Details:
The recent Azure update announces a general availability price reduction for Azure Ultra Disk storage in the Central US region, enhancing cost efficiency for enterprises leveraging Azure’s highest-performance block storage option. Azure Ultra Disks are designed to deliver consistent sub-millisecond latency and extremely high throughput and IOPS, making them suitable for mission-critical workloads requiring ultra-low latency and high I/O performance.
Background and Purpose:
Azure Ultra Disk Storage targets workloads that demand the utmost in storage performance, such as SAP HANA, top-tier databases, and transaction-heavy applications. Historically, Ultra Disks have been priced at a premium due to their advanced capabilities. This update reduces the cost in the Central US region, aligning pricing more competitively and enabling broader adoption by reducing the total cost of ownership for performance-sensitive applications.
Specific Features and Detailed Changes:
The core features of Ultra Disks remain unchanged: they provide scalable performance with configurable IOPS (up to 160,000 IOPS per disk), throughput (up to 2,000 MB/s per disk), and capacity (up to 64 TiB per disk). The update specifically lowers the price per provisioned GiB and per provisioned IOPS/throughput unit in Central US, without impacting the performance tiers or SLA guarantees. This price reduction applies to both new and existing Ultra Disk deployments in that region.
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation Methods:
Ultra Disks use a distributed, software-defined storage architecture that separates storage performance from capacity, allowing independent scaling. Performance parameters (IOPS and throughput) are provisioned alongside capacity, and the billing model reflects these provisions. The price reduction is implemented at the billing layer for the Central US region, requiring no changes to existing disk configurations or VM attachments. Customers continue to manage Ultra Disks via Azure Portal, CLI, PowerShell, or ARM templates, with no operational impact from the pricing update.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios:
Ultra Disks are ideal for latency-sensitive and I/O-intensive workloads such as:
Important Considerations and Limitations:
Integration with Related Azure Services:
Ultra Disks integrate seamlessly with Azure Virtual Machines, especially those optimized for high I/O workloads. They can be managed alongside other Azure storage options like Premium SSDs and Standard SSDs, allowing hybrid storage architectures. Azure Monitor and Azure Advisor provide metrics and recommendations to optimize Ultra Disk usage. Additionally, Ultra Disks can be used with Azure Backup and Azure Site Recovery for data protection and disaster recovery strategies.
In summary, the general availability price reduction for Azure Ultra Disks in Central US enhances the economic viability of deploying ultra-low latency, high-throughput storage for demanding enterprise workloads, without altering the underlying performance capabilities or management experience, thereby enabling IT professionals to optimize both performance and cost in their cloud infrastructure.
Published: September 02, 2025 17:00:13 UTC Link: Generally Available: Azure Ultra Disk Price Reduction in West US 2
Update ID: 499401 Data source: Azure Updates API
Categories: Launched, Storage, Azure Disk Storage, Pricing & Offerings, Features
Summary:
What was updated
Azure Ultra Disk pricing has been reduced in the West US 2 region.
Key changes or new features
The update introduces a price reduction for Ultra Disks, Azure’s highest-performance block storage option. Ultra Disks provide consistent sub-millisecond latency and extremely high throughput and IOPS, making them suitable for the most demanding enterprise workloads.
Target audience affected
Developers and IT professionals running latency-sensitive, high-performance applications on Azure VMs in West US 2 will benefit from lower storage costs without compromising performance.
Important notes if any
This price reduction applies specifically to the West US 2 region. Ultra Disks remain ideal for workloads requiring ultra-low latency and high throughput, such as databases, analytics, and transaction-heavy applications. Users should review their storage configurations to optimize cost savings.
For more details, visit: https://azure.microsoft.com/updates?id=499401
Details:
The recent Azure update announces the general availability of a price reduction for Azure Ultra Disk storage in the West US 2 region, enhancing cost efficiency for high-performance block storage workloads. Azure Ultra Disks provide the highest throughput and lowest latency storage option for Azure virtual machines (VMs), delivering consistent sub-millisecond latency and extremely high IOPS and throughput, which are critical for demanding enterprise applications such as databases, big data analytics, and transaction-heavy workloads.
Background and Purpose:
Azure Ultra Disks are designed to meet the performance requirements of I/O-intensive applications that require predictable low latency and high throughput. Historically, Ultra Disks have been priced at a premium due to their advanced capabilities. This update reduces the cost of Ultra Disks in the West US 2 region, making ultra-high-performance storage more accessible and cost-effective for enterprises deploying latency-sensitive and throughput-intensive workloads in this geography.
Specific Features and Changes:
Technical Mechanisms and Implementation:
Azure Ultra Disks leverage a distributed storage architecture optimized for NVMe-based SSDs, providing configurable performance parameters: IOPS, throughput (MB/s), and capacity (GiB). Customers can dynamically adjust these parameters via the Azure portal, CLI, or REST API without detaching the disk, enabling seamless performance tuning. The price reduction is implemented at the billing layer for resources provisioned in West US 2, requiring no action from users to benefit from the new pricing.
Use Cases and Application Scenarios:
Important Considerations and Limitations:
Integration with Related Azure Services:
In summary, the general availability of a price reduction for Azure Ultra Disks in West US 2 significantly lowers the cost barrier for deploying ultra-high-performance block storage in this region, enabling enterprises to optimize their storage spend while maintaining the exceptional low latency and high throughput characteristics essential for mission-critical applications. This update requires no configuration changes and integrates fully with existing Azure VM and management tooling, making it a straightforward cost optimization opportunity for eligible workloads
This report was automatically generated - 2025-09-03 03:03:01 UTC