Azure IoT News – September 2021 by Think About IoT

Azure IoT News is here for one more month! Let’s take a look at the news of September 2021 together.

Week 1-5/9

🔸 The first news is about Windows Server IoT 2022.

Windows Server IoT 2022 is now generally available and is designed to support fixed appliances in large-scale compute connections or storage workloads where processing on the edge is required for latency, bandwidth, cost, data residency, or privacy requirements.

 Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/windows-server-iot-2022-now-generally-available/

Related to IoT Azure news:

🔸 The next is about Azure Machine Learning.

Azure Machine Learning is now available in both Japan East and Japan West region! It is providing high service availability to accelerate the end-to-end machine learning lifecycle.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-machine-learning-now-generally-available-in-japan-west/

🔸 And the last news about this week is about Azure API Management updates.

Azure API Management updates are now generally available!

It includes new features, bug fixes, and changes, along with other improvements.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/general-availability-azure-api-management-updates-august-2021/

Week 6-12/9

🔸 The only news for this week is about Azure Sphere OS! 

Azure Sphere OS version 21.09 is now available for evaluation in the Retail Evaluation feed.

The retail evaluation period provides 14 days for backwards compatibility testing. During this time, please verify that your applications and devices operate properly with this release before it is deployed broadly to devices in the Retail feed. The Retail feed will continue to deliver OS version 21.08 until we publish 21.09 there in two weeks.

This evaluation release of 21.09 includes enhancements and bug fixes for the OS only (it doesn’t include an updated SDK).

Areas of special focus for compatibility testing with the 21.09 release include apps and functionality utilizing:

• crash handling
• kernel services
• device drivers

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/general-availability-azure-sphere-os-version-2109-expected-on-sept-22/

Week 13-19/9

🔸 This week’s first news is about Azure IoT Central.

Azure IoT Central has some new and updated features.

• Support for building multitenant solutions

• Connection state now shown in device details

• Hovercard experience for devices

• REST API surface 1.1-preview refresh

• Documentation 

• Support for regional deployments

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-iot-central-new-and-updated-features-august-2021/

Related to IoT Azure news:

🔸  Microsoft has some announcements for this month about the Azure Machine Learning public preview.

Multiple Private Endpoint for Workspace establishes the private endpoint integration between private link-enabled workspaces.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-machine-learning-preview-announcements-sep-2021/

🔸  A new version 4.0 of the Azure Cosmos DB Azure Functions extension is now supported in preview and is based on the latest version 3.x of the Azure Cosmos DB .NET SDK!

This latest version allows you to:

• authenticate with Azure Active Directory
• remove your dependency on using a primary key

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-cosmos-db-azure-functions-extension-version-40-in-public-preview/  

🔸  Public preview of v4 Cosmos DB extensions for Azure Functions is now ready!

The extension provides:

• new behavior for Cosmos DB triggers
• input bindings
• output bindings

It is built upon the Cosmos DB v3 SDK and includes performance benefits, support for identity-based connections, and a newer type for .NET functions.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/public-preview-of-v4-cosmos-db-extensions-for-azure-functions/

🔸 Last but not least, 3 new regions for customers are now generally available in Azure Stream Analytics.

These 3 new regions are:

• Switzerland North
• South Africa North
• West US 3

Stream Analytics is now available in 36 Azure regions worldwide.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-stream-analytics-3-new-regions-are-now-generally-available/

Week 20-26/9

🔸 Azure Sphere OS version 21.09 is now available. 

This quality release includes bug fixes in the Azure Sphere OS.

Updates to the Azure Sphere OS include:

• upgraded Linux Kernel to 5.10.60
• improvements to crash handling to prevent hangs

If your devices are connected to the internet, they will receive the updated OS from the cloud.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/general-availability-azure-sphere-os-version-2109/

Related to IoT News:

🔸 Azure Functions runtime 4.0 is now in public preview, supporting the following language/runtime versions:

• .NET 6.0 (in-process and isolated process)
• Node.js 14
• Python 3.7, 3.8, 3.9
• Java 8, 11
• PowerShell 7.0
• Custom Handlers

Azure Functions 4.0 is expected to reach general availability in November 2021, coinciding with the planned GA release of .NET 6.0.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-functions-runtime-40-is-now-in-public-preview/

🔸 Distributed tracing for Java apps on Azure Functions on Linux is now in public preview, too.

This update allows you to view richer data from your functions applications, including, requests, dependencies, logs, and metrics.

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/public-preview-distributed-tracing-for-java-apps-on-azure-functions-linux/

Week 27-30/9

🔸 The last week of this month is here with great news.

Azure IoT middleware for FreeRTOS is now in general availability!

Azure IoT middleware for FreeRTOS:

• offers a proper SDK, that exposes the APIs, when devices connect to Azure
• is maintained and supported by Microsoft
• is an open-source project
• allows adaptation to a number of different hardware combinations

Read more here: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/updates/azure-iot-middleware-for-freertos-in-general-availability/

That’s all folks! 👋 

Have a wonderful & productive time! 🙂 

If you have any questions, please reach out! 

P.S. This article will be updated every single week for this month, so don’t forget to check it again when September will come to the end.

You can also be informed about Azure IoT News for August 2021 here: https://www.thinkaboutiot.com/index.php/2021/08/13/azure-iot-news-august-2021-by-think-about-iot/, and about Azure IoT News for October 2021 here: https://www.thinkaboutiot.com/index.php/2021/10/02/azure-iot-news-october-2021-by-think-about-iot/.

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