Azure Weekly Newsletter Issue #476

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@HowardvRooijen | @endjin

AI + Machine Learning

Covering: Anomaly detector, Azure Bot Service, Azure Machine Learning, Azure Open Datasets, Bing APIs, Cognitive Services, Computer Vision, Content moderator, Custom vision, Data Science Virtual Machines, Face, Form Recogniser, Immersive Reader, Ink Recogniser, Language Understanding (LUIS), Machine Learning Studio, Microsoft Genomics, ML.NET, Personaliser, Project Cortex, QnA Maker, Speaker Recognition, Speech-to-Text, Speech translation, Text Analytics, Text to Speech , Translator Speech, Translator Text

• Alicia Frame writes about Save Big on Hosting Your Fine-Tuned Models on Azure OpenAI Service
• Heather MacKinnon writes about From Paper to Pixels: Azure AI in Historical Document Digitization and Translation
• Charles Chukwudozie talks about Enhancing Document Extraction with Azure AI Document Intelligence and LangChain for RAG Workflows.
• Joinal Ahmed blogs about Leveraging phi-3 for an Enhanced Semantic Cache in RAG Applications
• Lo Kinfey (@Ljh8304) shows how to Use WebGPU + ONNX Runtime Web + Transformer.js to build RAG applications by Phi-3-mini
• Sebastian Tan writea about Redesigning a Retail Copilot with Open Source Models
• Minseok Song explains how to Fine-Tune and Integrate Custom Phi-3 Models with Prompt Flow in Azure AI Studio
• Archer Zhao writes about Fast Transcription Public Preview in Azure AI Speech
• John Kilmister (@johnkilmister) writes about Going beyond Azure AI Text to Speech Maximum Media Duration of 10 Minutes

Analytics

Covering: Apache Spark for HDInsight, Azure Analysis Services, Azure Data Explorer, Azure Data Share, Azure Databricks, Azure Stream Analytics, Azure Synapse Analytics, Data Factory, Event Hubs, HDInsight, Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Fabric

• Mitesh Shah explains how to Accelerate data democratization in era of generative AI using Denodo Platform and Microsoft Fabric
• Sean Mirabile covers Fabric Data Pipelines – Advanced Scheduling Techniques Part 2: Run a Pipeline on a Specific Day
• Ye Xu writes about Fast Copy with On-premises Data Gateway Support in Dataflow Gen2
• Miquella de Boer walks through Creating a shortcut to a VPC-protected Amazon S3 bucket
• Kevin Chant (@kevchant) writes about From Power View to Microsoft Fabric and writes about Three ways to create a Microsoft Fabric Data Warehouse Database Project
• Koen Verbeeck (@Ko_Ver) explains how to Configure Microsoft Fabric Database Mirroring for Snowflake

Compute

Covering: Azure CycleCloud, Azure Dedicated Host, Azure Functions, Azure VMware Solution by CloudSimple, Batch, Cloud Services, Linux Virtual Machines, SAP HANA on Azure Large Instances, Service Fabric, Virtual Machines, Virtual Machine Scale Sets

• Bruno Lucas covers Azure Functions updates: End of support for NET 6 and other upcoming changes
• Andy Jia announces Preview of New Azure Dlsv6, Dsv6, Esv6 VMs with new CPU, Azure Boost, and NVMe Support

Containers

Covering: Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Red Hat OpenShift, CNAB, CNCF, Container Instances, Container Registry, Porter, WSL, Web App for Containers

• On Diagrid Blog, Bilgin Ibryam (@bibryam) describes Mastering the Dapr Inner Development Loop. Part 1: Code & Unit Test, and Part 2: Run & Validate Apps Locally and Part 3: Deploy to Kubernetes
• Also on Diagrid Blog, Bilgin Ibryam (@bibryam) discusses Comparing Kubernetes and Dapr: Key Differences and Complementary Strengths, explains how to Streamline Dapr Component Configuration with Diagrid Conductor and describes Automating Dapr Best Practices for Developers with Diagrid Conductor Advisor
• Carlos Mendible (@cmendibl3) explores AKS Automatic
• Luke Murray describes how to Push Docker Images to Azure Container Registry with GitHub Codespaces
• Vinicius Apolinario covers Microsoft Copilot in Azure Series – AKS Cluster configuration and management
• John Reilly (@johnny_reilly) discusses Using AZD for faster incremental Azure Container App deployments in Azure DevOps

Databases

Covering: Azure Cosmos DB, Azure Database for MariaDB, Azure Database for MySQL, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Database Edge, Azure Cache for Redis, SQL Data Warehouse, SQL Server on virtual machines, SQL Server Stretch Database, Table storage

• Shreya R. Aithal discusses Azure Database for MySQL - June 2024 updates and latest feature roadmap
• Esthela Gallardo walks through Migrating SLURM Job Accounting from Azure Database for MariaDB to MySQL Flexible Server
• Pieter Vanhove (@Pieter_Vanhove) describes How to choose between ledger in Azure SQL Database and Azure Confidential Ledger
• Diego Caracciolo walks through Setting Up CDC for Seamless Operations in Azure SQL Managed Instances with Failover Groups
• Shubhra Sinha explains how to Verify the integrity of Azure Confidential Ledger transactions with receipts and application claims

Developer Tools

Covering: App Configuration, Azure Lab Services, CLIs, Developer tool integrations, SDKs, Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio Online

• On the Visual Studio blog, Jim Harrer writes about Three New Premium Visual Studio Subscriber Benefits Announced
• Mads Kristensen (@mkristensen) talks about Making Visual Studio a bit more visual
• Varsha Parthasarathy (@varsha_partha) blogs about Unlock Unprecedented Value with Azure AI Document Intelligence Custom Extraction, now 40% Less
• On Visual Studio Magazine - Blogs, David Ramel (@dramel) writes about Visual Studio Subscribers Now Get 'Visual Studio Live' and Other Learning Discounts
• Also on Visual Studio Magazine - Blogs, David Ramel (@dramel) talks about Microsoft Focuses on .NET Aspire, 'Modern SQL' with AI at Dev Conference
• Abhinav Chatterjee discusses Capture and visualize ideas without spatial constraints using Infinite Canvas in Visio for the web
• On episode 306 of the Azure DevOps podcast, Jeffrey Palermo (@jeffreypalermo) is joined by Damian Brady to talk about GitHub Copilot
• Julia Muiruri introduces Learn Cloud: A VS Code Extension to simplify your First Deployment to the Cloud.
• Steve Jones delves into Notebook Jobs in Azure Data Studio
• Paul Eze describes WDK NuGet: A new way to develop drivers on Windows

DevOps

Covering: Azure Artifacts, Azure Boards, Azure DevOps, Azure Pipelines, Azure Repos, Azure Test Plans, Azure DevTest Labs, DevOps tool integrations

• Rie Moriguchi describes DevOps Conference Returns: Global DevOps Experience
• John Kerski talks about Bringing DataOps to Power BI In Year 3
• Luca Valadares writes Prompt Like a Pro: 8 Tips and tricks for working with Copilot in Teams
• Danny McDermott blogs about Terraform with Azure Stack Hub - Creating a VM with multiple data disks
• Christos Galanopoulos writes about Azure Verified Modules
• John Lokerse writes From Azure Bicep template to Azure resource

Hybrid + Multicloud

Covering: Azure Arc, Azure Stack

• Thomas Maurer (@thomasmaurer) explains how to Install ASUS Intel NUC Windows Server 2025 Network Adapter Driver
• On the Data Exposed show, Anna Hoffman (@AnalyticAnna) talks about Three New Capabilities to Modernize your SQL Server Anywhere with Azure Arc
• Jake Walsh (@jakewalsh90) writes about Exploring Azure Stack HCI and the IAC options

Identity

Covering: Azure Active Directory (AD), Azure Active Directory B2C, Azure Active Directory Domain Services

• On episode 247 of the Ctrl+Alt+Azure podcast, Tobias Zimmergren & Jussi Roine (@CtrlAltAzure) cover Entra Suite explained
• Xavier Barros walks through Syncing on-premises Active Directory computer Distinguished Names to Azure Active Directory

Integration

Covering: Azure API for FHIR, Event Grid, Logic Apps, Service Bus

• Luis Rigueira covers Friday Fact: You can debatch XML messages with Logic Apps
• Noemi Veneracion provides Step by step Guidance on Logic App Standard Load Testing and Optimization
• Noopur Vaishnav blogs about Streamlining SAP Processes with Azure OpenAI, Copilot Studio, and Power Platform

Internet of Things

Covering: Azure Digital Twins, Azure IoT Central, Azure IoT Edge, Azure IoT Hub, Azure IoT solution accelerators, Azure Maps, Azure Sphere, Azure Time Series Insights, IoT DevKit, WildernessLabs, Windows 10 IoT Core Services

• Shay Amram talks about Azure Video Indexer & Phi-3 introduce Textual Video Summary on Edge: Better Together story

Learning

Covering: Microsoft Certifications, Azure Certifications, Microsoft Learning Paths, Certification Pathway Information

• Cynthia Zanoni (@cynthiazanoni) provides a Study guide: GitHub Actions certification
• Glaucia Lemos (@glaucia_lemos86) writes about a New Video Course: Generative AI for Beginners
• April Speight writes From Principles to Practice: Developer Resources for Responsible AI Innovation
• Pamela Fox writes Learn how to build Python Web Apps from our 6-part series
• Charbel Nemnom (@charbelnemnom) discusses Azure Savings Plans vs Reservations: Choosing the Best Cloud Computing Option

Management and Governance

Covering: Automation, Azure Advisor, Azure Backup, Azure Blueprints, Azure Lighthouse, Azure Managed Applications, Azure mobile app, Azure Monitor, Azure Policy, Azure Resource Manager, Azure Service Health, Azure Site Recovery, Cloud Shell, Cost Management, Microsoft Azure portal, Scheduler, Azure Purview

• Aakash Basavaraj blogs about Introducing Agent and Gateway Extensions in Azure Monitor SCOM MI
• Rubaina Rauf walks through Empowering accessibility and innovation through cloud-based telemedicine with Microsoft Azure
• Bruno Gabrielli blogs about Azure Monitor: How To Stop Log-Based Alerts for Specific Resources
• Manoranjan Rajguru walks through Tracing LangChain Code on Azure with OpenTelemetry and Application Insights
• Thomas Thornton (@tamstar1234) covers Time based filtering in Log Analytics queries with examples
• Sarah Lean (@TechieLass) describes how to Filter Azure costs by Tags
• Craig DuBose blogs about Azure Capacity Reservations with Automatic Consumption
• Bob Cornelissen covers SCOM MI now released new Agent and Gateway management

Media

Covering: Azure Media Player, Content Protection, Encoding, Live and On-Demand Streaming, Media Analytics, Media Services, Video Indexer

• No content this week

Migration

Covering: Azure Database Migration Service, Azure Migrate, Data Box

• No content this week

Networking

Covering: Application Gateway, Azure Bastion, Azure DNS, Azure ExpressRoute, Azure Firewall, Azure Firewall Manager, Azure Front Door, Azure Internet Analyzer, Azure Private Link, Content Delivery Network, Load Balancer, Network Watcher, Traffic Manager, Virtual Network, Virtual WAN, VPN Gateway, Web Application Firewall

• Joe Carlyle (@wedoAzure) Exploring – Network Design in the Azure Architecture Center

Security

Covering: Azure DDoS Protection, Azure Information Protection, Azure Sentinel, Key Vault, Security Center

• Liz Willets describes Microsoft Purview integrates with ChatGPT Enterprise Compliance API to support compliance
• Joseph Guadagno covers Extended Validation EV Code Signing Certificates with Azure Key Vault and digicert
• Epiosde 380 of the Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast by Scott Hoag (@ciphertxt) and Ben Stegink (@benstegink) – The future of AD FS is cloudy

Storage

Covering: Archive Storage, Avere vFXT for Azure, Azure Data Lake Store, Azure FXT Edge Filer, Azure HPC Cache, Azure NetApp Files, Blob Storage, Disk Storage, File Storage, Managed Disks, Queue Storage, Storage Accounts, Storage Explorer, StorSimple

• Cymon Kilmer blogs about ACTION REQUIRED: Users of HDC API may need to update code for deprecated API by August 28th

Web

Covering: API apps, API Management, App Service (Web), Azure Cognitive Search, Azure SignalR Service, Azure Spring Cloud, Web apps

• Mike Budzynski (@mbudzynski) announces API Management and API Center Community Live Stream on Thursday, July 25th
• John Joyner (@john_joyner) covers WordPress on Azure App service with Production and Staging sites behind Azure App gateway: A reference model
• Julia Kasper talks about The Rising Significance of APIs - Azure API Management & API Center
• Ringe Chen explains how to Connect with Application Insights in 'not Local auth mode' using OpenTelemetry
• Elliott Hamai walks through Using App Spaces to build a chat agent with OpenAIs Node.js SDK

Azure Virtual Desktop

Covering: Azure Virtual Desktop

• No content this week

Useful Links

• Azure Resource Inventory - Azure Resource Inventory - It's a Powerful tool to create EXCEL inventory from Azure Resources with low effort
• Azure Quick Review (azqr) - A command-line interface (CLI) tool specifically designed to analyze Azure resources and identify whether they comply with Azure's best practices and recommendations.
• AzSaveMoney - Clean-up and save money by identifying and marking unused Azure resources/groups as subject for deletion by tagging.
• Azure Cost CLI - CLI tool to perform cost analysis on your Azure subscription
• Azure Code Samples - Explore Microsoft's samples and discover the things you can build.
• Azure Resource Inventory - Azure Resource Inventory is a powerful script written in PowerShell to generate an Excel report of any Azure Environment you have read access
• Azure Quickstart Templates - Learn how to deploy to Azure using ARM Templates. Over 850 examples in this repo.
• Azure CNAB Quickstarts Library - You can deploy to the Cloud, on Prem and on the Edge using CNAB & Porter. This library provides a number of quickstart templates to help you get started, fast!
• Power BI Weekly - Interested in Power BI? Sign up to our sister newsletter Power BI Weekly to receive all the week's Power BI news.
• Azure Resources - A fantastic collection of resources contained in this repo. Issue a PR if you have resources to share. Managed by Azure MVP Gregor Suttie.
• Azure Charts - Azure Charts is a set of auto-rebuilt charts to keep you updated on Azure changes, news, stats. Public updates, RSS channels and web pages are used as data sources
• The Developer’s Guide to Microsoft Azure (2nd Edition) - ebook from Microsoft showcasing architectural approaches and common design patterns you face when building modern applications.
• Cyber Security Demystified - ebook from Microsoft describing how to keep your organisation safe.
• Azure Resource Center - Whitepapers, code samples, solution architectures
• Azure Architecture Center - guidance from the Patterns & Practices team covering API Design, API implementation, Autoscaling, Background jobs, CDN, Caching, Data partitioning, Monitoring and diagnostics, Retry, Scalability and availability.
• Design scalable and performant tables - a guide from the storage team.
• Azure Speed Test 2.0 - a simple web tool that measures the latency between you and Azure Datacenters to suggest which might be fastest for you location.
• Microsoft Azure Symbol/Icon Set - a set of Visio and PowerPoint shapes for use in architecture diagrams / presentations.
• Service Bus Explorer - a free and open source tool for managing and exploring Azure Service Bus(including Event Hubs).
• Microsoft cloud for IT architects illustrations - These cloud architecture posters give you information about Microsoft cloud services, including Microsoft 365, Azure Active Directory (Azure AD), Microsoft Intune, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and hybrid on-premises and cloud solutions.
• Whitepapers for Power BI - numerous whitepapers ranging various Power BI topics
• Farmer - This is a DSL for ARM template creation - "Making repeatable Azure deployments easy"!