Azure Preview: What's New and How to Get Started

Azure Preview is a great way to get a sneak peek at new and upcoming features in Azure. Azure Preview allows you to try out new features before they are generally available.

If you're interested in trying out Azure Preview, you'll need to sign up for an Azure account if you don't already have one. This will give you access to the Azure Preview portal.

Azure Preview is available for various services, including Azure Storage and Azure Virtual Machines.

Preview features are available under Supplemental Terms of Use, without a service level agreement.

To use preview features, you should be aware that they might undergo breaking changes if a redesign is required. This means that if you write code against a preview API, you should prepare to upgrade that code to newer API versions when they roll out.

To make this step easier, Azure maintains an Upgrade REST APIs document.

To use preview features in Azure, you need to be aware of their availability and how to access them. Preview features are available through the preview REST API first, followed by the Azure portal, and then the Azure SDKs.

Preview features are available under Supplemental Terms of Use, without a service level agreement, so be sure to review the terms before using them. This means you won't have the same level of support as with generally available features.

Some preview features might undergo breaking changes if a redesign is required, so it's essential to keep an eye on updates and be prepared to make changes to your code. Breaking changes can happen, and it's better to be prepared.

If you write code against a preview API, you should prepare to upgrade that code to newer API versions when they roll out. This will help you avoid any issues when the features move to General Availability (GA).

To enable preview features in your environment, you must enable the feature flag on your subscription. Feature flags are used to control the availability of features, and they're applied at the subscription level for all firewalls (virtual network firewalls and SecureHub firewalls).

Here are some examples of features that are currently in preview:

To call a preview REST API, you'll need to specify the api-version parameter on the URI, which is essential for accessing the latest features and bug fixes.

Older previews are still operational but become stale over time and aren't updated with new features or bug fixes.

The most recent preview version for data plane operation on content is 2024-05-01-preview, which is used in the Indexes GET (preview) syntax.

For management operations on the search service, the most recent preview version is 2024-06-01-preview, used in the Update Service 2024-06-01-preview version syntax.

Preview REST APIs can be accessed through the api-version parameter on the URI, which is a crucial step in using the latest features and bug fixes.

Azure Preview offers robust networking and security features to ensure your applications are secure and reliable.

Azure provides a range of virtual network options, including virtual network (VNet) and Azure Load Balancer.

With Azure, you can create multiple VNets to isolate your resources and control access to them.

Azure's network security groups (NSGs) help control traffic flow and filter out unwanted traffic.

Azure offers a robust firewall solution, Azure Firewall, to protect your resources from cyber threats.

Azure provides a range of security solutions, including Azure Security Center, to monitor and protect your resources.

Explicit Proxy is a feature that allows you to configure a proxy setting on the sending application with Azure Firewall as the proxy.

With this setup, traffic from the sending application goes to the firewall's private IP address, and therefore egresses directly from the firewall.

This means that traffic doesn't use a user-defined route (UDR), which is a common configuration in Azure Firewall scenarios.

You can configure the Explicit proxy on the outbound path to achieve this setup, as described in the Azure Firewall documentation.

DNAT Rules help with connectivity between overlapped IP networks, which is a common scenario for enterprises.

This capability is useful for enterprises onboarding new partners to their network or merging with new acquisitions.

You can now configure a DNAT rule on Azure Firewall Policy with the private IP address of the Azure Firewall as the destination.

DNAT rules only previously worked with Azure Firewall Public IP addresses.

This new capability bridges the gap for hybrid scenarios, connecting on-premises datacenters to Azure.

It enables communication between private resources over non-routable IP addresses.

For more information, see Private IP DNAT Support and Scenarios with Azure Firewall.

Autolearn SNAT routes can be configured in Azure Firewall to learn both registered and private ranges every 30 minutes.

This feature is particularly useful for automating the process of updating SNAT routes, which can save time and reduce the risk of human error.

Azure Firewall SNAT private IP address ranges can be found in the Azure documentation for further information.

By enabling autolearn SNAT routes, you can ensure that your firewall's routing table is always up-to-date and accurate.

In Azure Preview, resource management is a breeze. You can easily manage your resources using the Azure Portal, which provides a unified interface for managing all your Azure resources.

Azure Preview allows you to create and manage resources such as virtual machines, storage accounts, and databases. You can also manage access to your resources using Azure Active Directory.

With Azure Preview, you can easily track your resource usage and costs using the Azure Cost Estimator. This tool helps you estimate the costs of your resources and plan your budget accordingly.

Resource Health is a game-changer for IT teams, allowing them to receive proactive notifications on potential health degradations affecting Azure Firewall resources.

These notifications come with recommended mitigation actions for each health event type, giving teams the tools they need to diagnose and address issues quickly.

Starting in August 2023, the Resource Health preview is automatically enabled on all firewalls, eliminating the need for manual setup.

With Resource Health, you can access a dedicated page in the Azure portal resource page to view the health of your Azure Firewall resource.

Parallel IP Updates can make a big difference in efficiency, especially for administrators who work with multiple IP Groups at a time.

This feature allows you to update multiple IP Groups in parallel, which is a game-changer for those who want to make configuration changes quickly and at scale.

It's particularly useful for those who use dev ops approaches, such as templates, ARM templates, CLI, and PowerShell, to manage their resources.

Administrators can now make changes to multiple IP Groups simultaneously, saving them time and effort.

This feature is a great example of how parallel updates can streamline resource management and reduce the workload of administrators.

Deploying with GitHub Copilot for Azure is a breeze, thanks to its guided process that sets up resources and automates deployments. It recommends app templates, CLI commands, and configurations, saving you time and effort.

You can use it to deploy a RAG app with Python or set up a CI/CD pipeline, and it'll even help you with YAML syntax. No more searching for sample applications or looking up CLI commands!

Troubleshooting is also a piece of cake with GitHub Copilot for Azure. If you're experiencing issues with your application's performance or resource problems, it provides quick insights and diagnostics to help you identify the cause. It even suggests solutions to fix the issues, such as optimizing configurations or scaling resources.

Here are some example prompts you can use to get started with troubleshooting:

Deploying your application can be a tedious task, but GitHub Copilot for Azure streamlines the process by guiding you through tasks such as resource setup and automated deployments.

You can use GitHub Copilot for Azure to develop a RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) app with Python, and it will recommend app templates and configurations.

It's especially useful when you need to quickly launch or dismantle services, saving you time and allowing you to focus on writing excellent code instead of managing infrastructure.

GitHub Copilot for Azure can also set up a CI/CD pipeline and use the Azure Developer CLI (azd) to deploy your project, making the process much faster and more efficient.

You don't need to search for sample applications or figure out YAML syntax, as GitHub Copilot for Azure takes care of it for you.

Troubleshooting is a breeze with GitHub Copilot for Azure. It provides quick insights into your application's performance and resource problems, making it easier to diagnose and fix issues.

Whether you're dealing with a slow Kubernetes cluster or frustrating 500 errors on your website, @azure is there to help. It performs diagnostics, searches logs, and highlights potential issues.

@azure can even suggest solutions to fix problems. For instance, if your Kubernetes cluster is running slowly, it might recommend adjustments to your deployment settings or resource limits.

@azure can also provide tips on efficient scaling to avoid quota exhaustion or performance bottlenecks. It's like having a personal assistant for your app's issues.

Here are some suggested prompts for troubleshooting: