This blog post series highlights the key announcements and major updates related to Azure Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Azure Local, as officially released by Microsoft in the past two weeks.
Azure
Compute
Encryption at host and disk encryption sets now supported in node auto-provisioning
Node auto-provisioning enabled clusters now support both Encryption at Host and Disk Encryption Sets, removing a previous limitation that prevented some security-sensitive deployments from using node auto-provisioning. With this update, customers can adopt node auto-provisioning while still meeting required encryption controls, and can also benefit from its associated improvements in compute efficiency, resiliency, and cost-management capabilities.
Networking
Azure Front Door Premium now supports Azure Private Link origins in UAE North
Azure Front Door Premium now supports Azure Private Link-enabled origins in the UAE North region, allowing customers to select UAE North as the origin region for Private Link connectivity within their Front Door Premium profiles. With Private Link-enabled origins, customers can deliver content to end users through public Azure Front Door endpoints while keeping the origin service inaccessible from the public internet, strengthening network isolation without sacrificing global edge delivery.
Storage
Instant access support for incremental snapshots of Azure Premium SSD v2 and Ultra Disk
Instant access support for incremental snapshots of Azure Premium SSD v2 (Pv2) and Ultra Disk is now Generally Available (GA), enabling customers to restore new disks immediately after snapshot creation. With this capability, newly restored disks provide high performance right away while data hydration continues in the background, accelerating backup and recovery workflows and reducing downtime for restore scenarios. Common use cases include taking instant backups before software updates and quickly reverting if needed, rapidly scaling stateful applications by cloning primary datasets (for example, adding read-only SQL Server replicas), and performing fast nightly refreshes of training or testing environments from production. Instant access for incremental snapshots is available in all public regions where Premium SSD v2 and Ultra Disk are supported.
Azure Premium SSD v2 Disk now available in Brazil Southeast and in a third Availability Zone in Malaysia West and Indonesia Central
Azure Premium SSD v2 Disk is now available in Brazil Southeast (a region without Availability Zones) and is now supported in a third Availability Zone in both Malaysia West and Indonesia Central, expanding regional and zonal options for customers running IO-intensive workloads. Premium SSD v2 is a next-generation, general-purpose block storage option for Azure virtual machines designed to deliver sub-millisecond latency and strong price-performance, and it is suited for enterprise production scenarios such as SQL Server, Oracle, MariaDB, SAP, Cassandra, MongoDB, big data/analytics, and gaming, both on virtual machines and stateful containers.
Azure Local
Features and improvements in 2602
Microsoft has released the February 2026 update for hyperconverged deployments of Azure Local, identified as version 12.2602.1002.7. This release includes general reliability improvements and bug fixes, and it also updates the underlying platform components. From 2602 onward, all new and existing Azure Local deployments run the updated OS version 26100.32370, which is available for download from the Azure portal, and customers must also ensure they have a driver compatible with OS version 26100.32370 (or Windows Server 2025). For Integrated System or Premier solution hardware purchased through the Azure Local Catalog, the OS is preinstalled, and Microsoft recommends working with the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to obtain compatible OS images and drivers. The build also updates the runtime to .NET 8.0.24 for both .NET Runtime and ASP.NET Core. In addition, the Azure portal update workflow now provides richer, more detailed information to improve the update experience. Finally, Microsoft notes that for environments running OS version 20349.xxxx (Windows Server 22H2), it is no longer possible to purchase Windows Server Subscription or Extended Security Updates (ESU).
Conclusion
Over the past two weeks, Microsoft has introduced a slew of updates and announcements pertaining to Azure Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Azure Local. These developments underscore the tech giant’s unwavering commitment to enhancing its cloud offerings and adapting to the ever-evolving needs of businesses and developers. Users of Azure can anticipate improved functionalities, streamlined services, and enriched features as a result of these changes. Stay tuned for more insights as I continue to monitor and report on Azure’s progression in the cloud sphere.
