Microsoft unveils improvements and upgrades to Azure Files

Microsoft recently announced some improvements to Azure Files. Essentially, the tool is getting larger and faster, with low-latency file shares and Azure AD integration. In addition, the new Azure File Sync agent offers improvements in sync performance, along with tiering and reporting. Here are some of the main changes and upgrades to know.

Premium Files

azure files
Microsoft

This premium feature is made to deliver consistent performance for enterprise workloads, especially those that are IO-intensive or require a high throughput and low latency. Available as a limited public preview for the time being, Premium Files can be used for a variety of different workloads, including databases, home directories, analytics, and collaboration. It’s made to scale with the needs of your workloads, with the ability to go up to 20x the current scale limits of Azure Files.

Standard Files

Standard Files is the existing storage option for Azure Files. It’s best for IO workloads that aren’t as sensitive to variables in performance. But now this version is also getting an upgrade. The company has increased the capacity limits by 20x and upped the IOPS limits up to 10x. A new preview version is slated to launch soon, offering 100 TiB shares and higher scale limits.

Azure AD integration with Azure Files

Azure Files is able to offer a seamless experience between on-premises and managed cloud environments in part because of its integration with Azure AD. Now, the company is making Azure AD authentication for Azure Files available for SMBs. Available in preview, this feature offers the ability for end users to access Azure file shares through Azure AD Domain Services and provides native preservation for Windows access control lists on Azure file shares.

These are just a few of the upgrades made within Azure Files. The company is also adding Windows Server 2019 support along with a handful of other small changes. You can check out the previews of these features or sign up for alerts for those that have yet to be released on the company’s website.

About The Author

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Scroll to Top