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November 2024

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These features and Azure Databricks platform improvements were released in November 2024.

Note

Releases are staged. Your Azure Databricks account might not be updated until a week or more after the initial release date.

Additional metadata for the table tooltip in notebooks

November 25, 2024

When you hover over the name of a Unity Catalog table in a notebook cell, the tooltip now includes the following metadata:

  • Owner
  • Last updated
  • Size
  • Description
  • A link to view the table in the Catalog Explorer side panel

Automatic cluster update and enhanced security and compliance UI are generally available

November 19, 2024

Automatic cluster update is now generally available. Automatic cluster update ensures that all the clusters in a workspace are periodically updated to the latest host OS image and security updates. The ability to enable enhanced security and compliance features from the account console is also now generally available. See Automatic cluster update and Configure enhanced security and compliance settings.

Expanded support for Python debugger in notebooks

November 18, 2024

The built-in Python debugger in Databricks notebooks is now supported on serverless compute and compute configured with shared access mode in Databricks Runtime 14.3 LTS or above. To learn more about the debugger, see Debug notebooks.

Improved web terminal experience

November 18, 2024

Databricks made the following improvements to the web terminal experience:

  • Support for configuration files: You can now set persistent configurations for your Databricks web terminal with .bashrc configuration files. See Configure your web terminal.
  • Command cycle history: You can now cycle through commands executed in previous sessions with the “Up” and “Down” arrow keys. This makes it easy to recall and reuse previous commands without retyping them.
  • Shared Cluster Support: Our improved web terminal is available on shared clusters in Databricks Runtime 15.1 and above.

To learn more about using the web terminal, see Run shell commands in Azure Databricks web terminal.

Query history and query profile support for Delta Live Tables

November 15, 2024

Azure Databricks now offers improved tools for monitoring query performance in Delta Live Tables pipelines. See Access query history for Delta Live Tables pipelines.

Mosaic AI Model Training rebrand

November 15, 2024

Mosaic AI Model Training has been rebranded to encompass existing features:

Reuse SQL outputs as _sqldf in subsequent SQL cells

November 15, 2024

In Databricks Runtime 14.3 and above, running a SQL query in a Databricks notebook generates an implicit DataFrame (_sqldf) that you can use in downstream SQL cells. This adds to the support for using for using the _sqldf variable in Python cells introduced in Databricks Runtime 13.3. See Explore SQL cell results.

Private connectivity from serverless compute support for Azure-managed resources

November 15, 2024

All Azure-managed resources with native private endpoint support are now supported from serverless compute. This feature is generally available. See Configure private connectivity from serverless compute.

Private connectivity support for jobs, notebooks, and Delta Live Tables

November 15, 2024

Private connectivity for serverless compute now supports jobs, notebooks, and Delta Live Tables workloads. This feature is generally available. See Configure private connectivity from serverless compute.

Warehouses system table is now available (Public Preview)

November 15, 2024

The system.compute.warehouses table records SQL warehouse configurations. Each row is a snapshot of a SQL warehouse’s properties at a specific point in time. A new snapshot is created when the properties change. See Warehouses system table reference.

Cross-platform view sharing (Public Preview)

November 14, 2024

Databricks recipients can now query shared views using any Databricks compute resource. Previously, if a recipient’s Azure Databricks account was different from the provider’s account, recipients could only query a shared view using a serverless SQL warehouse. See Read shared views.

View sharing also now extends to open sharing connectors. See Read data shared using Delta Sharing open sharing (for recipients).

Clean Rooms public preview is ungated, with new features

November 13, 2024

Databricks Clean Rooms uses Delta Sharing and serverless compute to provide a secure and privacy-protecting environment where multiple parties can share sensitive enterprise data and collaborate without direct access to each other’s data. The Clean Rooms public preview is now open to all customers on Azure and AWS, and includes the following new features:

  • Output tables are temporary read-only tables generated by a notebook run and shared to the notebook runner’s Unity Catalog metastore.

    Output tables can be created or read by collaborators on Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud, but they are supported only when the central clean room is hosted on AWS.

  • Clean room notebook task types let you run Azure Databricks notebooks in a clean room as part of a workflow. Along with support for task values and output tables, this is a powerful tool for running complex workflows on data shared in clean rooms.

  • Serverless egress control lets you restrict outbound access from central clean rooms to internet destinations that you specify.

See What is Azure Databricks Clean Rooms?.

Databricks Runtime 16.0 is GA

November 11, 2024

Databricks Runtime 16.0 and Databricks Runtime 16.0 ML are now generally available.

See Databricks Runtime 16.0 and Databricks Runtime 16.0 for Machine Learning.

Breaking change: Hosted RStudio is end-of-life

November 11, 2024

In Databricks Runtime 16.0 and above, Databricks-hosted RStudio Server is end-of-life and unavailable on any Azure Databricks workspace. To learn more and see a list of alternatives to RStudio, see Hosted RStudio Server deprecation.

Predictive optimization enabled for all new Azure Databricks accounts

November 11, 2024

On November 11, Databricks enabled predictive optimization as the default for all new Azure Databricks accounts. Previously, it was disabled by default and could be enabled through your administrator account. When predictive optimization is enabled, Azure Databricks automatically runs maintenance operations for Unity Catalog managed tables. For more information on predictive optimization, see Predictive optimization for Unity Catalog managed tables.

Updated and unified read-only code blocks

November 8, 2024

A new read-only code block is now available across the Catalog Explorer, alerts page, and Genie.

Increased Quick Fix recommendations

November 8, 2024

Databricks Assistant Quick Fix now identifies and suggests corrections for a broader range of common SQL and Python errors. With a 50% increase in error detection, Quick Fix can help you debug your code faster. See Quick Fix.

Foundation Model APIs pay-per-token available in all Model Serving supported regions

November 7, 2024

Foundation Model APIs pay-per-token workloads are now supported in all regions where Mosaic AI Model Serving is available. If your workspace is in a Model Serving region but not in a U.S. or EU region, your workspace must be enabled for cross-Geo data processing. When enabled, your pay-per-token workload is routed to the U.S. Databricks Geo.

Unity Catalog-governed access to external cloud services using service credentials (Public Preview)

November 7, 2024

Service credentials enable simple and secure authentication with your cloud tenant’s services using Azure managed identities (MI) and Unity Catalog. Service credentials are in public preview and are supported on Databricks Runtime 15.4 LTS and above. See Manage access to external cloud services using service credentials.

UK Cyber Essentials Plus compliance controls

November 7, 2024

UK Cyber Essentials Plus compliance controls (UKCE+) provide enhancements that help you with compliance for your workspace. UKCE+ is a certification created by the UK government to simplify and standardize IT security practices for commercial organizations who interact with UK government data. See UK Cyber Essentials Plus compliance controls.

Private connectivity from serverless compute support for model serving

November 5, 2024

Private connectivity from serverless compute using Azure Private Link is now supported for model serving. This includes support for custom model endpoints and provisioned throughput endpoints. See Configure private connectivity from serverless compute.

Databricks Runtime 14.2 series support ends

November 5, 2024

Support for Databricks Runtime 14.2 and Databricks Runtime 14.2 for Machine Learning ended on November 5. See Databricks support lifecycles.