What's new with SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines?
Applies to: 
SQL Server on Azure VM
When you deploy an Azure virtual machine (VM) with SQL Server installed on it, either manually, or through a built-in image, you can use Azure features to improve your experience. This article summarizes the documentation changes associated with new features and improvements in the recent releases of SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines (VMs). To learn more about SQL Server on Azure VMs, see the overview.
For updates made in previous years, see the What's new archive.
Note
Microsoft Entra ID was previously known as Azure Active Directory (Azure AD).
Preview
The following table lists the features of SQL Server on Azure VMs that are currently in preview.
Note
Features currently in preview are available under supplemental terms of use, review for legal terms that apply to Azure features that are in beta, preview, or otherwise not yet released into general availability. SQL Server on Azure VMs provide previews to give you a chance to evaluate and share feedback with the product group on features before they become generally available (GA).
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| FCI with Azure Elastic SAN | Deploy your SQL Server failover cluster instance (FCI) by using an Azure Elastic SAN. |
| I/O Analysis | Use the Azure portal to identify performance issues with your SQL Server workloads from exceeding virtual machine and data disk limits. |
| Premium SSD v2 in the Azure portal | Deploy your SQL Server on Azure VM with Premium SSD v2 disks in the Azure portal for improved throughput and performance. |
General availability (GA)
The following table lists features of SQL Server on Azure VMs that have been made generally available (GA) within the last 12 months:
| Changes | Month | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Managed identity support for SQL Server 2022 on Azure VM | January 2025 | Starting with SQL Server 2022 Cumulative Update 17 (CU17), managed identities are supported for SQL Server on Azure VMs (Windows only). Managed identities can be used with SQL Server credentials to back up to and restore SQL Server on Azure VM databases from Azure Blob storage. Support for managed identities also enable functionalities like Extensible Key Management (EKM) with Azure Key Vault (AKV) and Managed Hardware Security Modules (HSM) to be used with SQL Server on Azure VMs. |
| Mbv3 VM series | November 2024 | A powerful new VM series that currently delivers a high level of IOPs and GB throughput, with strong memory capabilities up to the 176 vCore count for a consistent 8:1 memory-to-vCore ratio in this series. Both VMs in the series offer a consistent 64 maximum data disks per VM size, allowing you to maximize storage performance and still allow fully scalability across the table. The Mbdsv3 VMs in the series have the highest IOPS and GB throughput VMs available in Azure and can scale up to 4 TiBs at the 176 vCore level. |
| Azure Update Manager | April 2024 | Automatically patch multiple SQL Server VMs at scale with the Azure Update Manager integrated in to the SQL virtual machines resource in the Azure portal, including Cumulative Updates. |
| Azure SQL triggers for Azure Functions | March 2024 | Azure Functions supports function triggers for SQL Server on Azure VMs. |
| Azure Elastic SAN | February 2024 | Place your SQL Server workloads on an Azure Elastic SAN for improved performance, throughput, and cost. |
Documentation changes
Learn about significant changes to the SQL Server on Azure VMs documentation. For previous years, see the What's new archive.
January 2025
| Changes | Details |
|---|---|
| Managed identity support for SQL Server 2022 on Azure VM | Starting with SQL Server 2022 Cumulative Update 17 (CU17), managed identities are supported for SQL Server on Azure VMs (Windows only). Users can now back up to and restore SQL Server on Azure VM databases from Azure Blob storage, and utilize EKM with AKV and Managed HSM on SQL Server on Azure VMs. |
| SQL Insights retired | SQL Insights has been retired and is no longer available. Consider using SCOM managed instance with the SQL Server management pack or another monitoring solution to monitor SQL Server on Azure VMs. |
November 2024
| Changes | Details |
|---|---|
| Mbsv3 and Mbdsv3 VM series GA | A powerful new VM series that currently delivers one of the highest IOPS and GB throughput, with substantial vCore and memory options. This VM series is now generally available. Review Mbsv3 and Mbdsv3 series to learn more. |
October 2024
| Changes | Details |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Entra authentication in any cloud | It's now possible to configure Microsoft Entra authentication for your SQL Server on Azure VMs in any cloud. Review Microsoft Entra authentication to learn more. |
Archive
For updates made in previous years, see the What's new archive.
Contribute to content
To contribute to the Azure SQL documentation, see the Docs contributor guide.
Additional resources
Windows VMs:
- Overview of SQL Server on Windows VMs
- Provision SQL Server on Windows VMs
- Migration guide: SQL Server to SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
- High availability and disaster recovery for SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
- Performance best practices for SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
- Application patterns and development strategies for SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
Linux VMs: