Microsoft has made the decision to phase out a fundamental component of its Azure IoT suite. Disclosed via the Azure console, Microsoft said it will be discontinuing the Azure IoT Central service as of 31st March 2027.
“Commencing 1st April 2024, the creation of new application resources will be halted; nonetheless, all existing IoT Central applications will remain operational and under management. Subscription will be restricted from generating new applications. We encourage creating a support ticket to seek an exception,” the notice to customers explained.
Azure IoT suite is built on three main components: IoT Hub, IoT Edge, and IoT Central. IoT Hub is identified as a Cloud-based service offering a “secure and scalable approach to connecting, monitoring, and controlling IoT devices and sensors,” as per Microsoft. Azure IoT Edge enables the local execution of Cloud-driven workloads on devices.
IoT Central, a fully managed IoT platform, allows businesses to connect, monitor, and manage their IoT devices at scale and is designed to reduce the complexity and overhead associated with developing, maintaining, and deploying IoT solutions. Yet, from April onwards, developers will no longer have the capability to initiate new application resource, putting those in the midst of system development in a difficult position.
IoT Hub, however, which serves as an architectural layer above IoT Central, is expected to continue. Reports mention the absence of any advisory regarding Hub on the Azure console. In terms of IoT Edge, it is described as “a device-focused runtime facilitating the deployment, execution, and monitoring of containerised Linux workloads.”
As of 5th Feb, the IoT Central website was still promoting trial opportunities for Azure and the creation of pay-as-you-go accounts. Microsoft has yet to confirm the future of this service.
The announcement puts in doubt a number of other IoT-based ambitions from the company, including enhancements to Linux on Windows in the Azure IoT edge by Microsoft, the integration of Azure Functions with Dapr, and Nvidia’s collaboration with Azure IoT Central through its Fleet Command hybrid-Cloud platform. This platform is described as enabling the secure and remote deployment, management, and scaling of AI across a wide range of servers or edge devices, with features for deploying “Azure IoT Central runtime and managing the Azure IoT Central node from Fleet Command.”
IBM similarly announced the abrupt termination of its Watson IoT service in November 2022, with a plan to “sunset the Watson IoT Platform service on IBM Cloud effective 1st Dec 2023 without a direct replacement.”
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