AzureRM will retire by 29 February 2024

Can you remember 2015? Apple launched the Apple Watch, Microsoft launched Windows 10, and we announced AzureRM v1.0!

After years of service and coexistence with its replacement, the time has come to share the next steps we are taking with AzureRM.

Looking back

In 2018, we introduced a new generation of PowerShell modules named “Az”, bringing several advantages:

• Based on .NET Standard library for cross-platform execution. 
• Addressed customer feedback about the length of commands. 
• Reduced inconsistencies between cmdlets and modules. 

After two years of existence and continuous improvements, the Az PowerShell modules feature the following benefits: 

• Security and stability
  • Token cache encryption

  • Prevention of man-in-the-middle attack type

  • Support authentication with ADFS 2019

  • Username and password authentication in PowerShell 7

• Support for all Azure services

  • All generally available Azure services have a corresponding supported Az PowerShell module

  • Multiple bug fixes and API version upgrades since AzureRM

• New capabilities

  • Support in Cloud Shell and cross-platform

  • Can get and use access token to access Azure resources

  • Cmdlet available for advanced REST operations with Azure resources

We are now announcing that the AzureRM PowerShell module will retire by 29 February 2024.  

If you are still using AzureRM modules, we advise you to migrate to Az at your earliest convenience. 

How do I migrate?

When we talked with customers, the effort needed to migrate scripts based on AzureRM to Az was one of the main blockers.

We provide a toolkit comprised of three options to help you migrate to Az:

1. A PowerShell module to convert your scripts automatically. 
2. A compatibility mode with the “Enable-AzureRmAlias” cmdlet allowing you to run AzureRM scripts with Az modules. 
3. A VSCode extension if you want to perform the migration of your scripts with an IDE. 

The following page has all the resources and technical information to help you migrate your scripts to Az: https://docs.microsoft.com/powershell/azure/migrate-from-azurerm-to-az  

Open an issue on GitHub if you encounter problems with the migration toolkit.  

Products and services using AzureRM 

Some products and services have dependencies on the AzureRM modules. We are working closely with them to provide you with a path forward.  

Next steps

We encourage you to start your migration as soon as possible and share with the community best practices that you may have, including tips and tricks. 

The entire team is listening to your feedback and welcomes issues and contributions. 

• For issues on the migration toolkit: https://github.com/Azure/azure-powershell-migration 
• For best practices sharing: https://github.com/Azure/azure-powershell/discussions  

And as always, you can reach out to us via Twitter @azureposh