Almost two years after it was first introduced, Microsoft’s Azure Sphere for the Internet of Things (IoT) is now generally available.
Microsoft said in a press release that Azure Sphere’s “software and hardware had completed rigorous quality and security reviews” with its release at the GA stage.
Azure Sphere aims to create a “trusted environment” for deploying and using IoT devices. Azure Sphere is a fully realised security system that protects devices over time. It includes four components, three of which are powered by technology, the Azure Sphere-certified chips that go into every device, the Azure Sphere operating system (OS) that runs on the chips, and the cloud-based Azure Sphere Security Service.
The basic elements are:
- Certified chips for devices, built by hardware partners.
- Microsoft’s own custom-built Linux operating system for those chips, called Azure Sphere OS.
- The Azure Sphere Security Service, a service running from Microsoft’s datacenters that gathers data on the security status of IoT devices and delivers automated updates to those devices.
- The Azure Sphere security team at Microsoft, which helps identify and address IoT device security threats.
Image credit: Microsoft Azure Sphere