AZ-204 Retires 31 July 2026: What to Do Now
22 Jul 2026·8 min read
Read →#Azure#Retirements#Deprecation#Migration#AZ-500#Azure Updates#Cloud Operations
Every quarter, Microsoft retires older Azure services, SDKs, and API versions to make room for more secure, capable replacements. For platform and operations teams, these dates matter: a missed deadline can mean a broken pipeline, a blocked deployment, an unplanned auto-migration, or an unexpectedly higher bill. This guide consolidates the most impactful Azure retirements scheduled between June and December 2026 into one timeline, with the official remediation step for each. Every date and link below was verified against Microsoft Learn in June 2026.
Note: Validate against your own tenant
Treat this list as a planning aid, not the final word — dates can shift. Azure Service Health (Health advisories) flags retirements that affect your actual resources, and the Azure Advisor Service Retirement workbook gives you the authoritative, per-subscription view. Confirm there before you schedule work.
15
Retirements tracked
Jun–Dec 2026
Window
30 Sep
Busiest date
Official
Fix for each
Retirement timeline at a glance
The table below is ordered by date. For any row that affects you, open the Fix link, confirm the impact in Service Health, and schedule the migration with margin to spare — most of these are not last-minute tasks. Note how much converges on 30 September 2026, comfortably the busiest deadline of the half-year.
Where to focus first
If you only have bandwidth for a few items this half-year, prioritise the ones with the broadest blast radius and the least graceful failure mode.
Storage accounts — act before the auto-migration
Legacy Blob and general-purpose v1 accounts are the highest-impact items here. Management locks on 31 August 2026, and anything not upgraded by 13 October is auto-migrated to general-purpose v2 — which can change your bill. Upgrading proactively is in-place and non-disruptive when planned, and it lets you choose the redundancy and tiering that fit your workload.
Runtimes and pipelines — Functions 1.x and the HTTP Data Collector API
These break automation quietly. Functions still on the 1.x runtime should move to 4.x, which also unlocks the isolated worker model and current .NET versions. Anything pushing data into Log Analytics through the HTTP Data Collector API should move to the Logs Ingestion API with Data Collection Rules. Both retire on 14 September 2026.
Messaging and desktop — Service Bus SDKs and AVD classic
The legacy Service Bus and Event Hubs libraries (and the SBMP protocol) retire on 30 September; migrate to the modern Azure.Messaging.* SDKs for security updates and AMQP support. The same date ends support for Azure Virtual Desktop (classic) — use the automated PowerShell migration module, which runs both versions side by side so users stay online.
Warning: Don’t wait for the auto-migration
For storage accounts, VM sizes, and runtimes, letting a deadline pass means Microsoft acts for you — auto-migrating, deallocating, or blocking deployments — often with cost or downtime side effects. Open Azure Service Health now, filter to Health advisories, and you will see exactly which of your resources are flagged.
Stay ahead of the next wave
Retirements are continuous, so make tracking them part of your operating rhythm rather than a yearly scramble. Bookmark the authoritative sources below and review them each quarter alongside Service Health.
Authoritative master trackers
Modernise with a structured path
Most retirements are an invitation to modernise — and to certify on the current stack before the older exams retire too. Our live Azure programme covers exactly these real-world administration and architecture skills (AZ-104, AZ-305) along with DevOps and security, with hands-on labs on today’s services. If you are planning a migration or preparing for a certification on a deadline, talk to us and we will map out the right path.
Ready to Start Your Cloud Journey?
Live batches Mon–Sat — Azure 9–10 AM IST (started 3 august 2026 — join in progress) · AWS 10:30–11:45 AM IST (starts 31 august 2026). Hands-on labs, exam prep, and community support.