Microsoft launches Azure Confidential Ledger service, a blockchain-based secure ledger.
On May 10, Microsoft announced that it will discontinue the Azure Blockchain Service on September 10, 2021. Already deployed services will continue to be supported until September 10, but new deployments or member creation will no longer be supported after May 10. At that time, it was generally believed that Microsoft was no longer optimistic about blockchain services, but recently, Microsoft officially announced that it will release a preview version of Azure Confidential Ledger (confidential ledger) at the 2021 developer conference to be held on May 25.
Microsoft said that Azure Confidential Ledger, like Azure Blockchain Service, is based on blockchain distributed ledger technology. Azure Confidential Ledger adds an extra layer of security and scaling on top of blockchain. Azure Confidential Ledger uses the Azure Confidential Computing Platform, which means that all Azure Confidential Ledger instances run in dedicated and fully certified hardware-backed enclaves.
Running on a permissioned blockchain model, the Azure Confidential Ledger provides unique data integrity benefits, including immutability and additive-only ledger, to ensure that all data on the ledger is complete. By design, Microsoft is also excluded from the ledger, and the confidential ledger runs on a simple trusted computing base that prevents access to the ledger by ledger server developers, data center technicians, and cloud administrators.
Confidential ledger technology is used in scenarios where critical metadata records cannot be modified, including permanent data records for regulatory compliance and archival purposes. for example:
· records related to commercial transactions, such as transfer records;
· To manage or control records, such as granting access rights;
· Action on IT and security events, such as azure security center alerts.
Asked if Microsoft Azure would replace Azure Blockchain-as-a-Service, a Microsoft spokesperson said that Azure Confidential Ledger Technology is not and will not replace Azure Blockchain Service, but another distributed ledger that provides users with maximum privacy Technology. Azure Confidential Ledger uses confidential computing technology, while ConsenSys Quorum Blockchain is an open source technology based on Quorum Blockchain, and is compatible with Azure Blockchain Services, just to provide users with a seamless migration experience.
