Generally Available: Explicit proxy in Azure Firewall

Azure Firewall explicit proxy is now generally available. Explicit proxy enables customers to configure applications and browsers to send HTTP and HTTPS traffic directly to Azure Firewall using proxy settings, providing an alternative to route-based traffic steering and enabling more granular control over outbound web traffic.

The GA release builds on extensive customer validation during public preview, where explicit proxy was enabled across 300+ Azure subscriptions and adopted by approximately 40 S500 customers. Customer feedback gathered during preview directly influenced several key enhancements delivered as part of GA, including support for serving both HTTP and HTTPS destinations through a single proxy endpoint, Managed Identity-based PAC file retrieval, and an improved portal configuration experience.

A key customer use case for explicit proxy is Azure Arc onboarding in hybrid environments. Organizations can use Azure Firewall as a forward proxy for Arc-enabled servers, enabling secure connectivity to required Microsoft services while maintaining centralized outbound access controls. Combined with support for forward proxy migration scenarios and application-level traffic steering, Explicit Proxy helps customers simplify network operations while leveraging Azure Firewall's existing security capabilities.

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