While SDK 2.9.6 is valuable for legacy operations, Microsoft has migrated away from monolithic SDK structures. Modern cloud patterns utilize decoupled NuGet libraries packaged per service (such as Azure.Storage.Blobs or Azure.Identity ).
Before running the installers, ensure your development environment meets the precise compatibility matrix required by version 2.9.6. Supported Versions Visual Studio 2015, Visual Studio 2017 Not natively supported in VS 2019 or VS 2022. .NET Framework .NET 4.5.2 up to .NET 4.7.2 Target framework must match the SDK compiler limits. Operating System Windows 10, Windows Server 2016
Modern Azure development is built on . The monolithic SDK has been broken down into individual packages. This allows for greater flexibility and smaller application footprints.
: Microsoft now recommends using the Azure development workload built directly into newer versions of Visual Studio (2017 and later) instead of standalone SDK installers.
Version 2.9.6 was a stable release that refined these tools, offering improved support for Azure Resource Manager (ARM) deployments while still heavily relying on the Azure Service Management (ASM) model.
SDK 2.9.6 is not designed for newer VS versions. You can install it side-by-side, but Azure tools will only work in VS 2015. Use for command-line builds.
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: The primary repository for the standalone .msi installers. Search for "Azure SDK for .NET" within the archived downloads section.
Complete Guide to Microsoft Azure SDK 2.9.6: Download, Installation, and Legacy Migration
The SDK components (Storage, Service Bus, etc.) are available as NuGet packages: