Azure recently rebranded Firewall Manager and added more network security services, introducing a new experience called “Azure Network Security Hub”. The Network Security Hub is a centralised interface that brings Azure Firewall, Web Application Firewall (WAF), and DDoS Protection into one place. This change is part of a broader effort to simplify the Azure Networking portfolio and better align with customer needs. 

What does this changes lead to?

This updated hub combines services – Azure Firewall, Web Application Firewall, and DDoS Protection, allowing customers to manage, configure, and monitor all their network security services from a single location. Although Azure Firewall Manager offered some of these capabilities, its name did not accurately reflect the broader range of protection and control customers require.

With this new experience, Firewall Manager has evolved into the Network Security Hub. This transformation makes it easier to discover, configure, and monitor the right security services with just a few clicks.

Note: There is no pricing or support changes to Firewall Manager service. This is a UX and management-plane update only, with names.

The picture below shows the new experience of the Network Security Hub.

Benefits and Key highlights

The following are the key highlights and benefits of the new services:

• Unified experience: The new services provide a single interface to secure cloud applications with Firewall, WAF, and DDoS protection.
• Improved visibility: The new service dashboard provides an overall security overview of protection across virtual networks, hubs, and hosted applications. The security coverage interface shows how many of your key resources are protected by Azure Firewall, DDoS Protection, and Web Application Firewall. 
• Azure Advisor integration: The Azure Advisor integration provides tailored, personalised recommendations to help improve your security, save money, and enhance the performance of your Azure networking tools.
• Streamlined navigation: This single interface presents all relevant networking and security services in context, helping you stay focused and quickly find what you need without opening multiple windows.
• Related services: The service now consolidates overlapping or closely related services to reduce noise and make your options clearer with Networking & Security services.

What changes does the user feel:

Older Experience: The initial Azure Firewall page primarily focused on setting up Firewall Policies and a Secure Virtual Hub. It provided a limited view of other Azure network security features, such as WAF and DDoS protection.

New Experience: The new security hub landing page provides a more transparent, user-friendly experience. It provides straightforward steps to get started with each network service and outlines common deployment scenarios. This helps you easily set up and manage your network security.

The Network Security Hub is a new Azure tool that combines Firewall, WAF, and DDoS protection. It simplifies management, improves visibility, and enables security teams to work faster while reducing setup errors.