Cloud Management

Azure CSP MCA release for CSP and Partners

If you would like this feature activated for your CSPs, please feel free to reach out to Flexera support

To support Microsoft’s transition to the new Azure Cost Management APIs and enhance cost transparency for Cloud Solution Providers this release introduces seamless data ingestion capabilities. The update includes support for Reserved Instances (RI) and Savings Plans (SP), as well as scoped billing connections. CSPs and Partners can now access billing data flexibly at the Billing Account, Billing Profile, or Customer Tenant level

• Navigate to Administration > Cloud Settings > Billing Configuration, then click Add a Cloud Bill. Select Microsoft Azure and proceed. In the Microsoft Customer Agreement section, choose New Azure CSP ( Modern Commerce) to complete the setup
• This new configuration replaces the legacy method, which will be deprecated.

Key Improvements

• Seamless integration with Azure Cost Management APIs and costs shown as CostInbillingcurrency
• Visibility into Reserved Instances (RI) and Savings Plans (SP)
• Support for scoped billing connections (Billing Account, Billing Profile, Customer Tenant)
• Support for Exports enabling scalability for larger data sets
• Storage for scoped connects 

If Storage account is in partner tenant ( Bill connection in Flexera through UI )

If Storage account is in other customer tenant ( Bill connection in Flexera through API )

Not Supported Features (as of this release)

•    List Price, Savings, and Savings Percent metrics

•   Rate Reduction Dashboard

•   Commitment Inventory – including commitment expiration and utilization for RI/SP

With this integration, Azure CSP partners and customers can now manage their billing data more securely and efficiently, enabling better cost governance, scoped access, and faster onboarding across diverse tenant environments.

For more details please visit the documentation https://docs.flexera.com/flexera/EN/Administration/BillConnectConfigsCPSPartnerAzureMCA_CostAPI.htm

Azure China Billing Integration Now Available in Cloud Cost Optimization ( API and UI Support )

Flexera One now supports Microsoft Azure China (Modern Commerce Agreement) integration, allowing FinOps teams to ingest Azure China bill data into Cloud Cost Optimization (CCO). This enhancement provides full visibility into Azure China spend alongside global cloud expenses—enabling cost allocation, and financial governance. 

Navigate to Administration > Cloud Settings > Billing Configuration, then click Add a Cloud Bill. Select Microsoft Azure and proceed. In the Microsoft Customer Agreement section, choose China Azure (Modern Commerce Agreement - MCA) to complete the setup.

Key Enhancements:

1) Azure China Billing Integration – Customers can now connect and ingest Azure China billing data via Microsoft’s Cost Management APIs or scheduled Exports into Flexera One – UI supported  

2) Support for Amortized and Actual Costs – Users can upload both actual and amortized cost exports, ensuring complete billing transparency for Azure China MCA.

3) Dedicated Bill Configuration Flow – A guided setup experience tailored for Azure China enables smoother onboarding with support for unique domain endpoints

4) Support for Historical Data Seeding – Teams can upload historical billing exports to backfill previous month data, ensuring continuity

5) Secure API Authentication – Integration is supported via secure service principal-based authentication, complying with Azure China access controls.

6) Cost Reporting & Analytics Integration – Once ingested, Azure China billing data is fully integrated into dashboards, tabular views and Rule-Based Dimensions. 

Note:

Currently, only the export method is supported for Azure China billing ingestion. Support for Reserved Instances (RI) and Savings Plans (SP) data ingestion will be included in future roadmap updates. 

For more details on newly enabled feature please visit https://docs.flexera.com/flexera/EN/Administration/BillConnectConfigsAzureChina.htm

Bill Processing Status Enhancements Now Available in Cloud Cost Optimization

To enhance transparency and reduce dependency on support, we have upgraded the Bill Processing API to provide accurate indicators of billing data readiness for reporting and analytics. This update empowers FinOps practitioners with the confidence to Analyse cost data at the right time and avoid confusion caused by premature "Completed" status in the UI.

Key Enhancements:

• UI Enhancements for Bill Readiness – Users can now view the "Last Refreshed Date" directly in the Bill Processing Status page, indicating when billing data was last successfully aggregated for reporting.
• API Enhancements for Automation – Backend APIs now expose new metadata (e.g., lastRefreshDateTime) to differentiate between bill ingestion and availability readiness.
• Display of Key Timestamps - Both “Downloaded At” and “Last Refresh” timestamps are now displayed in UTC time-zone, with support for filtering
• The "Billing Period" column now uses a Set filter to simplify selection.
• The slide-out panel has been resized for better readability.

Note:

These enhancements cover both backend API updates and UI improvements. No configuration is required; updates are automatically reflected in your existing Bill Processing views and APIs.

Cloud License Management: Resource Power State

Release date: Dec 17, 2024

We’ve added a power state column to the resource table so that users can easily see which resources are stopped or running. Since power state impacts resource billing and licensing, the ability to identify stopped resources, which don't require a license, is important because it presents users with additional optimization options.

Cloud License Management: MCA Pricing Support

Release date: Dec 12, 2024

We’ve added pricing support for Microsoft Customer Agreements from Azure. This means that users with Microsoft Customer Agreements (MCA) and Enterprise Agreements (EA) can now view pricing information for resources highlighting potential and realized savings when using BYOL.