Microsoft Upgrades Windows-Based Data Science Virtual Machine

Data Science Virtual Machine (DSVM), Microsoft's cloud-based offering for big data analytics, is now available in a new preview version based on Windows Server 2016 Datacenter Edition. Previously, the Windows version of DSVM only ran on a Windows Server 2012 image. Microsoft also makes DSVM available in Ubuntu and CentOS Linux flavors. In upgrading to Windows Server 2016, DSVM users now have access to additional tools and functionality, including Docker container support, noted Microsoft software engineer Udayan Kumar in a June 6 announcement. The new virtual machine also comes bundled with Office ProPlus and includes an upgrade to Microsoft R Server 9.1, which now features sentiment analysis and other cognitive models.