Today, Microsoft announced HTTP/2 support is available for all customers using Azure CDN from Akamai. HTTP/2 support exists as a default feature, with all existing and new Akamai standard profiles being able to use this feature as long as they are enabling from Azure portal.
HTTP/2 is designed to improve website loading speeds and to streamline the user experience. Currently, all major web browsers, including Edge, support HTTP/2. HTTP/2 is available at no additional cost and although this protocol is designed to work with both HTTP and HTTPS, some browsers can only support HTTP/2 over TLS.
Benefits of using HTTP/2 include:
- Multiplexing and concurrency: Allow multiple requests sent on the same TCP connection
- Header compression: Reduce header size for faster transfer time
- Stream prioritization and dependencies: Prioritize resources to transfer important data first
- Server push (not supported currently): Allow server to “push” responses proactively into client caches
For more information on the HTTP/2 support in Azure CDN, view the documentation here. If you have questions about the HTTP/2 protocol, check the HTTP/2 specification sheet or FAQ on GitHub. In the next few months, Microsoft hopes to provide HTTP/2 support for Azure CDN from Verizon. Know of a way to help improve Azure CDN? Let the Azure team know in their forums.
Further reading: Akamai, Azure, Azure CDN, GitHub, Microsoft, Verizon
