Microsoft announced its multi-model, globally distributed database service, Azure Cosmos DB at Build last year. Now, Cosmos DB is getting a pretty big UI upgrade.
To supplement - and perhaps later supplant - the existing Data Explorer available through the Azure portal, there's now something called Cosmos DB Explorer. Since it's a full screen and standalone version of Data Explorer, this new iteration gives you access to your collections and database account via connection string instead of having to go through the Azure portal. Furthermore, you can share query results with authorized users who don't have access to the Azure portal, while also being able to take advantage of all the available screen real estate to display said results.
It goes without saying, there's no need to locally download tools to make this work.
The results of your queries can be shared via two access methods: either Read-Write - which gives the receiver the ability to edit them -, or Read, thus making the results read-only. If you're on the receiving end of these results, access to them will expire after a few hours, requiring a re-connection via a valid connection string. This can be done when accessing the Explorer directly.
For those interested, Cosmos DB is free to try, even without an Azure subscription.
Source and image: Azure Blog
