News

Microsoft Releases Public Preview of its Graph Java SDK v3

• By John K. Waters
• February 17, 2021

Microsoft has released a public preview of its Graph Java/Android SDK, and the company is looking for feedback on the release.

Redmond defines the Microsoft Graph as "the gateway to data and intelligence in Microsoft 365." It's designed to provide a unified programmability model that developers can use to access the data in Microsoft 365, Windows 10, and Enterprise Mobility + Security. The Graph API provides a single endpoint ( https://graph.microsoft.com) for accessing "rich, people-centric data and insights exposed as resources of Microsoft 365 services," the company says.

The Microsoft Graph exposes REST APIs and client libraries to access data on a number of Microsoft cloud services, including:

• Microsoft 365 services: Delve, Excel, Microsoft Bookings, Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, OneNote, Outlook/Exchange, Planner, SharePoint, Workplace Analytics.
• Enterprise Mobility and Security services: Advanced Threat Analytics, Advanced Threat Protection, Azure Active Directory, Identity Manager, and Intune.
• Windows 10 services: activities, devices, notifications, Universal Print (preview).
• Dynamics 365 Business Central.

Microsoft wants developers to take a number of new features and enhancements in this preview release for a test drive, including:

• New and improved authentication API based on the Azure Identity library. Use a single API to authenticate against Azure services and Microsoft Graph. Azure Identity adds support for device code flow and client certificate credentials grant flow that were not previously supported.
• Modern CompletableFuture API surface for asynchronous calls. Execute Microsoft Graph calls in the background without blocking the main thread using a standardized API. This allows you to deliver a fluid user experience without compromising on the code maintainability.
• Modern date and time API. Use OffsetDateTime instead of Calendar covering a broader set of scenarios and providing more consistent APIs.
• New fluent API and optional parameters support for OData methods. Take advantage of the full set of methods available on Microsoft Graph.
• Performance and reliability improvements. Thanks to reduced memory and CPU consumption, the SDK delivers a faster experience to your end users.
• Batch support improvements. Execute Microsoft Graph JSON batches from a streamlined API, reducing the code needed in your application.

Vincent Biret, a software developer at Microsoft, made the announcement in a blog post, in which he listed instructions for developers who want to add the new SDK to their projects via GitHub and other platform package managers.