Azure Cloud is Microsoft's cloud computing platform that since 2010 has allowed organizations of all sizes to design, deploy and manage applications in a scalable and efficient way using the Redmond company's solid network of data centers. The platform offers an impressive number of tools and services ranging from virtual infrastructure to artificial intelligence, from data services to advanced security. In this article, we'll take a look at what Azure is, what services it offers and how it offers them, its payment model and what are the guidelines for taking your business 'to the cloud'.
Azure Cloud (known as Microsoft Azure and known at its inception in 2010 as Windows Azure) is a cloud computing platform offered by Microsoft that provides a wide range of cloud services and solutions to help companies and developers create, distribute and manage applications through a global network of data centers managed by Microsoft.
The platform offers its users the incredible amount of more than 200 different services that range, to name just a few, from the creation and replication of virtual machines in the cloud, to machine learning, to the development of online applications.
To date, Azure Cloud is the second most used cloud computing platform in the world and alone holds 26% of the market. Microsoft continues to expand its impressive range of services day after day, including, in recent times, those specific to artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as for the Internet of Things (IoT).
The Redmond giant is also investing massively in extending the infrastructure for its cloud computing platform with new data centers and global capacity improvements, demonstrating its commitment to supporting a wide range of customer needs, from small businesses to large global companies, and the growth of Azure Cloud shows no sign of stopping very soon.
But how does it work? What specific services does it offer and what advantages can a business interested in adopting it derive from the platform? Let's see it together.
In our introduction, we were talking about more than 200 different services provided by Azure Cloud and this number is not an exaggeration but a fact.
Describing in detail every single service made available in a single article would be an impossible task; therefore, we will focus in this (and the next) section on giving an overview to navigate the platform's impressive offer.
To begin to understand how the Azure Cloud ecosystem is structured, let's start by understanding the model with which services are delivered to users.
Azure Cloud uses a template as-a-service, a mode of delivery in which customers access these services on request, through the Internet, without having to directly manage the underlying infrastructure. This approach allows organizations to take advantage of advanced technologies in a flexible and scalable way, paying only for what they use, without having to face the costs and complexities associated with managing and maintaining their IT resources.
Azure Cloud focuses on three macro-categories of services offered through the as-a-service model. Let's take a closer look at them in the list below:
Within the three macro-categories mentioned in the previous section, we can identify three main types of services, each based on a key element of the Azure Cloud proposal for the development of business applications.
These three elements are respectively:
Regarding the first element, computing, Azure Cloud offers a series of services for creating and managing virtual machines, containers and batch processes. Azure offers flexibility and scalability to meet a wide range of computing needs:
Moving on to the second element, storage, Azure Cloud offers a series of scalable storage services that allow companies to store structured and unstructured data in a reliable and secure way:
We then conclude with networking, an area in which Azure Cloud offers a complete series of services for connectivity and network management:
We have created the Infrastructure & Security team, focused on the Azure cloud, to better respond to the needs of our customers who involve us in technical and strategic decisions. In addition to configuring and managing the tenant, we also take care of:
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The Azure Cloud offer, however, is not limited to the services listed above, nor to the three types identified and makes much, much more available to its users: services for the development and management of mobile apps, services dedicated to security and identity management, to the Internet-of Things, and finally to services dedicated to Machine Learning and the integration of the latest technologies in the field of AI.
Let's take a closer look at each of these areas and which are the most important services dedicated to each of them.
Azure offers a full suite of services designed for the development of mobile applications that allow businesses to create apps that can reach customers on any device, be it Android, iOS or Windows.
Azure Mobile Apps provides a scalable and secure backend for mobile applications, supporting features such as offline data synchronization, user authentication through identity services such as Facebook and Google, and push notifications to keep users updated.
In addition, Azure App Service allows developers to quickly build and deploy mobile apps with integrated management and monitoring capabilities, thus ensuring efficient management and a smooth user experience.
When it comes to security and identity management, Azure offers powerful and integrated tools to protect a company's assets. Microsoft EntrAid (once known as Azure Active Directory) provides comprehensive identity and access management, including multi-factor authentication, user and group management, and conditional access to improve security.
Cryptographic keys and other sensitive information (such as passwords, connection strings, API keys, certificates, and cryptographic keys) are protected through Azure Key Vault, which centralizes the management of security keys and business secrets. These secrets are securely stored, encrypted both at rest and in transit, ensuring maximum security and compliance.
Azure Security Center provides a unified view of the security of cloud and on-premises resources, offering security assessments and recommendations to mitigate risks. In addition, Azure Sentinel, a SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) solution, allows monitoring and responding to threats in real time, further strengthening the security of corporate digital infrastructures.
Azure is a leading platform for Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, providing tools that make it easy to connect, monitor and manage IoT devices on a global scale. Azure IoT Hub allows you to securely connect millions of IoT devices and to manage the flow of data between these devices and cloud applications.
With Azure IoT Central, a SaaS platform, companies can create IoT solutions without having to manage the complexity of the underlying infrastructure.
Azure Digital Twins allows you to create detailed digital representations of physical systems to monitor, analyze and optimize operations while Azure Time Series Insights allows the real-time analysis of IoT data, facilitating the extraction of useful information and the making of informed decisions.
Azure offers a wide range of artificial intelligence and machine learning services, which allow companies to integrate cognitive and machine learning capabilities into their applications. Azure Cognitive Services provides pre-trained APIs that allow you to add intelligent functionality such as computer vision, voice recognition, text translation and natural language analysis.
Azure Machine Learning offers an end-to-end platform for developing, training, and deploying machine learning models at scale. This platform supports a complete workflow, from data preparation to modeling, to production. In addition, Azure Bot Services facilitates the creation of intelligent chatbots that can interact with users through different communication channels, improving customer experience and operational efficiency.
Last but not least, the implementation of the now omnipresent GPT models within their applications through Azure OpenAI, a service that is the result of the now long collaboration between Microsoft and the leading company in the field of AI technologies.
The cost of Azure services depends on several factors, including the type of service chosen, the capacity required, the location of the data center used, and the level of management required. In this section we will focus on outlining the payment model used by the platform, while for more specific information on prices, we refer you to the convenient calculation tool provided by Microsoft (available hither) which makes it possible to evaluate service costs based on length of employment, geographical region and currency, entering specific usage parameters for each service.
Most Azure Cloud services are available with the “pay as you go” pricing model, which allows you to pay for services based on their actual use, with billing per second and without long-term commitments or prepayments. This pricing model is especially suitable for users who prefer flexibility, for those who want to convert capital expenditures into operating expenses, and for applications with volatile or short-term workloads.
Azure Cloud also offers what are referred to as Reserved Instances, i.e. pre-purchased resources for one or three years in a specific region. Committing to reserved instances in advance allows you to get a discount of up to 72% compared to 'pay as you go' prices. This model is suitable for applications with stable and continuous use (24 hours a day, 7 days a week), for organizations with a fixed budget, or for large scale applications where a certain number of virtual machines are always needed.
The platform also allows you to replace reserved instances with others during the commitment period and offers the possibility to cancel them before the end of the term, with a maximum annual reimbursement ceiling of $50,000.
If, on the other hand, we need a quick and short-term solution, Azure Cloud allows you to buy spot instances that exploit unused computing power in the reference datacenter, providing a discount of up to 90% compared to “pay as you go” prices. However, spot instances are ephemeral and can be discontinued at short notice, making them suitable only for workloads that can tolerate interruptions. Spot instances are particularly suitable for distributed and fault-tolerant applications, stateless applications, non-urgent or heavily parallelized workloads.
Azure Cloud provides a series of cost management tools that you can use to estimate, plan and optimize cloud computing costs. These tools are essential to ensure that the use of the platform's services is as cost-efficient as possible, helping organizations optimize the use of cloud resources and save money.
Let's see them together below:
THEAzure Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF) is a set of guidelines, tools and best practices designed to help companies adopt the Azure Cloud platform. The CAF provides a structured and well-defined framework that guides through each phase of the cloud adoption process and ensures a systematic and organized path, dividing its journey into six phases and offers the best practices and guidelines for each phase.
By addressing common challenges in cloud adoption, the framework helps align your cloud strategy with business objectives, mitigate risks, and optimize costs. Let's see what the phases are in more detail:
Adopting Azure Cloud is an essential investment for all modern businesses seeking to operate efficiently in the digital age. The platform not only facilitates migration to the cloud, but also provides advanced solutions for every type of need with its considerable range of services: from the development of applications to the management and secure storage of data to the latest and very important additions in the field of artificial intelligence.
Azure's flexible approach to pricing and its robust cost management tools make it suitable for any organization, from startups to large global enterprises, adapting to growth needs.
Looking to the future, Azure is a safe and reliable choice for anyone who wants to remain at the forefront of technology and exploit the full potential of cloud computing, now and in the coming years. All we have to do is invite you to try it to experience its potential for yourself.
Azure Cloud, also known as Microsoft Azure, is Microsoft's cloud computing platform that enables organizations to design, deploy, and manage applications using a global network of data centers. It offers over 200 services, including virtual machines, machine learning, and online application development.
Azure Cloud provides a vast array of services categorized into:
Azure Cloud operates on a pay-as-you-go model, allowing organizations to pay only for the services they use. This approach offers flexibility and scalability, enabling businesses to adjust their usage based on current needs.
The Azure Cloud Adoption Framework is a set of guidelines and best practices designed to assist organizations in transitioning to the cloud. It provides a structured approach to planning, implementing, and managing cloud adoption, ensuring alignment with business objectives and maximizing the benefits of cloud technologies.
Azure Cloud offers a comprehensive suite of security features, including encryption, identity and access management, and threat detection. It complies with numerous international standards and regulations, ensuring that organizations can meet their security and compliance requirements.
Yes, Azure Cloud supports hybrid cloud solutions, allowing seamless integration with on-premises systems. This enables organizations to extend their existing infrastructure to the cloud, facilitating scalability and flexibility.
Azure Cloud offers various support plans tailored to different organizational needs, ranging from basic support to comprehensive, personalized assistance. These plans provide access to technical resources, best practices, and guidance to ensure optimal use of Azure services.
The Infra & Security team focuses on the management and evolution of our customers' Microsoft Azure tenants. Besides configuring and managing these tenants, the team is responsible for creating application deployments through DevOps pipelines. It also monitors and manages all security aspects of the tenants and supports Security Operations Centers (SOC).
