Microsoft Azure

Cloud computing has proliferated in recent years due to the advent of digital transformation. It serves as the central IT infrastructure for many businesses today, allowing you to store and access data over the Internet. In addition, this system eliminates the need for hardware, resulting in more efficiency and scalability.

Microsoft Azure is one of the most prominent among the cloud computing platforms available. It is the fastest-growing platform in the space today, providing hundreds of service offerings to support businesses from all industries. Get to know more about the business application below to see what value it brings to the table.

What is Microsoft Azure?

Azure is a cloud computing platform that grants you access to Microsoft’s cloud services like analytics, virtual computing, storage, and others. It allows you to develop and manage your applications on the cloud, saving you the time, effort, and resources to maintain local servers. Azure’s solutions generally fall under four types of cloud computing:

Microsoft Azure Products and Services

Microsoft Azure offers over 200 services divided into several categories: AI and machine learning, analytics, compute, DevOps, Internet of Things (IoT), security, and web. With this diverse range, you should have no problem moving your data to the cloud and setting up the proper infrastructure for your company.

How Does Microsoft Azure Work?

Azure operates using a virtualisation technology, which separates the coupling between a computer’s operating system and CPU through a hypervisor. The hypervisor mimics the functions of a computer in a virtual machine and can run many devices simultaneously. Azure then scales this technology to multiple data centres around the world.

Microsoft uses a pay-as-you-go model for billing, so you only pay for whatever Azure services and resources you consume. However, if you use a solution that involves multiple services, there may be different tiers involved. In addition, if you commit to services for a longer time, Microsoft offers a discount.

Why Use Microsoft Azure?

Now that you better understand how Azure works, you might be thinking of whether you should use it or if it will be helpful for your business. The platform’s high growth rate in recent years should already give you a clue of how valuable it is for companies. But to provide you with more concrete benefits, here are the top reasons why you should use Azure:

Versatility

Given its wide range of service offerings, Azure is highly versatile. It has everything you need to run hybrid or fully remote operations, making it applicable to many businesses today. Aside from app hosting and development, other use cases for Azure include virtual machines (VMs), testing, backups, and disaster recovery.

Scalability

Azure’s dynamic data centres and flexible pricing model allow you to scale quickly and on the fly. Unlike static data centres, you no longer have to purchase new hardware or invest in new infrastructure. Instead, you can simply scale your services and computing resources based on demand and business requirements.

Cost-Efficiency

Azure only charges you for whatever services you use per billing cycle, allowing you to avoid high overhead costs. This payment scheme will enable you to plan and manage your budget more efficiently. If you need to cut costs at any point, you can quickly de-allocate funds by switching off the resources that are not in use.

Security

Microsoft developed Azure with an approach known as the Secure Development Lifecycle (SDLC), which involves detecting and addressing threats before writing any code. Moreover, Azure offers continuous monitoring and complies with international standards like ISO 27001 and 27018, HIPAA, EU laws, and Canadian privacy laws.

Global Footprint

Azure has a massive global footprint with over 200 physical data centres found around the world. It makes Azure services more accessible for businesses, allowing them to migrate their operations to their desired locations.

Hybrid Support

If you are a beginner at cloud computing or are hesitant to move your entire workflow to the cloud, you can use Azure’s hybrid capabilities. These enable you to decide to put specific workloads in on-premise data centres or the public cloud while maintaining a consistent platform. This way, you and your team can still work remotely using any device.

IaaS and PaaS Capabilities

Another notable feature of Azure is its rich combination of IaaS and PaaS services, which allows you to run VMs and full application stacks on the cloud. Specifically, IaaS enables you to operate remote data infrastructure while PaaS helps you create customised web apps quickly.

With its diverse use cases, flexible pricing, and advanced capabilities, Microsoft Azure is one of the best cloud computing platforms. So regardless of your industry or size, Azure has all the services you need to move to the cloud.

Newpath is a certified Microsoft Dynamics 365 partner, and offers solutions based on Azure. If you’re seeking assistance with cloud computing, our expert team would welcome a chat soon.

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