Comprehending the Power of Microsoft Azure

Many organisations have at least heard of Microsoft Azure but may still be unsure of exactly what it can do for their organisation or even how to get started with the cloud solution. Firstly, Azure is a public cloud computing platform that is offered by Microsoft. Azure is an umbrella term that covers many services but generally, Azure is a web-based platform that allows users to build, test, manage and deploy applications and services. Azure offers several different formats for cloud computing such as software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) products that have many different business use cases such as storage, networking, virtual computing and further Azure data services offerings. Microsoft Azure charges users on a pay as you go model, allowing users to just pay for the resources they need as they need them allowing for increased flexibility and scalability.

There is no arguing that the future of computing lies in the cloud. According to a recent Foundry survey, over the past 12 months, 69% of organisations have accelerated their cloud migration, and the percentage of companies with most or all IT infrastructure in the cloud is expected to leap from 41% to 63% in the next 18 months. As an industry leader, many organisations that are harnessing the power of the cloud are actively using Microsoft Azure. In fact, 90% of the Fortune 500 companies are using the Microsoft Cloud while Gartner’s magic quadrant for cloud infrastructure as a service named Microsoft as a leader in the sector. Azure has a lot of different uses and benefits to meet organisations' varying needs. Below we explore some of the common ways businesses take advantage of Azure’s functionality.

Web and Mobile Application Development

Managing and even creating business applications is an important practice in today’s working environment. The Azure platform can host, develop, and manage web or mobile applications with a versatile framework and the ability to host on Microsoft’s worldwide data centre network ensuring high availability. There is also a lengthy list of application templates to help boost the productivity and creativity of the developer. Further, Azure supports numerous integrations with different solutions to create a unified business system.

Improved Backup and Disaster Recovery

If you are looking to improve your data backup and disaster recovery, then Azure is worth considering. As a cloud-based solution, Azure is flexible meaning it can back up your business data from almost any language and any location. Users can choose the frequency and extent of the backup schedule for example daily, weekly or monthly depending on what the business prefers. Azure site recovery can enhance backup with offsite replication, little onsite maintenance or operational costs and little capital investment to help prevent data loss.

Distribute Your Active Directory

A company’s active directory is a database and set of services that connect users with the network resources required to complete their daily work tasks. This directory contains critical information and controls much of the activity that happens in your IT environment. Azure can integrate your active directory to supplement your access capabilities and identity giving your DNS centralised management, global reach, and powerful security. If your organisation uses multiple locations or uses on-premise or cloud apps like Microsoft 365, Azure can be a central space for managing access to all these tools. Azure also enables multi-factor authentication to add an extra layer of security.

Inspire Innovation

The flexibility, scalability and not to mention security offered by Azure allow companies who avail of it to move towards IoT solutions. Azure allows users to connect their devices to the cloud using solutions that integrate the company’s existing infrastructure to start collecting new data about your organisation. Organisations can monitor all devices in one space to help reduce complexity, reduce development time and costs while gaining insights to improve customer experience and overall business decisions.

If you would like to learn more about how Microsoft Azure can help future proof your business, check out our case study with SteriPack or get in touch to speak to one of our specialists.