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IT Manager at Software Gurus
Real User
Top 5
The solution provides observability to check everything in the cloud, but it’s really hard to query the logs
Pros and Cons
  • "Azure Monitor gives us the observability to check everything that we have in the cloud."
  • "It's really complex to retrieve or query the logs in Azure Monitor."

What is our primary use case?

We use Azure Monitor to monitor all the infrastructure that we have in the cloud.

What is most valuable?

Azure Monitor gives us the observability to check everything that we have in the cloud. We can set up some alarms to better manage what we have in the cloud.

Azure Monitor has a direct connection with the infrastructure in the cloud. It's like a built-in feature in public services.

What needs improvement?

It's really complex to retrieve or query the logs in Azure Monitor. They have another query language, and it's messy. It never works the first time. You have to check a little bit of queries. It's really hard to make queries in Azure Monitor.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Azure Monitor for five years.

Buyer's Guide
Azure Monitor
November 2024
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We never had issues with the solution's stability. I rate Azure Monitor a nine out of ten for stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate Azure Monitor a nine out of ten for scalability. It's a cloud service, and we don't have any issues with it.

How are customer service and support?

Azure Monitor's technical support overall is not perfect.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

What was our ROI?

We have seen a return on investment with Azure Monitor because it's a tool that's out of the box in the cloud.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Azure Monitor's pricing is tied to the services. The Azure Insight is a little bit expensive. It's a little expensive if you want to avail all the features.

What other advice do I have?

I am using the on-cloud version of Azure Monitor.

If they are using the cloud, users can use Azure Monitor as the first tool because it already has integration with all the services. However, the query language that I use is really complex. So if users haven't built queries before, they will have several issues with it.

Even for technical people, they will have issues if they don't have experience using a query language. So if they are using Azure, they should use Azure Monitor initially. Later, they can improve the monitoring environment by applying some other tools.

Overall, I rate Azure Monitor a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Vice President - Network Management at ADS Securities LLC
Real User
A well-integrated solution with good troubleshooting features
Pros and Cons
  • "It has good troubleshooting features."
  • "If it is configured incorrectly, you can end up with a huge bill."

What is our primary use case?

We use this solution for basically everything. For example, we use it for infrastructure, application and resource monitoring.

What is most valuable?

It has good troubleshooting features like automated troubleshooting. It is also a flexible solution and a low-cost product. It includes all the features that are required for multi-cloud and public cloud.

What needs improvement?

If it is configured incorrectly, you can end up with a huge bill. Sometimes, a lot of data is collected and stored, and we may get charged for that kind of storage which is an issue.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for more than two years and are currently using the latest version. It is a cloud-based solution and deployed on public cloud. Our cloud provider is Microsoft Azure.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's stable and constantly updated with new features and functionalities.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is scalable and can scale to any size. Five people use this solution in our organization, primarily administrators, DevOps and security personnel. It requires about two to three people for deployment and maintenance. We have dedicated people from the monitoring team that do this. We plan to expand the number of users eventually.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is quite responsive. Microsoft support is pretty good. I rate the technical support an eight out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward and not complex. Deployment took a couple of days, and it was deployed in-house.

What was our ROI?

We have seen an ROI. It is a helpful tool and provides proactive information about the infrastructure.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did not evaluate other options. Azure Monitor is one of the most non-native tools from Microsoft, and it's well-integrated.

What other advice do I have?

I rate this solution an eight out of ten. I recommend this solution to others. They should try Azure Monitor to see if it fits their requirements gradually. Additionally, there isn't a lot of upfront investment required to set it up.

The configuration could be improved in the next release because it takes a little time. However, they regularly update their scalability and features.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Azure Monitor
November 2024
Learn what your peers think about Azure Monitor. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: November 2024.
814,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Khang Do - PeerSpot reviewer
Data Engineer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Low-priced and stable tool for data export and visualization, but has very few features
Pros and Cons
  • "Data exporting is easy, and this tool works seamlessly with other solutions. It's a stable and low-priced solution."
  • "This solution has fewer features than some of its competitors, so adding more features to it would make it better."

What is our primary use case?

We use Azure Monitor as our alert system. We also use it for other types of measurement.

What is most valuable?

Currently, we use Power BI for our data visualization, and Azure Monitor is a very good fit with those cases. Another thing I like about the solution is that we can easily export the data, and the tool seamlessly works together with Datadog, though in terms of visualization in Azure Monitor, it's not as beautiful. It also doesn't have as many features as Power Bi, and this is why we were comparing it with Datadog.

We use Power BI because it has many features, so that's the main part we consider when selecting which tool to use. As for Datadog, people think of it as an application performance monitoring tool, rather than a data exporting tool, so they will still use Azure Monitor for exporting data. In some cases when the data analyst team needs some type of data, we can set that up for them on Azure Monitor, then consider using Datadog as a platform monitor.

What needs improvement?

Visualization in Azure Monitor needs improvement. Adding more features to it would also make the solution better.

For how long have I used the solution?

My experience with Azure Monitor is six months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Azure Monitor is a stable tool.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Azure Monitor is scalable, but the only downside to it is that it's not an out-of-the-box (OOTB) solution, so we cannot scale it to something outside of Azure ServiceNow. Currently, we use ServiceNow as a ticketing system, then use Datadog as the incident and alert system to trigger a ticket in ServiceNow, which we cannot do in Azure Monitor.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Azure Monitor is a low-priced solution.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Datadog.

What other advice do I have?

I was comparing Datadog and Azure Monitor. We had a POC for Datadog and we were trying to test it with the trial account for our current data solution in Azure, so we tried to measure the differences between the two solutions.

Now we use Azure Monitor for our alerts and other measurements, but not as an application performance monitoring tool, so we're considering Datadog for that purpose. They made the final decision to use Datadog for application performance monitoring.

We are not in the setup phase for Azure Monitor yet, because we're still doing a POC for visibility, so we still have no idea on whether it'll be complex or straightforward to set up the tool.

As we are very small, we have not had the chance to contact tech support for this solution, plus we have a dedicated team from Microsoft who handles our questions and issues. Currently, we don't have an issue on Azure Monitor, but have raised issues about other Microsoft solutions, and the Microsoft dedicated team have been very supportive.

My advice to others looking into implementing Azure Monitor is that if they're working on small-scale projects and their projects fit Azure, then Azure Monitor will be the best solution for them, particularly because it is low-priced. The tool is also good when building a solution, e.g. they won't need to explore outside of it, but if they're building a multi-cloud solution, and they have a mix of on-premises and cloud, my suggestion is for them to use Datadog.

I will rate Azure Monitor a seven out of ten, because this solution has two things that we don't like, e.g. it doesn't tell you what and how it happened. It just says: "Hey, that happened", and "Go and check it". This is the reason why I don't recommend Azure Monitor, e.g. it's not a very informative tool, so we don't use it for our root cause investigation.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Cloud Architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 20
Offers good integration capabilities and is available at a good price point
Pros and Cons
  • "Some good integration capabilities are present in the tool."
  • "Using Azure Monitor and Azure Arc separately to monitor different environments can be complicated."

What is our primary use case?

I am not using the product by myself. I recommend the tool to our customers. Our company's customers use Azure Monitor in their DevOps practices since it offers easy-to-monitor components. Usually, we augment the product since DXC has its own tool. In our company, we also deploy our own tools on Dynatrace. We also have our own set of tools called DXC Platform X, which gets deployed to the cloud, and the native cloud tools like Azure Monitor are augmented by our own tool.

What is most valuable?

I don't know what specific features the customer gets from the tool. I know the standard monitoring is done on Azure Monitor. In our company, aside from being active with the setup, we also take care of the notification setup so that the help desk and right people are alerted in case there is an issue.

What needs improvement?

It is not just Azure Monitor that my company deals with since we augment it with our own DXC Platform X, which DXC developed for the cloud. DXC Platform X has its own set of tools for the cloud.

It would be good if there could be an integration between Azure Monitor and Azure Arc. The integration between Azure Monitor and Azure Arc can create a different product. Using Azure Monitor and Azure Arc separately to monitor different environments can be complicated. I think there is a need to blend everything into one product so that you can monitor everything, like the on-premises, AWS or Azure with one tool.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Azure Monitor for more than two years.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The tool's pricing is very good. I could say that Microsoft offers different cost models, which are listed on the product's website. It starts free of cost and goes up to a certain level, and then one just needs to pay above that. Usually, clients don't have to pay to choose anything, which is the biggest advantage of the hosting model.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The tool is a native product of Azure. Some good integration capabilities are present in the tool. It also offers availability, and the tool's pricing is very good.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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PeerSpot user
Cloud Architect at Cloud4C Services
Vendor
Affordable, easy to configure and offers good integration capabilities
Pros and Cons
  • "Technical support is helpful."
  • "The solution needs better monitoring. It requires better log controls."

What is our primary use case?

We have multiple customer internet-facing applications, so we require granular control of each of the data flows. That is something this product helps with.

How has it helped my organization?

The ease of use and direct integration with various products have been very useful aspects of the solution that our organization has taken advantage of.

What is most valuable?

It's easy to configure and easy to integrate with other products.

The initial setup is simple.

Technical support is helpful.

The solution is very stable. 

It can scale.

What needs improvement?

The solution needs better monitoring. It requires better log controls.

At this point in time, I don't expect them to add many other features. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for six months. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is quite stable. It's reliable. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. We haven't had any performance issues. I'd rate the level of stability ten out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is auto-scalable. I'd rate its ability to expand ten out of ten. It's a SaaS solution and does not require manual scaling. 

Our user base is about ten individuals. We don't have any more than that on it right now. We do not require it to expand too much in the future. 

How are customer service and support?

Technical support has been great. They are helpful and responsive. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

I found the initial setup process to be straightforward. 

I'd rate the ease of deployment ten out of ten. The deployment itself was fast and took maybe ten to 15 minutes. 

Just two people were involved in the deployment process. They were regular architects or technical individuals who were part of the deployment.

ONce deployed, the solution itself does not require maintenance. 

What about the implementation team?

We handled the deployment in-house. We did not need any help from outside integrators or consultants. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I'm not involved in licensing aspects.

That said, my understanding is it is affordable. 

What other advice do I have?

We have a partnership with Microsoft. 

We are always on the latest version of the solution as it is on the cloud. 

I'd advise others it was quite affordable and easy to configure. 

I would rate the solution nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Principal Application Developer at a insurance company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Provides an overview and high-level information of where problems lie; lacks sufficient user flow information
Pros and Cons
  • "Provides an overview and high-level information."
  • "Lacks information including details related to where problems lie."

What is our primary use case?

We all use Microsoft in the company and we are customers of Azure Monitor. 

What is most valuable?

The product is very good for developers who want to integrate with Visual Studio. The solution provides an overview and high-level information on what hurdles to expect, and which endpoints have problems. 

What needs improvement?

If Azure Monitor wants to compete with other APM products in the industry, it has to stitch together the information and user flow. It also needs to provide all the information, as you get with Stock Trace, including details related to where the call came from and where the problem lies. That's what we'd like to see. With a solution like Dynatrace, you have a clear path and you know which calls were made before and after the problem, and where the issue occurred. That feature is lacking in Azure Monitor.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for a year. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution scales easily. It's not a big deal for Azure Monitor or any other APM product.

How was the initial setup?

With Azure, implementation needs to be carried out in multiple places and you need to add other things to get the information and that's a tedious process. The Dynatrace setup is much easier. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We made a comparison between Dynatrace on-prem and Azure Monitor as to what each solution offers. Azure is great for developers wanting to integrate with Visual Studio but when it provides Azure monitoring information on the dashboard there is a lot of Google analytics. When it comes to the application performance monitoring information, Azure gives you the overview or high-level information regarding issues and which endpoints have a problem, but it doesn't give you anything in-depth at the matter level.

What other advice do I have?

It's important to know what your requirements are. If you're able to put best practices in place, and need to add SBKs and turn on profiling at the meter level to look into the details, then Azure Monitor can help. But if that's not something you need, Monitor might not be the best solution for you.

I rate the solution six out of 10. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Erwin Del Rosario - PeerSpot reviewer
Full Stack Software Engineer at Collabera Philippines
Real User
Top 5
Provides good stability and maximizes the application's performance
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution's most valuable features are its ability to focus on delivery and maximizing the performance of applications and services."
  • "The solution's monitoring feature has limitations for analyzing multiple metrics."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution to develop AI technology, particularly for financial services. It involves creating a chatbot or conversational AI system.

What is most valuable?

The solution's most valuable features are its ability to focus on delivery and maximizing the performance of applications and services.

What needs improvement?

The solution's monitoring feature has limitations for analyzing multiple metrics. Also, its support services could be better.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been a customer of AWS Monitor for less than a year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have more than ten people using the solution.

How are customer service and support?

The solution's technical support services need improvement.

How was the initial setup?

The solution's initial setup was straightforward.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is expensive, but it is worth the price.

What other advice do I have?

You can use this technology, as it is unique to Microsoft's services. It focuses on performance monitoring. It is highly effective for diagnostic purposes, viewing metrics, and enabling/disabling logs. It facilitates data gathering and logging, as its name suggests.

I rate it an eight out of ten, as we had a great experience learning the technology.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Senior Systems Administrator at Herbalife
Real User
Monitors the server and all of the CPUs so we can audit the bandwidth that has been consumed
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is that it's stable. It hasn't crossed any thresholds."
  • "The troubleshooting logs need improvement. There should be some improvement there. I have a hard time finding the right logs at the right times whenever there is an issue occurring."

What is our primary use case?

We use it to monitor all the services and applications, whether it is running or whether it is standing still. We use it to monitor the server and all of the CPUs so you can audit the bandwidth that has been consumed - all the day to day administrative stuff.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is that it's stable. It hasn't crossed any thresholds. 

What needs improvement?

The troubleshooting logs need improvement. There should be some improvement there. I have a hard time finding the right logs at the right times whenever there is an issue occurring. They should simplify the logs. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it for around two years. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We definitely do have plans to increase the usage but it depends on what the management calls. I'm not the authorized person to make calls here but we do have plans to increase the current infrastructure.

How are customer service and technical support?

We have a separate team that handles creating incidents with Microsoft.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate Azure Monitor an eight out of ten. In order to make it a perfect ten, the solution should be simplified. For a beginner, it's kind of complex. It should be made easier for beginners or newcomers.

I would recommend this product. We get good results from Microsoft Azure, so that's why we stick with Microsoft Azure

I definitely recommend this product to all my colleagues or my friends or my friend's companies.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Azure Monitor Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: November 2024
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Azure Monitor Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.