Features such as Azure object storage, IaaS, Azure System Center, Azure SQL Database are valuable to me.
CTO at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
It provides hybrid IT management of the on-premise and cloud workloads.
What is most valuable?
How has it helped my organization?
It provides:
- Scalable workload with elastic cloud capabilities
- Hybrid IT management of the on-premise and cloud workloads
- Disaster recovery
What needs improvement?
Azure is growing its open-source offerings and I see this as a continuous area of improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used this solution for six years.
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Microsoft Azure
December 2024
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Early on, there were issues with the workload interruptions. Over the past 12 months, it has been a stable cloud service.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
There were no issues with its scalability.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is one of Azure’s strengths, I would rate it above average to excellent.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I previously used Savvis and Verizon’s IaaS Enterprise Cloud solutions.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was moderately complex. The use of PowerShell greatly increases the ability to fine-tune workloads, i.e., after the initial setup was completed.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
If you have the existing on-premise licenses, make sure to ask for their special licensing promotions so as to allow consolidation of licenses and subscriptions, in order to maximize the current investment and control TCO.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We looked at other solutions such as AWS, Google's Cloud Platform and Terremark/Verizon.
What other advice do I have?
Leverage their cloud credit program so as to allow your team to become acquainted with Azure, before turning on their cloud billing services.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Associate Director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Competitively priced with excellent integration
Pros and Cons
- "The best feature is it's easy to integrate with other Microsoft solutions."
- "Compared with other cloud solution providers, Microsoft is not good at local support."
What is our primary use case?
I mainly use Azure for data analytics and implementation.
What is most valuable?
The best feature is it's easy to integrate with other Microsoft solutions.
What needs improvement?
Compared with other cloud solution providers, Microsoft is not good at local support.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been working with Azure for almost five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Azure's stability is ok, but there are issues sometimes. I'd rate its stability as seven or eight out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Azure is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
Microsoft isn't good at local support.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Azure is cheaper than solutions from other cloud vendors like AWS or Google.
What other advice do I have?
I prefer Azure to AWS or Google because it's cheaper and its ecosystem is better integrated. I would rate this solution as eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Implementer
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Azure
December 2024
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Azure. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2024.
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Principal Cloud Architect at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
This has become a critical solution for us with its broad diversity of services
Pros and Cons
- "Reliable with ease of provisional services."
- "More expensive than other solutions without justification."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case is mostly for deploying services where we do not have the local infrastructure like hardware, or where it's not necessary for us to have the knowledge about how to set up a certain service. We just want to use it without concerns regarding running the service, backup, availability, etc. That's the reason we pay Microsoft the money for its Azure services, so we can just go ahead and use the product. Some of the services they've rendered have become business critical for the company, so we're using the solution on a daily basis.
What is most valuable?
I like the reliability of the solution and the ease of provisional services which can be a click and go. I also like the broad diversity of services that are being offered.
What needs improvement?
I find that in many cases it's more expensive than AWS, and for no good reason. The pricing itself is also quite difficult to comprehend, it's not easy to know the total cost and not worth checking the calculator because the outcome is going to be totally different anyhow. I also find it difficult that they are specific to x86 and x64 machines, I haven't found any ARM-based virtual machine images that I could run in my IP test lab, which would be a great boost for productivity because I could run the internal pipeline in the cloud and would not have to divert to locally installed devices.
If they want to be serious with IT devices then they should find a way of deploying ARM-based devices to Azure, to get more freedom of choice with virtual machines and services. It would be hardware virtual machine image offerings to other platforms, not only PC-based or x86-based. It would make my life much easier.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for four and a half years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
There are some glitches but it's a pretty solid solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It's a scalable solution.
How are customer service and support?
Overall, I'm quite satisfied with the technical support. There were different expectations about what I had understood from the description of the support offered and what the architects of Microsoft meant to deploy. Some of the documentation for Azure is sketchy enough to leave room for questions and that had to be sorted out with support, which is not a fault that the support guys should have to concern themselves with. If the documentation is not clear and the cloud device goes, then there's clearly room for improvement.
How was the initial setup?
The start was far easier than we expected it to be, but the complexity caught up with us half a year later also. It got more complex as we went along. We carried out the deployment ourselves. I'm a very experienced administrator, I know a lot about concepts of data centers. I know how they work, I know how to set them up. This is just another data center, it's just that it's not mine.
What other advice do I have?
We found it difficult to train our regular Windows admins to dive into Azure things, so it's important to get the right people or the project is doomed. There are too many people who don't really want to get to grips with the cloud. I would also suggest not starting from a fully regulated basis. We have our deployment fully integrated with Azure Active Directory, which can be quite a hindrance when it comes to just playing around with things. It's essential to give people developer accounts where they can just play around, break things, work through them, like a little lab.
I would rate this solution an eight out of 10.
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: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Business Development Manager at ITQS
Flexible, easy to configure, and good support
Pros and Cons
- "There are a lot of things that we like about it. It is very easy to provision and configure. It is flexible and scalable."
- "We have faced some issues on the pricing side, but it has improved lately. We are trying to adjust to the new pricing methods that they are using now. It should be better from now on."
What is our primary use case?
Its main use case is data center migration. We are doing data center migration to Microsoft Azure.
Azure is a set of different services, and the version depends on the service that you choose, but normally, we work with the latest version.
What is most valuable?
There are a lot of things that we like about it. It is very easy to provision and configure. It is flexible and scalable.
What needs improvement?
We have faced some issues on the pricing side, but it has improved lately. We are trying to adjust to the new pricing methods that they are using now. It should be better from now on.
In terms of features, it is constantly improving. We receive improvements from the site daily.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for about 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is scalable. We have a team of 15 engineers who are continually working with our customers to provide support for the solution.
How are customer service and support?
Their support is good.
How was the initial setup?
Its setup is easy.
What other advice do I have?
I would advise others to start moving everything to the cloud because it is cheaper, flexible, and scalable.
I would rate it a 10 out of 10.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
GM COE at Anuntatech Management Services Ltd
Easy to set up, quick to deploy, and simple to expand
Pros and Cons
- "The stability has been excellent."
- "Technical support needs to be better."
What is our primary use case?
We primarily use the solution for our infrastructure. It's specific to server regulation and desktop regulation.
We used it for our customers in the pandemic. In terms of expansion on-premise, they were not able to do so due to the chip shortage. Therefore, we are moving everything to cloud and we are capacity-building - a temporary requirement. We are shifting them to the cloud.
What is most valuable?
As a partner, I like that they have a good benefit on margin.
The stability has been excellent. Multi-regions can leverage their capabilities easily.
The product is scalable.
We find the initial setup to be very simple.
What needs improvement?
There are worldwide issues on Microsoft Azure, however, it is happening to Google also and as well as AWS. The problems we have are nothing new.
Technical support needs to be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been dealing with the solution for three years now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the product has been great. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The product is scalable. If a company wants to expand it, it can do so.
We have 30 customers on the solution right now.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support isn't so good. We'd like them to be more helpful and responsive. We'd like them to be faster.
The communication and those aspects are pretty good, however, the resolution could be faster and better.
How was the initial setup?
As a cloud-based solution, the initial setup is very simple, very straightforward.
We were able to deploy the solution in one day for a few clients.
We have 20 team members that are technical (Azure system admins) and can handle the deployment and maintenance. We offer 24/7 coverage.
What about the implementation team?
We offer this solution to our clients and can implement it for them.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The licensing is based on usage. Typically, it's a monthly fee that is paid to Microsoft.
What other advice do I have?
We are a Microsoft Gold partner where we provide that, also we are users.
I'd rate the solution at a nine out of ten.
Customers who are on more Office 360 should leverage Azure. From a compliance perspective, these things are much more user-friendly compared to other clouds. Otherwise, there are a lot of compliance issues if we go with the other clouds where the mobility license is required. On Azure, for Microsoft users, those things are straightforward.
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
Systems Architect at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
Good for managing and configuring infrastructures
Pros and Cons
- "In terms of managing and configuring infrastructures, Azure is fairly good."
- "Azure could be improved with better security. The world is changing and their security could be better. Compared to five years ago, many of these cloud systems are a lot better, especially since you can set up a private cloud and configure your services to make it more secure."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use cases are for GPU-centric computing and deploying web services infrastructure solutions.
What is most valuable?
In terms of managing and configuring infrastructures, Azure is fairly good.
What needs improvement?
Azure could be improved with better security. The world is changing and their security could be better. Compared to five years ago, many of these cloud systems are a lot better, especially since you can set up a private cloud and configure your services to make it more secure.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Azure for more than two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
This solution is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I used Azure in a research-related context to see what features were possible, not a scalability context, so my impressions are limited.
How are customer service and support?
If you require a good amount of support, you may have an easier time with AWS.
How was the initial setup?
Installation may not be easy for novices, but for experienced folks, it's fairly straightforward. You can do it yourself.
What about the implementation team?
I implemented this solution myself.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Licensing is available for Azure. We mainly use Azure in a research context and to showcase what's possible, not from a scalability context, so our usage is limited from that standpoint.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have also worked with Amazon AWS. In general, AWS is fairly good too. I also know that many people also look at Google Cloud, which offers similar features and services.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Microsoft Azure an eight out of ten. There are some quirks, but in terms of managing and configuring infrastructures, it's fairly good. I recommend Azure because it's a top-class cloud solution provider, so there aren't many issues.
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Managing Director at D3
Easy to use administrator interface, stable, and straightforward installation
Pros and Cons
- "The user interface is very good for administrators."
- "Microsoft should have one package for all their solutions in one place to be found."
What is our primary use case?
We are using SharePoint through Azure.
How has it helped my organization?
The solution has helped our company by having zero maintenance.
What is most valuable?
The user interface is very good for administrators.
What needs improvement?
Microsoft should have one package for all their solutions in one place to be found.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Azure for one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Azure is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I have found Microsoft Azure scalable.
How are customer service and support?
I have satisfied with the technical support from Microsoft.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was easy.
What about the implementation team?
I did the implementation of the solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price of the solution could be less expensive and the pricing model could be less confusing.
What other advice do I have?
My advice to those wanting to implement the solution is to have training. It is important to train the internal employees.
I rate Microsoft Azure a nine out of ten.
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.
Senior Vice President Information Technology at a computer software company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Easy to understand, helpful technical support, and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "We are using Microsoft Azure because our organization uses a lot of Microsoft solutions. We have used Microsoft technology for a long time and we have internal engineers with great capability that understand the technology. This is why Azure is the best for us."
- "The quality of some components of Microsoft Azure is not that great. For example, Microsoft has not fixed issues in Microsoft Teams for many years. There are well-known issues that are submitted by customers two years ago and they still are not fixed."
What is our primary use case?
We use Microsoft Azure for different use cases. For example, we are hosting our corporate website on Azure. We are a software development company and we have hundreds of development and testing environments in Azure. Additionally, we use different Microsoft services, such as Office 365 and Azure Active Directory. A lot of our services are based on these technologies.
What is most valuable?
We are using Microsoft Azure because our organization uses a lot of Microsoft solutions. We have used Microsoft technology for a long time and we have internal engineers with great capability that understand the technology. This is why Azure is the best for us.
What needs improvement?
The quality of some components of Microsoft Azure is not that great. For example, Microsoft has not fixed issues in Microsoft Teams for many years. There are well-known issues that are submitted by customers two years ago and they still are not fixed.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Azure for approximately four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Azure is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable.
We have hundreds of users using this solution in my organization.
How are customer service and technical support?
The technical support has been great.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We use Google GCP and AWS by Amazon.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is not a problem it is similar to competitors, such as AWS.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing of Microsoft Azure is not very flexible.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate Microsoft Azure an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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