The cost of computing power, storage, and networking has risen steadily over the past decade. Before the rise of cloud computing, companies had to pay extra for these expenses. With Microsoft Azure, there are opportunities to save money on Azure costs by ensuring your cloud environment is set up and utilized correctly.
If you have an AZ based company that uses Azure, you can make a small investment in your business with this resource. The key is to use Azure’s capabilities optimally so you can see immediate results and enjoy cost savings. Let’s look at what you can do to optimize your Arizona-based company’s Azure spend.
Check for underutilized resources
If you want to save money on Azure costs, one of the simplest ways is to shut down or resize under-utilized resources. This means that if your company only uses a small portion of what Azure has to offer, you’re wasting money by continuing to pay for unused capacity. Under-utilized resources are a waste of money, and they can be easily corrected.
How can you tell if your Azure resources are under-utilized? You’ll want to look at the CPU and network utilization of your resources, as well as storage utilization. Many under-utilized resources are caused by tenants who have not configured their resources correctly. This is especially true of storage underutilization, as many companies do not configure their storage correctly.
You’ll want to use Azure’s built-in monitoring tools, such as the Azure portal or the Azure CLI. These tools can track CPU, network, and storage utilization, and they can show you if you’re paying for under-utilized resources.
Once you’ve determined which resources are underutilized, you can shut them down or reduce their size. This will save you money on your monthly bill. If a resource is shut down, there may be a penalty for doing so that’s similar to charges for an early cancellation of a hosting agreement. You should plan accordingly if you do decide to shut down a resource.
Use the Azure Cost Management app
To ensure that your Azure cost optimization is on the right track you need to be able to track your expenses and cut down on unnecessary expenses. When you enable Azure Cost Management, it gives you the opportunity to do just that.
Through this feature, you can see where your Azure costs are going, what’s driving them up, and decide whether or not it makes sense for you to continue with these inefficiencies. You’ll be able to see which of your services are driving your costs up and which ones are getting the best bang for their buck.
This feature will help identify areas of your company that could use some more attention. For instance, every month you could compare how much it costs for your IT team to manage Azure versus how much it costs to have Azure manage itself, and you can decide whether it’s worth the money.
You’ll be able to see how your costs compare to similar companies in your industry, which could help you identify areas that need more attention. You’ll also be able to get a better idea of how much you’re spending on Azure versus other cloud services. This can help you decide if it makes sense to expand Azure or if it’s time to explore other options that might save your company money.
Azure Cost Management will also help identify which regions are costing you the most, so that you can see if there are some areas that could use a little extra attention.
Use the Azure Hybrid Benefit
The Azure Hybrid Benefit allows you to get the best of both worlds. You can use Microsoft’s Azure Cloud for some tasks and on-premises hardware for others. This is a cost-effective option because you don’t have to pay extra for the hardware in your company. It also provides a level of flexibility that would be expensive to replicate using on-premises or traditional cloud solutions. You’re able to do more with less resources by using the Azure Hybrid Benefit.
Another benefit of Azure Hybrid Benefit is that it reduces the risk associated with cloud services. By being able to access your on-premises hardware, you’re not as dependent on Azure’s availability, which could lead to unexpected interruptions in service and potential downtime.
Reserve instances for consistent workloads
The key to optimizing your Azure cloud costs is to save your instances for when you know that you’ll need them. If you’re running a consistent workload, you can use the “free” tier in Azure. This will let you run 3 virtual machines on the “free” tier for 1 month. You’ll be able to save money with this approach if you expect your workloads to remain constant throughout the month and don’t need more than 3 VMs at any time.
If your company occasionally needs more VMs, it’s best to work with managed service providers who are experts in Azure and its pricing structure. They will be able to provide recommendations and help find an optimal solution for your needs.
Your Azure Compute service matters
It’s important to ensure that you have selected the right Azure compute service for your business. By choosing the wrong one, you could be paying more money for something you don’t need. Azure offers a few different compute services, so to guarantee that you are using the right compute service for your business, make sure that you are familiar with the different features offered by each service:
Azure Virtual Machines
Allows you to run your own operating system, applications, and services in a virtual machine. If you do not need to run a full operating system, this is the best choice for you.
Azure Container Service
Allows you to deploy and manage containerized applications. If you have an existing application, or need to run several individual microservices in containers, this could be a good option for you. However, if all that you want is to run an application or two, then Azure App Service will likely be more cost-effective.
Azure App Service
Allows you to host web apps, mobile apps, and API apps. This is the best choice for a single application. If you are building a new application and don’t know if it will be web-based or mobile-based, then this is the best option for you.
Azure Batch
Allows you to run batch jobs, file processing and integration. If all that you need is to run a few simple jobs in the cloud, this could be your best bet. However, if you want to build your own custom batch solution or integrate with legacy systems, Azure Batch could not be your best choice.
Azure Service Fabric
Allows you to build, deploy and manage microservices. This is the ideal choice for complex applications that have many services interacting with each other. For a complex application, this is the best option. However, if you want to build a simple application in the cloud, then Azure Service Fabric could not be the best choice for that.
Configure autoscaling
One of the most important things you can do to optimize your Azure costs is to configure your Azure resources to scale automatically. Autoscaling allows you to pay for only what you need when you need it. If your company’s computing load spikes, then your Azure resources will be increased automatically. This will allow you to avoid buying more compute power when your business isn’t using it.
Get more from Azure with the right partner
Azure is a cloud platform that gives you the power and flexibility to build, deploy and run apps without worrying about the underlying infrastructure. But the cloud isn’t free, and the costs can get expensive quickly.
To ensure that your business gets the most out of your Azure investment, it’s important to partner with the right people, and the right people are Technology Solutions. As a Microsoft partner, they can help you with your Azure environment, so your costs are under control and your cloud infrastructure is set up with your business in mind.
