Azure Platform Engineers: Switch to Azure Verified Modules for Landing Zones

🌟 Azure Public Preview: Microsoft.FileShares Microsoft has introduced a new preview feature, Microsoft.FileShares, making Azure file share deployment easier than ever. You can now create file shares directly at the resource group level, no storage account required! Key highlights: ✔️ Deploy file shares as top-level resources, right alongside VMs, disks, and VNets. ✔️ Dedicated performance per share with custom IOPS and throughput. ✔️ Cost visibility per resource, enabling precise chargeback and reporting. ✔️ Private Endpoints and Service Endpoints supported in preview. ✔️ NFS protocol only (SMB remains available via classic file shares). A great step forward in simplifying architecture and providing more flexibility for Azure Files. https://lnkd.in/e2DKng2P #Azure #MicrosoftAzure #AzureStorage #AzureFiles #CloudComputing #AzurePreview #CloudStorage #HybridCloud #AzureArchitecture #AzureCommunity

Azure Monitor managed service for Prometheus now includes native Grafana dashboards. We are excited to announce that Azure Monitor managed service for Prometheus now includes native Grafana dashboards within the Azure portal at no additional cost. This integration marks a major milestone in our mission to simplify observability reducing the administrative overhead and complexity compared to deploying and maintaining your own Grafana instances. The use of open-source observability tools continues to grow for cloud-native scenarios such as application and infrastructure monitoring using Prometheus metrics and OpenTelemetry logs and... #techcommunity #azure #microsoft https://lnkd.in/gBQYhRcz

🐳 Running Kubernetes (AKS) the Right Way Kubernetes is powerful, but it’s not “plug and play.” When we set up Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), the challenges weren’t about spinning up clusters — it was about operating them effectively. Here are my key learnings: 1️⃣ Use Infrastructure as Code (Bicep/Terraform) → Clusters should be reproducible, not manually created. 2️⃣ Enable Azure AD Integration → RBAC tied to your corporate directory is a game changer for security. 3️⃣ Leverage managed identities + Key Vault → No secrets in config maps. 4️⃣ Monitor everything → Use Azure Monitor + Container Insights for pod/node health. 5️⃣ Scale smartly → Configure HPA (Horizontal Pod Autoscaler) so workloads expand/shrink automatically. 👉 What’s your biggest pain point with Kubernetes today — scaling, cost, or complexity? #AzureKubernetes #AKS #CloudNative

Top 3 reliability actions you need to take for your Azure deployments that sadly many customers are not! AND an amazing new resource to help educate and implement. https://lnkd.in/g9BKB4Ej 00:00 - Introduction 01:18 - 1, Use Availability Zones 05:32 - 2, Network gateway SKUs 07:06 - 3, Network connectivity 13:28 - Reliability Guidance Hub 17:12 - Summary 18:02 - Close #azure #microsoft

Great info here as always! In the last few years I’ve seen so many deployments of zonal resources to networks with non-zonal gateways and it’s not always something people think to check. Typically the gateway was deployed years back on a standard (non-zonal) SKU and forgotten about, because it just works it’s not looked at again. Not much point deploying zonal resources if your network connectivity dies with the affected zone.

Azure Spot VMs vs Reserved VMs – The Real Difference One of the most common questions I get is: “Why does Azure offer Spot VMs at up to 90% discount while Reserved VMs only give around 72%?” Here’s a simple explanation Azure Spot VMs :- Azure data centers always have some unused capacity. Instead of keeping that hardware idle, Microsoft offers it as Spot VMs at a very low cost. The trade-off is that these VMs can be evicted anytime if Azure needs the capacity back. When creating a Spot VM, you decide: Eviction type – Evicted only if capacity is gone, or if capacity is gone and price goes above your set limit. Eviction policy – After eviction, the VM can either stop/deallocate (you can try to start it again later) or be deleted. How to create a Spot VM :- Go to Azure Portal → Create Virtual Machine Under Basics → Pricing options, select Spot instance Choose eviction type and policy Complete VM creation as usual (You can also use Azure CLI with --priority Spot) Best for: Test environments, batch jobs, rendering, and simulations. Azure Reserved VMs :- Reserved VMs work differently. Here, you commit in advance for 1 or 3 years. In return, Azure gives you a discount (up to 72%) and guarantees that your capacity will always be available. How to purchase Reserved VM capacity :- Go to Azure Portal → Reservations Click Add → Select Virtual Machine Choose Region, VM size, and term (1 year or 3 years) Purchase the reservation. Any running VM that matches the size and region will automatically get the discount. Best for: Production systems, always-on workloads, and predictable environments. Real-Life Example :- Spot VMs are like last-minute cheap tickets – great deal, but you may lose your seat if someone else pays full price. Reserved VMs are like booking a season pass – you pay upfront, but your seat is always guaranteed. Final Takeaway Spot VM = Maximum savings, but no guarantee Reserved VM = Stable savings with guaranteed availability Many smart companies actually combine both: Reserved VMs for critical workloads Spot VMs for flexible or short-lived tasks That way, they get the best balance of cost and reliability. #Azure #AzureVM #CloudCostOptimization #AzureSpotVM #AzureReservedVM #MicrosoftAzure #CloudComputing #finops

You can go far without A2A or MCP. For many simple workflows, you don’t need marketplace-style tool access (MCP) or cross-boundary agent interop (A2A). Keep it simple, don't overcomplicate things and ship. You don’t have to chase every hype wave, build what fits your use case. #Microsoft #Google #AWS #SemanticKernel #StrandsAgents #GoogleADK #A2A #MCP #AIAgents #Agents #Architecture #Azure #LangGraph #EnterpriseAI #LLM

☁️ Understanding the Core Architectural Components of Microsoft Azure Building and managing solutions in Azure starts with knowing its core components: Azure Regions & Availability Zones: Physically distributed datacenters ensuring high availability and disaster recovery. Resource Groups: Logical containers to organize, manage, and secure resources efficiently. Azure Virtual Network (VNet): Enables secure communication between resources in the cloud. Compute Services: Includes Virtual Machines (VMs), App Services, and Azure Functions for scalable processing. Storage Services: Offers Blob, File, Queue, and Table storage for structured and unstructured data. Azure Resource Manager (ARM): Provides consistent deployment and management across Azure resources. Identity & Access Management: Powered by Azure Active Directory for secure authentication and authorization. Understanding these components empowers professionals to design scalable, secure, and resilient cloud solutions. 🚀 #MicrosoftAzure #CloudArchitecture #AzureServices #DigitalTransformation #CloudComputing

𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗔𝘇𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗧𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁! 𝗔𝘇𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 retains deployment metadata within the resource group, enabling you to redeploy previously provisioned configurations with minimal effort. In this guide, I walk you through how to redeploy deleted resources using Azure Resource Group deployments, a powerful yet often overlooked capability that can save time, reduce errors, and reinforce governance. Whether you're managing infrastructure, supporting users, or building automation workflows, understanding deployment history is a game-changer. 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: https://lnkd.in/ePueYW3W Drop your thoughts, questions, or real-world scenarios in the comments. I’d love to hear how you’re using this in your environment. Grateful acknowledgement to Solomon Francis Jeremiah, founder of ABC OF CLOUD COMPUTING, a trusted friend, brother, and colleague, for the insightful nudge that sparked this discovery. #Azure #CloudComputing #ITInfrastructure #SysAdmin #Microsoft365 #DevOps #Governance #TechMindAnalytics #Shares #Abcofcloud #TechCommunity #SchoolofLearningAndDevelopment

Microsoft has refreshed the Azure Enterprise-Scale Landing Zone, bringing clarity and stronger governance for cloud adoption. Key highlights: 🔹 Dedicated Security Subscription & Log Analytics Workspaces – separates security vs. platform logs for better clarity, compliance, and cost control. 🔹 Clear split between Platform & Application Landing Zones • Platform → identity, networking, monitoring, governance foundations • Application → where workloads/apps live & scale with best practices Why this matters: This structure mirrors real-world team ownership and makes scaling & governance easier across large environments. 🔑 Tied to Azure CAF Design Areas These updates directly strengthen landing zone principles like: • Identity & Access Management – enforce secure boundaries • Network Topology & Connectivity – scalable, segmented design • Governance & Management – policies, compliance, and visibility • Automation – deploy & manage landing zones consistently with IaC 📚 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gNdkGcsC 👉 I am attaching the PDF for downloadable version of the architecture. #Azure #LandingZone #EnterpriseScale #CAF #Governance #CloudArchitecture