The pros and cons of Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure launched as Windows Azure in 2010 before going on to be re-christened Microsoft Azure in March, 2014. It is a cloud computing platform designed to help in building, deploying and running applications and services, aided by Microsoft accommodated datacentres. It has become one of the most popular choices for cloud hosting services, including analytics, networking, database, mobile, computing, and so on, all while moving more rapidly, accomplishing more, and being more economical. So what’s the catch? Here are some pros and cons.
Pros
– Free
You try out the product before forking out any money. Just register for a free trial of their services so that you can see if they are what you need and give value for money. After the trial period, you are given a number of means to pay for the subscription.
– Costing calculator
By allowing a customised subscription package, you have a choice of features to add to or remove from the cost. This way you can have a bespoke subscription according to your needs or budget. Monthly costs can be calculated through pricing calculators.
– Compatibility
Compatible with Windows, those who use it can use it as their IaaS. Microsoft Azure supports a range of operating systems, programming languages and so much more. You can construct apps with Java, Python, Android, iOS, Node.js and the rest, or run Linux containers with Docker integrations.
Microsoft recently added “Azure Stack” as an option which is basically bringing the Microsoft Azure cloud into your organisation’s own datacentre. What you can do with Azure Stack is stage the implementation of your apps in-house, and then those apps you want to shift into the public Azure cloud can be moved from Azure Stack (in-house) to Azure (public).
Cons
– Cost
A service this good doesn’t come cheap. You can tailor your package, but it is still expensive compared to other cloud hosts.
In summary, however, if you use Windows and you have the budget, Microsoft Azure is the cloud host for you.
