IaaS - Compute

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What is Azure Compute?

Compute is one of the core services of the Azure IaaS offering, fitting alongside storage and networking as one of the three pillars of building your infrastructure in the cloud with think S3.

As well as virtual machines, there are a number of other options available to you through Azure compute, including:

Service Fabric	Develop microservices and orchestrate containers on Windows and Linux
App Service	Quickly create cloud apps for web and mobile with fully managed platform
Batch	Cloud-scale job scheduling and compute management with the ability to scale to tens, hundreds or thousands of virtual machines
Cloud Services	Create highly available, scalable cloud applications and APIs that help you focus on apps instead of hardware

Azure allows you to tap into incredible computing capacity to run your applications on a model that means you only pay for what you use – scaling completely to your requirements without the requirement for costly changes to your on-site data center.

Whether you’re building new applications or deploying existing ones, Azure compute provides the infrastructure you need to run your apps.

How does Azure compute work and what are my options?

Virtual machine in Azure are no different to the VMs you use in your own datacenters – meaning you gain all the power and flexibility benefits of the cloud without losing the convenience of running Windows or Linux or any other systems that your existing apps rely on.

As an example of the variety available in Azure, the below indicates just some of the Virtual Machines currently available, ranging from basic workloads to high performance compute:

Type	Sizes	Description
General Purpose	B, Dsv3, Dv3, DSv2, Dv2, Av2	Balanced CPU-to-memory ratio. Ideal for testing and development, small to medium databases, and low to medium traffic web servers.
Compute Optimised	Fsv2, Fs, F	High CPU-to-memory ratio. Good for medium traffic web servers, network appliances, batch processes, and application servers.
GPU	NV, NC, NCv2, NCv3, ND	Specialised virtual machines targeted for heavy graphic rendering and video editing, as well as model training and inferencing (ND) with deep learning. Available with single or multiple GPUs.
High performance compute	H	Azure’s fastest and most powerful CPU virtual machines with optional high-throughput network interfaces (RDMA).

How do I get started with Azure compute?

Our Microsoft trained and accredited architects will help you to design and implement your infrastructure to get the most from your compute infrastructure in Azure.

Starting with an assessment of your environment and then working closely with your team through workshops, proof of concept and implementation days (all of which may be able to be funded), we will make sure that your move to compute in the cloud is as effective and efficient as it can be – truly transforming IT for your business.

Our ongoing managed support service will ensure that your Azure environment stays optimised, keeping you up to date with the latest releases and technology available to you and being on the end of the phone for support if anything needs looking at.

Want to know more or start your environment assessment?

For more on the full variety of virtual machines and other services available in Azure, speak to our team today or complete the form below to arrange your personalised Azure workshop.

Our Azure workshops are the perfect way to start your journey into the cloud, and we have helped many organisations just like yours with their first steps.