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Effective Multi-Cloud Management: Security, Cost Optimization, and Strategy

Posted on April 29th, 2025 by Nuform

Mastering Multi-Cloud Management in 2025: Centralization, Security, Cost, and Automation

Introduction

The multi-cloud management platform market reached $13.33 billion in 2023, driven by a near-universal adoption of multi-cloud management strategies—98% of enterprises now utilize or plan to use multiple cloud service providers. Market forecasts predict a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.8% over the next decade, underscoring the growing demand for robust multi-cloud management solutions.

However, managing heterogeneous cloud environments poses significant operational complexity. Each cloud provider introduces its own APIs, service architectures, cost structures, and security models. This complexity highlights the need for a unified multi-cloud management approach. Organizations must adopt specialized tools to standardize and optimize their operations across disparate platforms using multi-cloud management best practices.

This article presents a technical analysis of the leading multi-cloud management platforms for 2025, focusing on their capabilities to automate infrastructure management, enforce security controls, monitor performance metrics, and control cloud spending.

Centralized Management and Visibility in Multi-Cloud Management

Cloud Management Platforms

Cloud Management Platforms (CMPs) form the operational backbone of multi-cloud management strategies. These platforms offer a centralized control plane that interacts with public and private cloud APIs, enabling unified multi-cloud management of infrastructure, applications, and policies from a single interface.

Core Functionalities of Cloud Management Platforms in Multi-Cloud Management:

  • Resource Orchestration: Automates provisioning, scaling, and decommissioning of cloud resources across providers, enhancing overall multi-cloud management efficiency.
  • Cost Management: Consolidates billing, enforces budgets, and provides cost optimization recommendations—key aspects of effective multi-cloud management.
  • Security Governance: Implements policy-based controls and continuous compliance monitoring across environments to support secure multi-cloud management.
  • Performance Monitoring: Collects metrics on infrastructure and application performance, enabling proactive oversight within a multi-cloud management framework.

An effective multi-cloud management platform significantly reduces operational overhead and improves organizational agility. For example, VMware Cloud Management has demonstrated the ability to reduce time spent on routine tasks by up to 67%, allowing IT teams to shift focus toward innovation rather than maintenance.

Popular Cloud Management Platforms for Multi-Cloud Management

  • Morpheus Data: Known for its extensive integration capabilities and automation tooling, Morpheus supports self-service provisioning, hybrid cloud governance, and role-based access controls. Its modular design supports fast and scalable multi-cloud management adoption.
  • CloudBolt: Built with a focus on self-service IT and compliance, CloudBolt simplifies cloud provisioning while enforcing security policies. With plug-ins for Terraform and Ansible, it offers seamless DevOps integration in multi-cloud management scenarios.
  • VMware vRealize Suite: Ideal for enterprises heavily invested in VMware infrastructure. It provides deep integration with on-premises VMware and public clouds like AWS and Azure, delivering end-to-end visibility and automated workload control for effective multi-cloud management.
  • Flexera One: Previously known as RightScale, Flexera One excels in cost transparency and control. It offers robust analytics for multi-cloud management spend, license optimization, and IT asset governance—making it a top choice for finance-driven IT operations.

Single Dashboard for Monitoring in Multi-Cloud Management

Modern IT operations demand multi-cloud management solutions that provide comprehensive visibility across diverse cloud environments. A single, centralized monitoring dashboard is essential for effective multi-cloud management, as it aggregates data from multiple cloud providers into one unified view. This enables real-time oversight of infrastructure health, application performance, and compliance status—all from a single pane of glass.

Key Advantages of Unified Monitoring in Multi-Cloud Management:

  • Accelerated Troubleshooting: Detect and resolve issues quickly without toggling between multiple tools—an essential function of streamlined multi-cloud management.
  • Cross-Cloud Dependency Correlation: Identify performance issues caused by interdependent services across cloud platforms, a common challenge tackled through intelligent multi-cloud management.
  • Metric Normalization: Standardize metrics from different providers to ensure accurate benchmarking and cross-platform comparison—a critical benefit of advanced multi-cloud management. tools.

Centralized Monitoring Benefits

  • Faster Troubleshooting: Teams can instantly identify problems without navigating multiple consoles, improving response time through better multi-cloud management.
  • Cross-Cloud Correlation: Unified views reveal patterns and systemic issues caused by services interacting across clouds.
  • Consistent Metrics: Leading multi-cloud management. platforms normalize provider-specific metrics, enabling clear performance analysis and trend comparison.

Tools Supporting Multi-Cloud Management Monitoring

Platforms like Datadog, New Relic, and Dynatrace play a key role in multi-cloud management by offering centralized dashboards powered by agents and API integrations. These tools provide customizable views tailored to operational needs, improving clarity and decision-making.

Your Monitoring Dashboard Should Track:

  • Infrastructure Metrics – CPU, memory, disk I/O, and network utilization across all clouds
  • Application Performance – Response times, error rates, and user experience benchmarks
  • Cost Indicators – Real-time cloud spending, resource utilization, and waste detection
  • Security and Compliance – Policy violations, access anomalies, and compliance health

The most effective multi-cloud management dashboards also include smart alerts and service dependency mapping. These features reduce noise, highlight critical issues, and visualize component interactions across multiple clouds—empowering faster and smarter resolutions.

Automation and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) in Multi-Cloud Management

Multi-Cloud Management is evolving rapidly, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is at the center of this transformation. It changes how organizations handle their cloud resources by allowing teams to represent infrastructure setups in code instead of manual console configurations. This approach brings software development practices to cloud management, making deployments consistent, repeatable, and version-controlled.

Terraform and Ansible for IaC

Terraform leads the charge as the most popular cross-platform IaC tool for Multi-Cloud Management. Its provider-agnostic design allows teams to write code once and deploy it across multiple cloud platforms. Unlike provider-specific tools, Terraform offers a consistent syntax and workflow regardless of the cloud vendor.

Key Terraform benefits for Multi-Cloud Management include:

  • Provider-agnostic syntax – Deploy to AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud with the same codebase
  • State management – Track and audit changes across your entire cloud estate
  • Modular design – Reuse infrastructure components for greater efficiency

Terraform adoption is on the rise, with over 44% of enterprises using it as their primary IaC tool. Its declarative syntax lets you describe your desired infrastructure outcome, making it ideal for managing complex multi-cloud environments.

Ansible complements Terraform by handling configuration management and application deployment. While Terraform provisions the infrastructure, Ansible takes over to configure systems, install software, and manage settings. This toolkit offers a complete solution for Multi-Cloud Management.
Here’s how Terraform and Ansible typically work together:

  • Terraform sets up the foundational infrastructure — VMs, networks, and storage
  • Ansible configures environments and deploys applications post-provisioning

This division of responsibilities enables teams to specialize, streamlining operations and boosting efficiency. Organizations new to Infrastructure as Code will find Terraform and Ansible offer excellent Multi-Cloud Management support and strong community backing.

Automated Security Policies

Security automation plays a vital role in Multi-Cloud Management. Dynamic cloud environments move too fast for manual security processes, especially with multiple providers using different security models.
Tools like Hashi Corp Sentinel, OPA (Open Policy Agent), and cloud-native solutions help teams automate their security requirements. This ensures consistent security no matter where workloads run, making it essential for effective Multi-Cloud Management.

Automated security policies work best in these areas:

Access control enforcement - Automated rules prevent overly permissive IAM roles across clouds. This cuts down security risks since identity misconfigurations cause most cloud security incidents.
Resource configuration guardrails - Rules catch unsafe setups like public storage buckets or unencrypted databases before they cause problems.

Compliance validation - Automated checks ensure resources meet regulations and provide audit evidence.

Companies using automated security policies report 60% fewer incidents than those using manual processes. Automation removes human error and maintains standards as cloud environments grow. That’s why Multi-Cloud Management strategies increasingly rely on security automation.

Multi-cloud environments need tools that manage security across providers. Solutions like Prisma Cloud and Wiz provide unified visibility and automated fixes, strengthening Multi-Cloud Management across diverse platforms.

Cost Optimization Strategies in Multi-Cloud Management

Rightsizing Instances for Efficiency

Rightsizing matches instance types and sizes to workload requirements. This forms the foundation of cloud cost optimization in Multi-Cloud Management. Research shows 40% of cloud instances are too big, which wastes money. Organizations can cut cloud costs by 10-15% through rightsizing alone.

The rightsizing process works systematically:

Start by gathering complete utilization data from all cloud platforms. Focus on CPU, memory, storage, and network metrics. Cloud providers give you tools like AWS Compute Optimizer or Azure Advisor. These analyze how resources are used and suggest improvements.

Look for patterns in your utilization data. Key areas to watch include:

  • Instances that run below 40% utilization
  • Development/test environments active outside business hours
  • Seasonal workloads with clear peaks and valleys

You can implement rightsizing by changing existing resources or setting up automated policies for new deployments. Schedule regular reviews of existing resources—monthly for dynamic environments, quarterly for stable workloads.

Rightsizing needs ongoing monitoring rather than one-time fixes. Your instance configurations should evolve as workload requirements change in your Multi-Cloud Management strategy. Set up automated policies that flag underused resources when they cross certain thresholds.

Reserved Instances and Savings Plans in Multi-Cloud Management

Commitment-based discount models save money on predictable workloads in Multi-Cloud Management. The principle is simple: commit to using certain resources, and cloud providers give big discounts—usually 30-75% off on-demand pricing.

Major providers offer different options:

  • AWS gives you Reserved Instances (RIs) and Savings Plans. RIs cut costs by up to 72% with one or three-year terms. Payment options include all upfront, partial upfront, or no upfront. Savings Plans offer similar discounts but let you be more flexible with instance types and regions.
  • Azure's Reserved VM Instances run for one or three years and save up to 72% compared to pay-as-you-go. Windows Server customers can stack Azure Hybrid Benefit to save 40% more on eligible workloads.
  • Google Cloud offers Committed Use Discounts for one or three years. These save up to 70% off on-demand pricing for steady workloads.

Cost Monitoring and Reporting in Multi-Cloud Management

Tracking cloud spending gets tricky in Multi-Cloud Management setups. Organizations that use dedicated cloud cost management tools save 20-30% more than those using basic provider tools.

Good cost monitoring needs:

  • Unified dashboard – One view of spending across all providers
  • Granular tagging – Same tagging rules across clouds for proper tracking
  • Regular reporting – Weekly spending updates and monthly deep dives
  • Anomaly detection – Alerts when spending spikes unexpectedly

Tools like Apptio Cloud Ability, Cloud Health, and Flexera help manage multi-cloud costs. These platforms normalize billing data across providers to make fair cost comparisons.

Set up a formal cost review process. Meet monthly with finance, operations, and application teams to check spending patterns and find ways to save. This team approach makes cost optimization an ongoing priority instead of a reactive task in Multi-Cloud Management.

Security Best Practices for Multi-Cloud Management

You'll need both technical solutions and organizational discipline to set up standard security controls with different cloud providers. Let's head over to the most effective ways to secure Multi-Cloud Management environments.

Identity and Access Management

Unified identity management is the lifeblood of Multi-Cloud Management security. Identity-related misconfigurations cause nearly 67% of cloud security incidents. This makes IAM your first line of defense.

The foundation of effective Multi-Cloud Management IAM has:

  • Centralized identity governance – Set up a single identity source that works with all cloud platforms. Tools like Okta, Azure AD, and OneLogin offer cross-cloud authentication features that remove identity silos. This cuts down admin work by up to 60% and makes security stronger.
  • Least privilege access – Users and services should get only the minimum permissions they just need to do their jobs. This simple rule cuts down your attack surface. Studies show companies using the least privilege cut their data breach risk by 70%. You should check and remove extra permissions regularly to keep access controls tight.
  • Just-in-time access – Use temporary, time-bound access instead of permanent high-level permissions. This stops attackers from using standing privileges but lets admins do the work they need to do.
  • Multi-factor authentication – Use MFA everywhere in your Multi-Cloud Management environments. MFA might seem basic, but it stops over 99.9% of automated attacks and 76% of targeted attacks. This makes it one of your most powerful security tools.

Think about using cloud security posture management (CSPM) tools. These tools watch IAM settings across providers and flag dangerous permission combinations or policy violations automatically.

Data Encryption Strategies in Multi-Cloud Management

Multi-cloud environments just need detailed encryption strategies to protect information at every stage. Encryption turns your data into code that only people with the right key can read.

Good Multi-Cloud Management encryption should have:

  • Consistent encryption for data at rest – Your stored data needs encryption. This includes databases, object storage, and file systems across all cloud providers. Only 48% of companies encrypt all their sensitive cloud data, which leaves big security holes.
  • Transport layer security – Data moving between services, users, and clouds needs encryption with current TLS protocols. This stops attackers from intercepting data, which matters even more when information moves between different cloud environments.
  • Bring your own key (BYOK) – Keep your encryption keys instead of relying on cloud provider key management. This lets you control who sees your data and when, even if someone compromises provider credentials.
  • Data classification automation – Use tools that find and label sensitive data across cloud environments automatically. These tools then apply the right encryption rules based on data type. This ensures your data stays protected as it moves between services.
  • Key rotation policies – Change your keys regularly to limit damage if keys get stolen. Most security guides suggest changing high-value encryption keys every three months.

Pick encryption tools that work easily across multiple cloud platforms. This helps you avoid creating separate security setups for each cloud.

Compliance Management in Multi-Cloud Management

Managing regulations across multiple clouds brings its own challenges. Each provider has different compliance tools, but you just need consistent rules whatever your data lives.

To get good multi-cloud management compliance:

  • Create provider-agnostic compliance policies – Build standard security rules that work in all cloud environments. These rules should meet your toughest compliance needs, from industry rules like HIPAA and PCI-DSS to regional laws like GDPR.
  • Implement continuous compliance monitoring – Use automated tools to check compliance in real time instead of manual checks. Companies using continuous monitoring find and fix violations 93% faster than those doing manual checks.
  • Centralize compliance reporting – Create unified reports that show data from all cloud environments. This makes audits easier and gives leaders a clear view of your compliance status.
  • Establish clear data residency controls – Set up policies and technical controls for data sovereignty. This ensures regulated data stays within approved regions whatever cloud provider you use.

Tools like Prisma Cloud, Wiz, and CloudGuard can help. They let you see and control compliance across multiple clouds, which cuts down work while making security better.

Note that consistency makes multi-cloud management security work. The most secure companies set clear security standards and use them everywhere, no matter how each provider does things differently.

Workload Optimization

Workload Placement Strategies

The best workload distribution needs a careful look at each application's traits and needs. Successful Multi-Cloud Management organizations usually follow a clear process that looks at:

Performance requirements - Some applications need specific cloud platforms to perform their best. To name just one example, memory-heavy workloads might run better on Google Cloud's memory-optimized instances. Computational workloads could work better with AWS's robust compute options.

Cost structures - Cloud providers price their services differently. Looking at how an application uses resources helps find the most cost-effective provider. My experience shows companies save 25-40% on cloud costs just by placing workloads smartly.

Data gravity - Applications should stay close to their data. This cuts down on delays and transfer costs. The principle matters more as data grows. Moving big datasets between clouds can quickly eat up any savings from distributed hosting.

Compliance requirements - Rules often control where workloads can run. Apps handling sensitive healthcare data, financial records, or personal information might face strict location or security rules that limit provider choices.

Provider-specific services - Some apps work better with special services from specific providers. AI workloads might use Google's TensorFlow services. Apps needing advanced analytics could work better with Azure Synapse.

Multi-Cloud Management companies should set up a clear framework to make workload placement decisions. This usually involves:

  • Making a complete application list
  • Writing down each application's technical and business needs
  • Matching needs to provider features
  • Working out total ownership costs across possible providers
  • Building a migration and optimization plan

Tools like Appscore, Cloud Migration Factory, and Cloudamize help this assessment. They offer data-based suggestions for workload placement based on real resource use patterns.

Cloud-Native Technologies

Cloud-native tech has changed how we optimize workloads in Multi-Cloud Management setups. These approaches let apps run smoothly across different providers while getting the most from each platform.

Containerization is the lifeblood of modern Multi-Cloud Management setups. By packaging apps with their dependencies in portable containers, organizations get amazing consistency across environments. Right now, about 75% of enterprises use containers in production. Docker remains the top containerization technology.

Containerization in Multi-Cloud Management setups offers these benefits:

  • Portability - Containers run the same way on any supporting cloud provider
  • Resource efficiency - Containers need fewer resources than virtual machines and cost less
  • Isolation - Applications run on their own and avoid conflicts
  • Rapid deployment - Containers start up in seconds instead of minutes or hours

Kubernetes has become the go-to platform for container orchestration across clouds. This powerful tool hides infrastructure differences and creates a consistent experience regardless of the cloud provider. Companies using Kubernetes report 70% faster deployments and 60% better resource use compared to old methods.

Kubernetes brings key features for Multi-Cloud Management environments:

  • Workload mobility - Apps move between clouds with minimal changes
  • Traffic management - Requests route smartly across clouds based on performance, cost, or availability
  • Auto-scaling - Resources adjust to demand automatically
  • Self-healing - Failed containers get replaced automatically for better reliability

Monitoring and Alerting

Performance Monitoring Metrics

The right metrics across all environments make Multi-Cloud Management and monitoring work. Top organizations prioritize:

  • Infrastructure metrics - CPU utilization, memory consumption, disk I/O, and network throughput measurements across providers give early warnings of potential issues.
  • Application performance - Response times, error rates, and transaction volumes reflect your customer's experience with your services.
  • Cloud service health - Availability and performance tracking of managed services like databases, messaging systems, and storage services.
  • Cost metrics - Real-time spending monitoring helps spot unexpected cost spikes that might point to inefficient resource usage or security risks.

Metrics need normalization across providers to make meaningful comparisons. Tools like Datadog, New Relic, and Dynatrace offer Multi-Cloud Management and monitoring features that hide provider-specific implementations. Their unified dashboards help break down barriers between clouds.

  • Proactive Alerting and Incident Response
  • Service disruptions and unhappy users result from reactive monitoring. Teams can fix problems before service quality suffers with proactive alerting. Multi-Cloud Management plays a crucial role in enabling these capabilities.
  • Multi-cloud alert systems work best when they include:
  • Baseline-aware thresholds - Dynamic thresholds based on each workload and provider's historical patterns work better than static ones that often trigger false alarms.
  • Correlation engines - Different cloud alerts may look unrelated but often signal bigger problems. These engines connect separate signals and cut alert noise by up to 90%.
  • Automated remediation - Common issues need automated responses like restarting failed services or scaling resources when limits are reached. This cuts fix times by over 70%.
  • Cross-cloud dependency mapping - Quick root cause identification needs clear understanding of service connections across providers. Distributed architectures spanning multiple clouds especially need this visibility.

Key Considerations for a Successful Multi-Cloud Strategy

Vendor Lock-In Mitigation

Excessive dependence on a single provider's proprietary services creates the most important business risks. Multi-Cloud Management helps organizations avoid this trap:

Prioritize portable technologies - Choose open-source tools and frameworks that work in different environments. Kubernetes, Terraform, and container technologies naturally support multi-cloud portability.

Design for abstraction - Service layers that isolate provider-specific code from your core application logic will give a smooth transition. This architecture lets you switch providers with minimal disruption.

Document exit strategies - Clear documentation about migration paths to other providers should exist for each critical service. This preparation means you won't be stuck with unfavorable pricing or service changes.

Skill Development for IT Teams

Multi-Cloud Management environments are complex, and they just need broad technical expertise. These approaches help address this challenge:

  • Cultivating T-shaped skills – Staff members should develop deep expertise in one cloud platform while maintaining basic knowledge of others. This balanced strategy provides both specialist capabilities and versatile team composition.
  • Implementing cross-training programs – Team members should rotate between cloud platforms to build complete understanding. These rotations usually last 3–6 months. They provide enough immersion without disrupting specialized knowledge.
  • Investing in certification paths – Clear progression routes that match your specific cloud mix are vital. Teams with cross-cloud certifications resolve incidents 35% faster than single-platform specialists.

Data Governance and Compliance

Multi-Cloud Management requires consistent data practices across multiple environments to prevent regulatory issues and improve data usability:

Establish unified data classification - Standardized data categories should apply whatever the storage location. This consistency ensures appropriate controls follow your data across cloud boundaries.

Implement cross-cloud data catalogs - Tools that track data assets across all environments maintain visibility of sensitive information location. This visibility becomes significant in regulated industries where data location affects compliance.

Create provider-agnostic policies - Governance requirements should be defined in business terms rather than technical specifications. This approach enables consistent implementation despite provider-specific tools and features.

Conclusion

Multi-Cloud Management needs attention to several key areas - centralized control, reliable security, cost optimization, and proper monitoring. Research shows organizations that succeed with Multi-Cloud Managementstrategies share common approaches. They make automation their priority and put strong security controls in place while maintaining detailed visibility across environments.

Cloud technologies change rapidly, making standardization crucial. Multi-Cloud Management platforms, infrastructure such as code, and automated security policies create consistency and reduce operational overhead. These tools paired with strategic cost planning help organizations get the most value from their cloud investments.

Companies using centralized Multi-Cloud Management tools achieve 30-40% better resource utilization. They also respond to incidents 65% faster than those managing clouds separately.

Security stays crucial in Multi-Cloud Management deployments. Unified identity management, detailed encryption, and automated compliance monitoring protect assets across providers and reduce administrative work.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning will shape the future of Multi-Cloud Management. These technologies will improve automation, optimize costs, and strengthen security through advanced threat detection and automated responses.

Success with Multi-Cloud Management needs steady dedication to best practices. Start with solid foundations in centralized management and security. Then build toward advanced capabilities like automated optimization and predictive analytics.

Focus on solutions that match your needs while keeping operations simple. This targeted approach works better than trying to use every new technology that comes along.

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Microsoft update: Chat with users with Teams personal accounts

Posted on October 4th, 2023 by admin@mismo2023

Chat with Teams will extend collaboration support by enabling Teams users to chat with team members outside their work network with a Teams personal account. Customers will be able to invite any Teams user to chat using an email address or phone number and remain within the security and compliance policies of their organization. 

Will rollout on the web, desktop, and mobile.

How this will affect your organization:

With this update Teams, users in your organization will be able to start a 1:1 or a group chat with Teams users who are using their personal accounts and vice-versa. IT Admins will have the option to enable/disable this at a tenant and individual user level with two possible controls:

  1. Control to enable or disable the entire functionality. If disabled neither users in your organization and users in their personal accounts will be able to chat with each other.
  2. Control to define if Teams users with a personal account can start a chat or add users from your organization to a chat. If disabled, only users in your organization will be able to start a chat or add users with their personal accounts.

Note: Settings will rollout default on.

What you need to do to prepare:

If you would like to opt-out from this functionality you would be able to do so via the Teams admin portal under the External Access section. Optionally you could use PowerShell commands to opt-out all users or individual users from this functionality. 

Settings to update:

Tenant level: CsTenantFederationConfiguration

  • AllowTeamsConsumer
  • AllowTeamsConsumerInbound

User level: CsExternalAccessPolicy

  • EnableTeamsConsumerAccess
  • EnableTeamsConsumerInbound

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AWS vs Azure

Posted on December 1st, 2022 by admin@mismo2023

The cloud service providers AWS and Azure are truly miraculous helping millions across the globe creating a virtual space with a plethora of benefits. This article will delve deep into their pros and cons and look at the wide array of services, benefits and advantages they have. We will consider factors like: the cloud storage cost, the loss rate of data transfers, availability of data and so on.

AWS: It all began with the Amazon’s team recognizing the stagnation and complexity of their IT infrastructure. In order to improvise on their efficiency, Amazon’s team replaced the pre-existing infrastructure into well documented APIs. By the year 2003, Amazon had a moment of realization about their skills that is important for creating scalable and effective data centres. This is how Amazon Web Services came into existence. AWS is one of the leading providers of requirement basis cloud solution providing an IT infrastructure to companies of varying sizes. For companies that run on non-windows services, AWS works most efficiently for them and is a highly customisable podium. Netflix, Spotify, and such eminent companies use AWS.

AWSs’ services remained unparalleled as Google, their first competitor only came up beyond 2009 and Microsoft stepped up by 2010 as they did not believe in the potential of the cloud infrastructure. It is only after Amazon’s successful system that made Microsoft enter the world of cloud. Azure was launched by Microsoft, but their entry was not welcomed pleasantly as it faced several challenges. AWS had already become a giant as it had a lead of 7 years over Azure and provided ample scalable services.

It was about time that Microsoft stepped up and set its firm footing by adding support to various programming languages and operating systems. They got along with Linux and also made their services more scalable. With this redemption, Azure made its name to the top in the list of cloud providers.

Today AWS and Azure have become two prominent names when it comes to cloud service providers. They introduce the world with a virtual infrastructure with Azure holding about 29.4% of the workloads of installed applications, AWS holds a good 41.5% and Google only has about 3%.

There are a few differences between AWS and Azure, and both have their respective pros and cons. These two top players have their list of unequivocal set of advantages as they are great at what they provide.

Services:

Azure and AWS extends on premise data centre into firewall and cloud. VPC or Amazon Virtual Private Cloud helps users to create subnets, Private IP address range, network gateways and route tablets in the areas of networking services when compared to Microsoft Virtual Network which has similar services. When we talk of computing services Azure provides services like App Services, Azure Virtual Machine, Container services, Azure Functions while AWS provides: Elastic Beanstalk, ECS, AWS Lambda, EC2 and so on. Both these services are quite similar as well. While in the case of storage services, AWS provides temporary storage that is specified with the beginning of the instance and automatically dissolves with its termination. They also provide block storage that can either be attached or separated. Azure provides storage such as Blob, Disk Storage and Standard Archives.

Pricing:

Pricing of computing services depends upon the differences in configuration, the measurement of the computing units and the various range of services: storage, databases, computing and traffic.

AWS follows a pay as you go structure of pricing where there is an hourly charge while Azure charges per minute. An AWS m3. large instance is estimated at $0.133 per hour (21 CPU and 3.75 GB memory), somewhat similar pricing is followed by Microsoft in the Medium VM (2×1.6Ghz CPU, 3.5 GB RAM) that costs about $0.45 per hour. Azure can be deemed more expensive as compared to AWS regarding computing, but it provides for good discounts in case of long-term payments. AWS is also known for supporting the Hybrid cloud environment better. Meanwhile the security provided by AWS via user defined roles is unparalleled as it provides security by giving permissions on the entire account.

Open-Source Integration:

AWS employs tools such as Jenkins, GitHub, Docker and Ansible for their open-source integration as Amazon highly supports the Open-Source sect. Azure on the other hand provides native integration for windows development tools namely: Active Directory, SQL databases and VBS. On instances when Microsoft fails to support open source, Amazon is always open to it. Azure works great alongside NET developers and AWS with Linux Services.

Databases:

In order to save your information, a database is required and both our cloud service providers AWS and Azure relational database (SQL) or NoSQL. Microsoft provides their user with an SQL database while Amazon provides RDS (Relational Database Service) and Amazon DynamoDB. These databases provide automatic replication and are extremely efficient and durable.

Advantages of AWS certification:

AWS is the largest cloud computing service provider and has extra weightage to their certification as they have additional marketability because a large number of companies are using their services. AWS certification also gives you access to AWS certified LinkedIn and other certifications for professionals and developers. These include AWS Developer Associate, AWS SysOps, Cloud Architect Certification, gcp certification and so on.

The advantages of Azure Certification:

Azure also renamed as Microsoft Azure in the year 2014 provide additional benefits to those who are aware of their in-house data platforms. 55% of major Fortune 500 companies go for the services provided by Azure, and hence its certification opens a career opportunity for the candidates in these companies. It has been estimated that around 365,000 companies opt Azure every year which creates demand for Azure professionals. Their certification include Architect Microsoft Azure, Developing Microsoft Azure, Cloud Solution Architect, Cloud Architect, Implementing Microsoft Azure and so on.

Azure and AWS: Making the world a better place

Both AWS and Azure have made huge contributions trying to make this globe a better place to be in. AWS is used to scale flood alerts in Cambodia saving millions of lives and is cost effective. Other risky zones now replicate this technology to detect calamities beforehand.

NASA with the use of AWS platform has created a virtual Storehouse of videos, pictures and audio files that can be accessed easily in one centralized space.

The Weka Smart Fridge that has been created using the Azure IoT suite, helps store vaccines helping medical support to make vaccinations available to people easily.

Both AWS and Azure are reliable sources making lives easy for people around the globe.

Contact Us for Free Consultation

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The need for a hybrid solution – Azure Stack HCI

Posted on April 25th, 2022 by admin@mismo2023

Microsoft’s Azure Stack HCI is a hyper-converged infrastructure with virtualization, software-defined networking, and more. What separates it from the rest is it seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Azure. It’s never been easier to unify your on-premises infrastructure with the power of Azure.

We have listed below a few points for why you need this new & exciting hybrid solution for your business:-

Azure Hybrid by design

Extend your datacentre to the cloud and manage Azure Stack HCI hosts, virtual machines (VMs) and Azure resources side by side in the Azure portal. Make your infrastructure hybrid by seamlessly connecting it to Azure services such as Azure Monitor, Azure Backup, Azure Security Centre, Azure Site Recovery etc.

Enterprise-scale and great price-performance

Get infrastructure modernisation, consolidate virtualised workloads, and gain cloud efficiencies on-premises. Take advantage of software-defined compute, storage, and networking on a broad range of form factors and brands. With the new feature update, get powerful host protection with a Secured-core server, thin provisioning and intent-driven networking. Optimize your costs based on your needs with a flexible per-core subscription.

Familiar management and operations

Simplify your operations by using an easy-to-manage HCI solution that integrates with your environment and popular third-party solutions. Use Windows Admin Centre with a built-in deployment GUI to leverage your existing Windows Server and Hyper-V skills to build your hyper-converged infrastructure. Automate completely scriptable management tasks using the popular cross-platform Windows PowerShell framework.

Deployment flexibility

Select the deployment scenario that is best for your environment, such as an appliance-like experience, a validated node solution from one of more than 20 hardware partners or repurposed hardware. Choose optimized solutions that are available on a broad portfolio of x86 servers and hardware add-ons. Manage your solution using Azure or familiar management tools and choose from a wide selection of utility software options within the enhanced ISV partner ecosystem.

Contact us for more information!

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Azure Virtual Desktop vs Windows 365

Posted on January 10th, 2022 by admin@mismo2023

Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) is a Desktop as a Service (DaaS) solution offered on Microsoft Azure, previously named Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD) only offers multi-session capabilities. It allows organizations to provide virtual desktops to their users without implementing and managing a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI).

There are many use cases for AVD, and it has had a lot of traction since its availability. The common use cases of AVD are to provide a secure working environment in highly regulated industries like finance & insurance, part-time employees, short term workers, BYOD scenarios and specialized workloads.  

The heavyweight components of AVD infrastructure are managed by Microsoft. Still, it requires technical expertise to implement and manage AVD. It also requires supporting services like AD DS and storage to work.

AVD is billed as part of Azure subscription and billing is as per usage. This includes computing, storage, networking, and other components. Every user must be licensed with Windows Enterprise.

Windows 365 is Software as a Service (SaaS) offering from Microsoft, wherein you can provide cloud PCs to users without the overhead of managing any infrastructure. It provides dedicated cloud PCs to individual users. It is offered in two editions Business and Enterprise.

Windows 365 Business is for small-medium organizations or for personal use wherein users can have a PC running in the cloud with their data and apps. It provides basic management capabilities and users are an admin on their PCs.

Windows 365 Enterprises is for organizations who want to have fully managed cloud PCs for the users. It requires AD DS, Azure AD and Microsoft Endpoint Manager (MEM). Cloud PCs can be managed using MEM, Group Policies (GPO) and other organization tools.

Windows 365 is billed per cloud PC on a fixed monthly cost based on the configuration. Business edition doesn’t require any other license and supports a maximum of 300 users. Enterprise edition requires Windows Enterprise, Azure AD P1, MEM license and supports unlimited users.

With the advent of cloud computing, there are a lot of options for organizations of all sizes to choose from. We at Mismo Systems are consultants and can help you decide what’s best for your needs based on our industry knowledge and expensive experience. We help organizations implement these technologies and manage them for them.

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AWS Update:- Amazon EC2 now supports access to Red Hat Knowledgebase

Posted on November 16th, 2021 by admin@mismo2023

Starting today, customers running subscriptions included Red Hat Enterprise Linux on Amazon EC2 can seamlessly access Red Hat Knowledgebase at no additional cost. The Knowledgebase is a library of articles, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and best-practice guides to help customers solve technical issues. 

Previously, subscriptions included RHEL customers on AWS who had to contact AWS Premium Support in order to access Red Hat Knowledgebase. Now, AWS has partnered with Red Hat to provide one-click access to Knowledgebase for all subscriptions included RHEL customers. Customers can access Knowledgebase content in one of the three ways: by clicking on a link inside the Fleet Manager functionality in AWS System Manager, by using sign-in with AWS option on Red Hat Customer Portal, or via a link provided by AWS support. 

This Red Hat Knowledgebase feature on Amazon EC2 is available in all commercial AWS Regions today except the two regions in China.

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AWS Update:- Amazon SNS now supports token-based authentication for APNs mobile push notifications

Posted on November 16th, 2021 by admin@mismo2023

For sending mobile push notifications to Apple devices, Amazon Simple Notification Service (Amazon SNS) now enables token-based authentication. You may now choose between token-based (.p8 key file) and certificate-based (.p12 certificates) authentication when creating a new platform application in the Amazon SNS dashboard or API. 

Stateless communication between Amazon SNS and the Apple Push Notification service is enabled using token-based authentication (APNs). Because stateless communication does not require APNs to look up certificates, it is faster than certificate-based communication. You had to renew the certificate and the endpoint once a year while using .p12 certificates. You may now lessen your operational burden by eliminating the need for yearly renewals by employing a .p8 key file. Amazon SNS uses token-based authentication to deliver messages to mobile applications for platform applications produced with .p8 certificates. 

You can use token-based authentication for APNs endpoints in the following AWS regions where Amazon SNS supports mobile push notifications: US East (N. Virginia), US West (N. California), US West (Oregon), Asia Pacific (Mumbai), Asia Pacific (Seoul), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Sydney), Asia Pacific (Tokyo), Europe (Frankfurt), Europe (Ireland), and South America (São Paulo). 

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AWS Update:- Amazon ECS now adds container instance health information

Posted on November 16th, 2021 by admin@mismo2023

Customers may now see the health of their compute infrastructure using Amazon Elastic Container Service (Amazon ECS). The customers running their workloads using Amazon ECS on Amazon EC2 or on-premises with Amazon ECS anywhere can now examine the health status of the container runtime (i.e Docker) for their container instances directly from the Amazon ECS API. This would help customers to improve application resiliency.  

In a very rare scenario, problems might arise with the host infra or Docker runtime which will eventually prevent new containers from starting or may even affect the existing containers. Amazon ECS automatically monitors the runtime of containers for responsiveness on the customer’s behalf. Customers can use the ECS Describe-Instances API with the include Health Status option to view the health information for their Amazon ECS Tasks. 

Customers can check the health of all their Amazon ECS container instances that are running version 1.57.0 or above of the Amazon ECS container agent. This version is pre-installed with the Amazon ECS-optimized AMI version 20211103. Amazon ECS is available in all AWS regions that are open to the public.  

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Microsoft 365 Update:- Viva Connections is now generally available!

Posted on November 16th, 2021 by admin@mismo2023

Viva Connections, part of Microsoft Viva, is your entry point to a modern employee experience. You get an all-in-one experience with the customized dashboard, the feed, and other relevant resources with the Viva connections app in Microsoft Teams mobile, web & desktop.  

This GA (general availability) provides you with the ability to: – 

  • Set a SharePoint home site from the SharePoint admin center 
  • Create, author, and manage a dashboard from the home site 
  • Use the new Dashboard and Feed web parts on the home site 
  • Brand the Viva Connections app for the desktop and mobile experiences for Android and iOS 
  • Use Video news links to communicate announcements 

It is to be noted that the Viva connections require admin configuration in the Teams admin center to enable as it is in the “Blocked” state by default. Once the home site in SharePoint is generated & the dashboard gets published, the Teams admin can enable & customize the Viva connections app in the Teams admin center. This feature is available now. 

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Microsoft 365 Update:- Meeting Activities in Teams Audit Log

Posted on November 16th, 2021 by admin@mismo2023

Meeting Activities have been added to the Microsoft Teams audit log to help organizations respond more effectively to security events, forensic investigations, internal investigations, and compliance needs. This feature is available now. 

Admins may now view TeamsMeetingActivities in the Microsoft 365 Audit Log and analyze specific activities across Microsoft 365 services with this feature upgrade. 

Meeting Activities logs: 

MeetingDetail: All about Teams meeting – the start time, end time & URL 

MeetingParticipantDetail: This will talk about the participants of a meeting, including the user ID of each participant, the time each participant joined the meeting, and the time each participant left the meeting.  

You can visit this link to understand the Audit logs better.  

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