Aws vs Azure - 3 Most Amazing Differences

AWS vs. AZURE are the two cloud service provider giants from Amazon and Microsoft respectively. The Amazon Webs Services (AWS) is a cloud service provider that offers services in a variety of domains such as storage, delivery, computer and other functionality which enable enterprises to scale and grow. Businesses can apply these domains as a service which can be used to develop and set up different types of applications in the cloud platform.

The AWS services are tailored in such a way that they mutually function and produce a scalable and effective outcome. The services provided by AWS are classified into three types that are, software as a service (SaaS), Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS). AWS is just over 10 years old, having been first launched in the year 2002. Since then, it has become one of the leading cloud service providers in the market. If your business has not adopted cloud services, you are missing out on great advantages such as reduced management overhead, efficiency and many more.

AZURE, on the other hand, is a cloud service provider designed and distributed by Microsoft. Some of the services offered by AZURE include storage, compute, networking, database, developer tools and many other. Businesses can utilize these products to scale up and grow. The services are also categorized into software as a service (SaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS), and platform as a service (PaaS) which developers can use to develop, run and manage applications and services. AZURE was launched in 2010 and has become one of the biggest cloud commercial service providers in the world.

Even though AZURE was launched 8 years later after AWS, the fact that it comes from Microsoft-arguably the most developed technology company in the world gives it an edge over AWS. AZURE benefits from the massive legacy, making several of its features more advanced than the corresponding AWS features, particularly within the security realm.

Both AWS and AZURE has a different niche when it comes to designing its features to the enterprises interested in purchasing. For instance, AWS works perfectly when deployed in Linux settings while AZURE works best in Windows environment, and with its B2B suites such as Office365, AZURE is the best option for enterprises while AWS is the best to cut for industries such as finance and retail.

AZURE vs AWS: 3 most Amazing Differences

In this article, we will look at the differences between AZURE vs AWS in the following areas User-friendliness, Licensing, and Hybrid Cloud Capabilities.

User-friendliness

AWS: Amazon provides more configurations and features that is if you are down to learning the platform. AWS arguably offers a lot of flexibility, powers, and customization room along with support from several third-party integrations. Nevertheless, there is still a learning curve as far as AWS is concerned.

AZURE: This platform is easier to use out of the box especially if you are a Windows administrator, because being a Windows platform, it does not require any new learning. Also, it is quite simple to assimilate on-premises Windows serves using cloud instances to develop a hybrid environment. In addition, AZURE also works best with tools such as Active Directory and SQL database.

Licensing

AWS: The distributors of AWS, Amazon, provide a few varieties of preferences for accrediting in the cloud. For example, users can buy new licenses that come along with Database Service instances or EC2, or bring previously purchased licenses (BYOL), as part of their Microsoft partnership. In this case, customers are allowed to use Dedicated Hosts or Software Assurance in order to move their licenses to the cloud.

Before the integration of the licenses, customers must ensure that Microsoft Server platform products shifted to the Cloud Service provider through the License Mobility via Software Assurance platform and must be protected by an active Software Assurance (SA). Additionally, the server apps must be among the eligible products, which include, SQL Server Enterprise Edition, Exchange Server, and Sharepoint Server. You can visit their website for information about the licensing of AWS products.

AZURE: With Azure, Microsoft has tried to exercise a bit of mobility for user qualification for servers, but customers must still determine whether their servers meet the requirements for mobility to avoid additional charges for extra licensing. It is also worth knowing that Windows Server is NOT eligible itself.

For example, if you deploy a VM in the cloud that runs the same stack, you will have to pay additional license fees for two Windows server since the particular license is not eligible for mobility hence it is charged per usage. But a SQL license is mobility eligible and users can utilize it to run SQL server in the cloud.

Hybrid Cloud Capabilities

AWS: Snowball Edge is the newest invention of the AWS, a 100TB hard drive that enables workloads to be moved between its cloud and users’ data center. Additionally, AWS added the element of hybrid to its portfolio with the partnership with VMware, thus allowing their clients to surge into its cloud environment.

However, when it comes to hybrid, AWS is still in its infancy though much is expected to come in the near future, especially with its "pure public cloud or nothing" stance.

AZURE: Azure has heavily benefited from Microsoft legacy as the most developed technology company in the world. With platforms such as Hybrid SQL Server, Azure StorSimple, and Azure Stack, is no telling that AZURE leads the race when it comes to hybrid cloud services.

Conclusion

Both AWS and AZURE provides a variety of and yet similar capable platforms. For a business owner, there are a lot of factors to consider, such as prices security and so on, before deciding which cloud services to invest in.

Both of these platforms are leading providers of cloud services in the market and so, it never about one provider being "better" than the other or "worse" than the other. The decision of which platform to go for depends entirely on you and your business needs.

Take your time to understand the two cloud service providers and in case you have any questions or concerns, you can contact us.

Umar Bajwa is a blogger and professional content writer loves to write about business and technology related niches.