Application Hosting
Microsoft Azure
Does Azure Fit Your Business?
Hosting your software or network assets in the cloud with Microsoft Azure may be the right move for your business if you fit any of these criteria:
- You want to leverage one of the leading hyperscale cloud platforms for your business.
- Your industry has compliance requirements such as HIPAA, SOC 2 or PCI DSS.
- Your team already runs Microsoft 365, Teams, SharePoint or other Microsoft tools.
- You want predictable subscription-based hosting without managing physical servers, refresh cycles or onsite maintenance.
- You are consolidating vendors and want your ERP, backups, identity and security under a single cloud roof.
Not every workload is an automatic match for Azure, however, and certain ERP versions also have specific compatibility considerations that need to be reviewed. SWK will help you verify what a Microsoft cloud environment can support from your existing (or planned) technology stack before you commit to a migration.
Who Runs What in the Microsoft Cloud
It is important to note that while migrating to the cloud lets you offload several management needs to your provider, cybersecurity is not (inherently) one of them, and Azure is no different. Microsoft becomes accountable for the physical data centers, the hardware and the virtualization layer, and for progressively more of the stack as you move from virtual machines toward managed services. You will still share the responsibility for local security policies and protections from your side, including user authentications and other cyber hygiene implementations.
On a virtual machine, patching, operating system updates, configuration, access control, backup policy and cost decisions all stay with you. On a managed application or database service, Microsoft absorbs the operating system and the database engine, though the configuration and the data still belong to you.
IaaS, PaaS and SaaS
Cloud services are usually grouped into three models, with the primary difference between them being how much of the technology stack the provider runs for your business. Azure is principally an infrastructure and platform hosting service, though it also connects to other Microsoft solutions that are delivered through the third model:
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) means Microsoft runs the physical servers, the storage hardware, the networking and the virtualization, while your business manages the operating system, the applications and the data. Azure Virtual Machines is the clearest example, and this model suits businesses that want control over their systems without owning any hardware.
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) means Microsoft also runs the operating system, and often the runtime and the database engine, while your business supplies the application and the data. Azure App Service and Azure SQL Database sit in this model, which suits teams that would rather spend their time on the application than on patching.
- Software as a Service (SaaS) means the provider runs the entire stack and delivers a finished application, and your business supplies only your data and your users. Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365 are probably the most familiar examples, and Azure services sit underneath and connect to applications delivered this way.
Azure Hosting for ERP
If you use a Sage or Acumatica ERP as your finance and business management system of record, the Azure cloud may be the right home for your solution to live. However, not every application within either of these ecosystems are natively compatible with any hosted environment.
Sage 100 and Sage 300 customers have the option to leverage an existing path through the Sage Partner Cloud (SPC) program, which allows you to leverage the Sage Provisioning Portal to host your software with Microsoft Azure. SPC also provides a pathway through accredited third-party platforms, such as SWK’s Secure Cloud Hosting. SWK Technologies also supports additional Sage solutions in Microsoft Azure alongside Sage 100 and Sage 300 for cloud migrations, such as Sage 50, Sage 500 and Sage X3 – contact SWK at info@swktech.com with your software environment details to see if Azure would be the right fit for your Sage ERP.
Acumatica customers running the SaaS deployment model already live in a cloud-hosted AWS (Amazon Web Services) environment by default. For those looking at Acumatica IaaS or a private cloud setup outside the multi-tenant environment, SWK covers both hosting paths and can help evaluate which fits your business.
Working with a Microsoft Azure Partner
SWK Technologies is a certified Microsoft partner and Azure reseller, which allows you to run licensing, deployment and day-to-day management run through one relationship with SWK instead of with three separate vendors. SWK maintains a dedicated Azure team rather than a generalist practice, with experience in supporting multiple midmarket businesses running Sage and Acumatica ERP. Here are some of the benefits you gain when you work with SWK Technologies as your managed Azure services provider:
- Manage your Azure licensing and consolidate what your business is paying for month over month
- Review your existing setup for right-sizing, cost drift and resource governance opportunities
- Provide direct managed support for your Azure environment so that you do not need to wait in a queue for Microsoft
- Configure identity, access, patching and backup so security decisions stay aligned with how your business operates
- Advise on where Azure fits alongside your existing on-premise environment or hosted platforms
- Audit your technology stack for Azure hosting compatibility and verify your readiness for ERP migration to a Microsoft cloud environment
- Handle lifecycle management, including configuration needs, for your move to the cloud, from set up to tune ups
- Cover custom development needs inside your Azure environment when your team is building or extending applications
FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
How Does Microsoft Azure Work?
Microsoft operates data centers full of physical servers, storage and networking hardware, and a virtualization layer divides that hardware so that multiple customers run separate, isolated environments on it. You provision the resources you need through a web portal, through a command line or through code. Azure then meters that usage and bills you for it at the end of each month.
What is Windows Azure?
Microsoft launched the platform in 2010 under the name Windows Azure and renamed it Microsoft Azure in 2014, though both names describe the same platform.
What is an Azure Virtual Machine?
An Azure virtual machine (VM) is a virtual server running Windows or Linux on Microsoft’s hardware, and it behaves much like a server you would own. You manage the operating system, the software and the data on it, while Microsoft handles the hardware underneath.
How Does Azure Pricing Work?
Azure bills by consumption, so your monthly cost reflects the compute, storage, networking and other services you actually used. Reserved instances, savings plans and Azure Hybrid Benefit reduce that cost for businesses willing to commit ahead of time.
Is Azure Secure?
Azure provides an extensive set of security controls and holds a wide range of compliance certifications, though security on the platform is shared. Microsoft secures the platform, and you remain responsible for how identity, access, network configuration and data protection are set up inside it.
Can SWK Host QuickBooks, Acumatica or Sage ERP in Azure?
Yes, though version compatibility varies between products and releases and needs to be confirmed first. SWK checks what your specific version and environment support before any migration date gets scheduled or committed.
Will Moving to Azure Disrupt My Business?
An Azure migration can be planned to keep disruption low, though the approach depends on your workloads, your dependencies and how much downtime you can absorb. SWK maps the plan out with your team well before anything in your environment starts to move.
What Support Do I Get from SWK For My Azure Environment?
You get direct access to the team that manages your environment, rather than routing every question through a general support queue. Microsoft support stays available to you as well for anything that belongs at the platform level.
Does SWK Help with Azure Cost Management?
Yes, and right-sizing resources, reviewing consumption patterns and setting budget guardrails are all part of an Azure managed services engagement.