Azure

Microsoft Azure is Microsoft’s hyperscale Cloud. It is strong when you are already in the Microsoft identity and productivity stack. We rate it hold for new platforms: recurring security incidents, opaque shared-responsibility “managed” services, and incentive-driven market share (startup credits) that do not equal fit-for-purpose engineering.

Blurb

Azure. The cloud for all.

Summary

Why hold: Microsoft’s cloud security track record is a material risk. Reporting in February 2024 tied large-scale Azure-related exposure to 2023 activity. Treat Azure as legacy or compliance-driven, not the default greenfield choice. Prefer Google Cloud Platform (adopt spearhead) per our multi-cloud pattern; AWS is also hold but sometimes unavoidable for marketplace or estate reasons.

When Azure anyway: Entra ID (Azure AD), Microsoft 365, .NET/Windows-heavy estates, or contracts already sunk in Azure. Use Hybrid Cloud consciously; do not mirror every GCP/AWS service badly on Azure.

Skepticism on being #2: might be more creative accounting and Hybrid Cloud requirements then actual market position. Heavy startup-credit programs can inflate “revenue” without proving teams would choose Azure soberly; validate TCO without credits before committing.

Details