Comprehensive Guide to Azure Compute Services and Networking Services

Azure Networking Services Overview

Azure Networking Services ensure secure, scalable, and efficient communication between cloud resources and external networks. These services enable secure connectivity, traffic control, and optimized content delivery.

1. Azure Virtual Network (VNet)

Key Characteristics

• Emulation of Physical networking infrastructure
• Designed for isolation, segmentation, communication, filtering, and routing between resources(internet and on-premises)
• Scoped to a single region
• VNet Peering or VPN Gateway allows cross-VNet Communication
• Segmented into one or more subnets
• Subnets are discrete sections used for
  • Effective address allocation and 
  • Network filtering via Network Security Groups(NSG) or Application Security Groups(ASG)

2. Network Security Groups (NSG)

Key Characteristics

• Controls inbound and outbound traffic between resources
• Rule-based access based on source, destination, port, and protocol

3. Azure VPN Gateway

Key Characteristics

• On-premises to Azure traffic over the public internet.
• Cross-regional communication of Azure virtual networks.
  • VNet peering vs VPN gateway should be chosen based on the Organizational needs.

4. Azure Load Balancer

Key Characteristics

• Even traffic distribution
• Supports both inbound and outbound scenarios
• High availability and scalability scenarios
• Both TCP(transmission control Protocol) and UDP(user datagram protocol)
• External and internal traffic

5. Azure Application Gateway

Key Characteristics

• Web traffic load balancer
• Web application firewall
• Redirection
• Session infinity
• URL Routing 
• SSL Terminations

6. Azure Content Delivery Network (CDN)

Key Characteristics

• Deliver web content to users 
• Minimize Latency
• POP(Points of Presence) locations

Final Thoughts: Choosing the Right Azure Service

When selecting an Azure compute or networking service, consider your application requirements, scalability needs, and desired level of control. Use this quick guide to help:

• Need full control? → Go with Azure VMs
• Want scalable VM deployments? → Choose VM Scale Sets
• Hosting containers quickly? → Try ACI
• Managing containerized microservices? → Use AKS
• Web app deployment made easy? → Use App Service
• Running background tasks or triggers? → Choose Azure Functions
• Need secure, scalable networking? → Combine VNet, NSGs, VPN Gateway, and Load Balancers

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