Azure Solutions

Getting caught off guard by new technologies isn’t an option you can afford if you want to stay ahead. You adapt and innovate—and do so quickly—or you lose. 

If you’re reading this, you probably feel the urgency to enhance your IT infrastructure.

Say you have a growing client base that relies on you to protect its private info and provide uninterrupted online services. 

You probably worry about potential IT disasters, such as data loss and system failures, which could significantly damage your company’s reputation.

You need assurance that they will never happen to you or, if they already have, that they will never happen again.

That said, you don’t want to drain your IT budget while attempting to modernize your infrastructure and data security.

Enter Azure—Microsoft’s premier cloud computing service.

Do you want a fully guarded, integrated cloud platform where you can:

• Host and develop your software or applications
• Improve and implement dependable data backup and disaster recovery plans
• Integrate your devices to the cloud and IT infrastructure

Microsoft Azure offers:

• Offsite data mirroring
• No-sweat on-site maintenance
• Up to 99 years of data retention with near-zero capital investment and rock-bottom operational costs

The cloud platform’s scalability, adaptability, and reliability make it an ideal solution for businesses transitioning to IoT (Internet of Things) systems. 

IoT refers to a network of interconnected physical objects that collect, process, and exchange information via the internet.

Transform Your Business With Azure Solutions

Microsoft Azure provides a robust cloud platform for expanding your business, managing “big data,” and developing cutting-edge technologies.

Big data refers to a rapidly expanding, massive, and diverse dataset that you usually can’t process using traditional methods.

As a public cloud computing platform, Azure offers a veritable smorgasbord of services to sink your teeth into. For example:

• IaaS
  
  Infrastructure as a service is the most basic cloud computing type. This option lets you rent IT infrastructures on a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) basis, including:
  • Virtual machines (VMs)
  • Storage
  • Networks
  • Operating systems (OS)

A virtual machine is a computer file that behaves just like the real thing, with its own memory, storage, and central processing unit (CPU).

Think of IaaS as renting a virtual desktop instead of buying a physical computer.

• SaaS 
  
  Software as a service (SaaS) refers to the cloud computing model that lets you access software applications directly from your web browser. 
  
  No more clunky installations or software updates—the provider handles it all—making your work-related tasks much more manageable.
• PaaS
  
  Platform as a service (PaaS) is the cloud service option that provides the necessary developer tools and cloud environment for building and hosting web apps. 
  
  With PaaS, you can focus on creating killer apps without worrying about the underlying infrastructure.

Specifically, Microsoft Azure solutions let you:

• Optimize your backup and data recovery: Azure’s adaptability, cutting-edge site recovery, and built-in integration make it the cloud platform of choice for companies looking to bulletproof their backup and disaster recovery strategies.
• Supercharge your Microsoft Entra ID: When managing your sensitive business information, you need a solution that is as secure as it is user-friendly.
  
  That’s where Azure’s Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) shines. It helps you manage identity and access data more efficiently and securely.
  
  This feature provides your DNS (domain name system) with a:
  • Global reach, centralized control: With Azure, you can access user data seamlessly and securely from anywhere.
    
    However, the real game-changer is the cloud service’s centralized management.
    
    Imagine adding, adjusting, and deleting information from a single location using a unified platform. 
    
    No more juggling multiple systems or scratching your head trying to monitor who’s who and what’s what in the company. 
    
    Azure and Microsoft Entra ID put you firmly in the driver’s seat, giving you effective control over your company’s data.
  • Bullet-proof security: Microsoft Entra, Microsoft’s cloud (multi-cloud and hybrid cloud) and network access management service, also offers another layer of data protection via Microsoft Entra ID (one of the security features within Microsoft Entra).
    
    This feature bolsters security through multifactor authentication, allowing you to require two or more login options, such as a password and a phone code.
    
    Or, if you prefer passwordless authentication, Microsoft Entra ID also lets you sign in to your account using a fingerprint or face scan.

DNS translates domain names (for instance, ccbtechnology.com) into IP (internet protocol) addresses so you can access online resources.

• Support Your App Development: Do you want to automate patch management for virtual machines and make your apps autonomous and adaptive? 
  
  Azure can help you achieve these goals, giving you more time to develop your apps.
  
  Patch management involves applying updates to firmware, software, and drivers to protect your systems from vulnerabilities. 
• Innovate with IoT solutions: Azure IoT solutions let you:
  • Connect your devices to the cloud so they can send and receive data from each other
  • Explore and process data to gain personalized, actionable insights about the device’s environment

Here are more ways Azure can transform your business:

Bring Ideas to Life

Do you struggle to create standout customer experiences? Meet Azure OpenAI Services. 

These services let you build your own copilot and generative AI (artificial intelligence) apps. Why does this feature matter? It can help you market your digital products quickly—from edge to cloud.

Copilots are virtual assistants powered by artificial intelligence.

Say you want to actualize your ideas—think app concepts—faster but are bogged down by complex codes. 

In that case, GitHub Copilot AI may be for you. This tool offers AI-enabled suggestions in your editor, significantly cutting your coding time.

Want an AI-ready IT infrastructure? We offer time-tested solutions for Azure cloud migration and streamlined digital transformation.

Seamlessly Unify

Azure Arc (an Azure product) lets you simplify management across all digital environments (on-premises or multi-cloud).

This service offers hybrid and multi-cloud management, allowing you to manage external virtual machines and Linux and Windows physical servers on your corporate network or other cloud service providers.

Innovate on Trust

Adopting new technology to gain a competitive edge can be daunting, particularly for less tech-savvy team members. 

This problem of technology’s complexity is compounded by the daily emergence of digital threats, making cybersecurity a persistent challenge.

How do you innovate quickly and securely? Go with Azure. This cloud-based solution protects your hybrid and multi-cloud environments through its Microsoft Defender for Cloud.

Plus, Azure has over 100 compliance certifications. You can rest easy that your data is securely stored and managed under stringent privacy standards.

Azure also empowers your IT system with various capabilities. It lets you:

• Deploy Linux and Windows VMs
• Develop apps
• Build apps across cloud and hybrid environments

You can accomplish these tasks via these services you could try for free:

• Azure Synapse Analytics
  
  This tool accelerates time to insight across data warehouses and systems with SQL (structured query language), Azure Data Explorer, and Apache Spark technologies.
  
  SQL is a standard programming language for organizing, managing, extracting, and manipulating data.
  
  Meanwhile, Apache Spark is a multi-language engine for executing data science, machine learning, and data engineering.
  
  Lastly, Azure Data Explorer operates as a fully managed data analytics platform for real-time and time-series analysis across extensive data streams generated from various origins, including: 
  • Business operations 
  • Human operations
  • Apps 
  • Websites
  • IoT devices
• Azure Virtual Machines (VMs)
  
  Azure VMs offer:
  • Multiple OS support: Tailor VMs to Windows, Linux, or other operating systems to ensure flexibility.
  • Autoscaling: Scale VMs effortlessly with VM Scale Sets to optimize performance under any workload.
  • Boosted performance: Utilize Azure’s optimized hardware and hypervisor for enhanced network and storage speeds.
    
    A hypervisor is a software tool that turns a computer’s physical resources into a virtualized hardware layer. It can create, run, and manage multiple isolated virtual machines on this layer.
  • Rapid backup and restore: Secure business continuity with Azure Backup for swift disaster recovery.
  • Built-in monitoring and management: Monitor real-time performance and automate VM management with these Azure services: Azure Monitor and Application Insights. 
  • AI and high-performance computing: Develop advanced AI and performance apps with GPU-enabled and HPC-optimized VMs.
    
    GPU (graphics processing unit) is a circuit that conducts high-speed computations. 
    
    HPC (high-performance computing) is a method for aggregating computing resources to develop performance better than that of a single server, workstation, or computer.
  • Built-in security and compliance: Benefit from robust security and extensive compliance certifications.
• Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
  
  AKS lets you:
  • Simplify Kubernetes operations with automated upgrades, node management, and network setup.
    
    Kubernetes is an open-source software for building, delivering, and scaling containerized apps.
  • Enhance efficiency with automated node maintenance, debugging, and CI/CD workflows through GitHub Actions.
    
    CI/CD (continuous integration and continuous delivery) is a software development approach that can help enhance software delivery reliability, speed, and efficiency.
  • Maintain security with comprehensive identity management and monitoring for containerized applications.

What Is Azure?

The Azure platform has 200+ products and services and supports application development across clouds, on-premises, and edge environments. 

It offers flexible tools and frameworks to foster innovation and meet diverse business needs.

What Are Azure Solutions? And What Are Azure Data Solutions?

These solutions encompass a comprehensive suite of Microsoft Cloud tools and services. 

Azure solutions enable the creation, deployment, and management of diverse applications and services within secure Microsoft-managed data centers.

These solutions span various categories, including:

• Computing, like virtual machines, containers, and support for remote application access
• Web and mobile services
• Storage
• Databases
• Analytics and artificial intelligence
• Internet of Things 
• Identity and access management

Meanwhile, Azure Data Solutions specifically focuses on data management and processing. These solutions may include the following services:

• Azure SQL Database: This fully managed PaaS handles data management tasks, like backups, patches, upgrades, and monitoring, without user involvement.
• Azure Data Lake Storage: This cloud-based enterprise data lake solution lets you store huge volumes of data in any format and perform extensive data analytical tasks.
• Azure Stream Analytics: This tool enables you to analyze and process massive amounts of streaming data in real-time. 
  
  You can use it to create a system that analyzes data from different sources, such as apps, sensors, devices, websites, and social media. Azure Stream Analytics helps you find patterns and connections in those data quickly, almost instantly.

What Is Cloud Computing?

Many people today use cloud computing services, whether they know it or not. 

Even if they do, they likely don’t understand the technology adequately.

For example, they might describe the “cloud” as just some internet “thing” where you can save stuff. True enough. 

But cloud computing offers much more than just a virtual space to store your photos, files, media, and other digital assets.

So, what exactly is cloud computing? Simply put, cloud computing refers to the internet-based service that lets you use shared computing resources, including the following:

• Physical or virtual servers
• Networking capabilities
• App development tools
• Software
• Data storage
• AI-powered analytics

You don’t have to buy and maintain your own hardware and software components to access these tools and services. Cloud computing lets you use them via a cloud platform (such as Azure) anywhere, anytime.

Still unsure what cloud computing is? Just think of it as renting an IT infrastructure from another organization. 

Here are five essential features of cloud computing to give you a fuller understanding of the technology:

1. On-demand self-service: As a cloud customer, you can use cloud services anytime without requiring human interaction.
2. Metered service: You pay only for the resources you consume.
3. Shared resources: Cloud-based solutions service providers share computing resources among multiple clients through a multi-tenant model. This way, users have isolated cloud environments. You (as the “tenant”) won’t see other users’ data, and vice versa.
4. Flexible: You can always configure or scale your service settings based on the demand. 
5. Broad network access: You can access web-based cloud features using standard methods. Whether on your laptop, mobile, tablet, or workstation, you can harness the power of cloud computing.

Microsoft Azure Features

Overall, Microsoft Azure offers:

• Integrated services for a robust enterprise platform suitable for businesses of any size
• Seamless integration with existing IT infrastructures
• Powerful analytics capabilities to drive decisions guided by data and enhance customer service
• Unique storage systems that ensure fast and reliable end-user experiences
• Scalability and flexible and pay-as-you-go pricing, which are ideal for business growth
• Support for familiar technologies, enabling swift migrations and web app deployments

Microsoft Azure Benefits

Azure leads the way in cloud computing, offering numerous advantages to propel your business forward. 

Here are some highlights:

• Cost-effective and straightforward
  • Azure provides pricing advantages, offering up to five times the savings of competitors for Windows and SQL Servers. 
  • It also provides access to a wide range of cloud services from anywhere, reducing costs previously spent on on-premise infrastructures.
• Seamless integration
  • Azure seamlessly integrates with Microsoft 365 and other solutions, creating a cohesive ecosystem.
• Trusted performance
  • Azure’s top-tier infrastructure as a service (IaaS) capabilities help spur innovation and business growth. 
  • Its robust security and reliability enhance customer experiences and foster trust.
• Bulletproof security and compliance
  • The platform enables users to implement comprehensive, multi-layered security measures for optimized risk management. 
  • Azure also offers over 90 proactive compliance certifications, ensuring robust data governance.

Is Azure Secure?

Are you worried that putting your sensitive business data, credentials, and projects in the cloud would make your company vulnerable to cybersecurity threats? 

You won’t have to if you choose Azure. This cloud platform offers Azure Backup, a centralized backup service that can protect you from ransomware.

Ransomware is malicious software that locks your files or data until you pay a ransom to the attacker.

Azure Backup offers robust solutions to mitigate security risks:

• Geo-redundant storage: Copies data to a secondary location far from the primary region, which is crucial during local power outages.
• Locally redundant storage: Replicates data thrice within an Azure storage unit, all within the same region.
• Zone-redundant storage: Maintains replicated data across different availability zones within one region, ensuring uninterrupted operations.
  
  Azure availability zones are distinct data centers that are physically and logically isolated, each equipped with its own independent power supply, network infrastructure, and cooling systems.
  
  This backup option has no downtime, so it can be ideal if you run crucial tasks that must stay running without breaks.

Azure’s flexibility and integrated features also support data backup in any language, on any operating system, from any location, and on schedules ranging from daily to monthly. 

An OS is a fundamental computer program that provides the platform on which you (the user) can run applications (other programs).

Say you operate in a Windows virtual environment. Azure seamlessly integrates with HyperV (software that lets you run multiple OS as VMs on Windows) and System Center (a Microsoft platform that aims to simplify data center management for organizations).

Did you know that only 6% of companies survive catastrophic data loss? The rest face potential bankruptcy, and some never reopen.

For your business, weak IT infrastructure poses a significant risk in today’s data-sensitive environment. 

You might think that cyberattacks won’t happen to you. The truth is you’re already a target, especially if you’re an SMB (small-to-medium business).

Fortunately, with Azure Site Recovery, you can craft basic or advanced disaster recovery plans in the Microsoft Azure portal (depending on what you need). 

Site Recovery integrates with other BCDR (business continuity and disaster recovery tools) technologies, letting you manage replication, failover, and failback all from one spot in the Azure portal.

How Customers Are Innovating With Azure

Azure also allows users to innovate their IT systems with the Microsoft Intelligent Data Platform, delivering intelligent apps and effortlessly enabling data-driven decisions.

Have you ever wished you could simply focus on developing and running your apps?

Azure App Service allows you to concentrate on app development without managing infrastructure. This high-powered platform as a service provides a framework for building, deploying, and scaling web-based apps and APIs (application programming interfaces).

API is a set of programming codes that enables two or more apps to communicate with each other.

And that’s not all. You can also automate your apps through these solutions:

• Automated patch management for virtual machines: Azure’s ongoing deployment support lets you streamline code updates, so you spend less time managing your infrastructure and more time fine-tuning your apps.
• AutoScale: This Azure Web Apps feature adjusts your resources automatically based on user traffic. 
  
  AutoScale optimizes your IT budget by turning resources up during peak traffic and down during lulls. 
• Web app to on-premise app integration: Azure integrates web apps with on-premise systems for secure resource access within your firewall.

“How Can I Optimize My Azure Workloads?”

You can use Azure to optimize workloads for seamless scalability with business growth, accelerate domain deployments using DevOps tools, and guarantee successful Azure cloud migration with careful planning and expert execution.

Get More Value From Your Cloud Investments

Migration and modernization from on-premises to Azure offer significant cost savings compared to maintaining expensive hardware and software. 

You can optimize your workload efficiency by deploying and retiring resources as needed.

For example, you can use existing Windows Server and SQL Server core licenses with Software Assurance or a subscription to reduce Azure resource costs through Azure Hybrid Benefit (an Azure licensing benefit).

This way, you can achieve consistency in user experience and apply existing knowledge across your organization’s on-premises and cloud technologies. Lastly, you can integrate seamlessly with Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) to enhance operational synergy with Microsoft Entra.

Make Your Business Flexible

Transitioning to Microsoft Azure solutions can enhance your business’ agility by streamlining cycle times for faster and more secure software updates. 

Azure also unlocks extensive automation possibilities and broadens supply chain access across various devices, including mobile platforms.

Scalability

We can also help you enhance your application’s availability and scalability with Azure Load Balancer, another Azure product, through the following:

• Balancing both internet and private network traffic with high performance and minimal latency
• Integrating with virtual machines, virtual machine scale sets, and IP addresses
• Quickly scaling applications and ensuring high availability

We See Hybrid IT Differently

Azure Hybrid Benefit, an Azure feature, offers the power of hybrid cloud solutions with Microsoft’s innovative approach. 

It enables you to integrate on-premises infrastructure with cloud capabilities seamlessly. 

You Dream It, Azure AI Helps Build It

Azure lets you harness AI solutions to build and train machine learning models, integrate artificial intelligence into your applications, and convert unstructured data into searchable insights through knowledge mining. 

You can start with 12 AI services at no cost for the first 12 months.

Prepare Your On-Premises Virtualized Workloads for Azure

If you’re looking to move your on-premises machines to Azure, the Azure Migrate service is ideal. 

This feature is designed specifically for server migration, offering a centralized hub where you can discover, assess, and migrate your on-premises machines to Azure. 

Whether you’re dealing with Hyper-V VMs (software that lets you run multiple OS as VMs on Windows) or physical servers, Azure Migrate can help make the process straightforward and efficient.

Monitoring Azure Services, Infrastructure, and Applications

As businesses undergo significant digital transformation, critical services and data increasingly shift to public cloud environments like Azure.

Microsoft Azure offers various tools for monitoring and optimizing your infrastructure and applications, ensuring they’re tailored to your business objectives and budgetary requirements. 

Monitoring Azure resources—including VMs, applications, and PaaS—helps establish performance benchmarks and provides actionable insights to enhance ROI for your unique use case.

Hybrid and Multi-cloud IT Operations Management

Cloud services enable you to transition your IT infrastructure into the digital realm, eliminating the need to maintain an in-house IT environment (except for devices provided by vendors and switches).

However, a drawback may be that of losing control of your cloud service provider.

Hybrid IT services solve this problem by letting you use a cloud-based system and an on-premises one.

Multi-cloud can also address the issue since it lets you use various cloud services, both public and private, to handle computing and storage.

“How Do I Learn to Use Azure?”

Planning to migrate to Azure? We’ve outlined the basic info you need to consider in this article. 

You may also want to go through Azure Fundamentals, an online training series that covers essential cloud concepts. 

This resource offers a streamlined overview of Azure services and practical exercises to deploy your first service confidently.

Embrace Your Journey to the Cloud: Does the Cloud Leave You Feeling Like You’re in a Fog?

Navigating the cloud infrastructure can be daunting. You might feel like you’re driving through a thick fog of technical terms and concepts. Are you unsure about Azure’s products and services?

Our IT management solutions offer clarity. We’ll help prepare your on-premises infrastructures for Azure, ensuring optimized performance and cost management across subscriptions and workloads.

How Can We Partner?

As a reputable IT-managed service provider (IT MSP) with over 30 years of rock-solid experience, we can help you migrate to Azure smoothly.

Here’s what you’ll get when you work with us:

• Fully managed or self-managed solutions—your call
• Local and offsite storage working together for bulletproof data protection
• Access to your data anytime, anywhere
• Low IT overhead with pay-as-you-go pricing for Azure and our flat-rate enterprise IT solutions
• The best industry tools and practices to keep your data locked down and secure

Our full-scale IT support lets you focus on your business. You can leave the tech stress to us.

We’re so confident in our team and the managed services we provide that we offer a 90-day money-back guarantee.

If we don’t meet your expectations in 90 days, you can cancel for a full refund and watch our CEO and VP take a pie in the face.

That’s how committed we are to providing exceptional IT solutions. 

So ditch the “good enough” IT infrastructure. Azure offers the adaptability, data protection, and cost-efficiency needed to optimize your business. 

And with our tried-and-true IT-managed support, you’ll maximize Azure’s potential while keeping costs down and productivity high.

If you want to experience the CCB Technology difference, call 262-886-4222 or click here to schedule a no-strings-attached consultation with our IT pros.

You can also discuss your IT challenges by visiting our office at:

8411 Corporate Drive, Mount Pleasant, WI 53406.

“CCB’s team has guided the renewal of our agency’s outdated technology systems during a period of significant organizational transformation. They worked shoulder to shoulder with us to strategically enhance our technology infrastructure, upgrade our software, and significantly improve our IT security.

CCB has brought unparalleled expertise and strong technical advice [to our partnership] while helping us to define [the] long-term technology strategy that will better prepare us for the future.”

Sara Ray Stoelinga, PhD | President and Chief Executive Officer, Easterseals Chicagoland and Greater Rockford