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Azure Arc

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Company health

Employee growth
3% increase in the last year
Web traffic
3% decrease in the last quarter

Ratings

G2
4.4/5
(29)

Azure Arc description

Azure Arc is like a magic bridge connecting your company's tech resources, whether they live in your own building or on another cloud. It lets you manage *everything* from one central dashboard in Azure, even if you also use Amazon or Google cloud services. This means less complexity and easier control for your tech team, regardless of where your data lives.


Who is Azure Arc best for

Azure Arc is ideal for companies seeking to manage resources across on-premise, multi-cloud, and edge environments through a single pane. Users appreciate the unified management experience and centralized control. Keep in mind that some find the setup complex, and costs can add up.

  • Great for businesses of any size, from small startups to large enterprises managing diverse environments.

  • Suited for companies in software, IT, and telecommunications seeking streamlined hybrid and multi-cloud management.


Azure Arc features

Supported

Hybrid Management: Azure Arc enables hybrid management, bringing Azure services and management to any infrastructure.

Supported

Server Management: Manage your servers across on-premises, edge, and multi-cloud environments from a single control plane in Azure.

Supported

Kubernetes Management: Deploy and manage Kubernetes clusters on any infrastructure, with consistent management and operations.

Supported

Data Services: Run Azure data services on-premises, at the edge, and in multi-cloud environments, with unified management and security.

Supported

SQL Server Integration: Modernize SQL Server by connecting it to Azure Arc for enhanced management and security features.

Supported

VMware vSphere Integration: Extend Azure management and governance to your VMware vSphere environment.

Supported

System Center VMM Integration: Use Azure Arc with System Center Virtual Machine Manager to manage on-premises VMs.

Supported

Azure Local VM Management: Manage Azure VMs on Azure Local using Azure Arc.


Azure Arc reviews

We've summarised 29 Azure Arc reviews (Azure Arc G2 reviews) and summarised the main points below.

Pros of Azure Arc
  • Unified management experience across on-premises, multi-cloud, and edge environments, simplifying management and increasing flexibility.
  • Centralized resource visibility and control, streamlining governance and improving resource management.
  • Integration with other Azure services like Azure Monitor and Azure Security Center, enhancing security, compliance, and monitoring capabilities.
  • Enables hybrid and multi-cloud solutions, allowing organizations to leverage the strengths of different environments.
  • Facilitates consistent deployment and policy enforcement across diverse environments, improving governance and security.
Cons of Azure Arc
  • Complexity in setup and management, especially for initial setup and for specific features like SQL Server backups.
  • Costly, potentially increasing overall cloud bill and posing billing challenges, especially for hybrid setups.
  • Integration issues can arise, especially with on-premises environments, requiring specialized skills and potentially causing delays.
  • Limited feature parity between Azure services in the public cloud and those extended on-premises through Azure Arc.
  • Support response times can be slow, potentially causing missed deadlines.

Azure Arc pricing

The commentary is based on 4 reviews from Azure Arc G2 reviews.

We find that Azure Arc's pricing is a common concern. While users appreciate its hybrid and multi-cloud capabilities, the cost and potential for increased cloud bills are often mentioned as drawbacks. Careful cost management is likely needed.

See the Azure Arc pricing page.


Azure Arc alternatives

  • Logo of AWS Transit Gateway
    AWS Transit Gateway
    Connects your cloud networks simply and securely. Scales easily.
    Read more
  • Logo of Azure Portal
    Azure Portal
    Manage and monitor your entire cloud world in one place.
    Read more
  • Logo of Azure Virtual WAN
    Azure Virtual WAN
    Simplified branch-to-Azure and branch-to-branch networking.
    Read more
  • Logo of Azure Resource Manager
    Azure Resource Manager
    Deploy, manage, and organize all your cloud resources together.
    Read more
  • Logo of Connector as a Service (CaaS)
    Connector as a Service (CaaS)
    Easily link your apps and automate data flow.
    Read more
  • Logo of Azure Migrate
    Azure Migrate
    Simplifies moving your servers and databases to Azure's cloud.
    Read more

Azure Arc FAQ

  • What is Azure Arc and what does Azure Arc do?

    We find Azure Arc helps you manage your servers, Kubernetes clusters, and data services across different environments, including your own data centers and other cloud providers like AWS and GCP, all from a single place in Azure. It simplifies managing your IT resources.

  • How does Azure Arc integrate with other tools?

    We find that Azure Arc integrates seamlessly with other Azure services like Azure Monitor and Azure Security Center. It also works with on-premises tools like VMware vSphere and System Center VMM, extending Azure management capabilities to your existing infrastructure.

  • What the main competitors of Azure Arc?

    We find that Azure Arc's main competitors include AWS Transit Gateway for networking, and Azure's own in-house alternatives like Azure Portal, Virtual WAN, and Resource Manager, each offering overlapping functionalities. Products like Connector as a Service (CaaS) and Azure Migrate address more specialized integration and migration needs.

  • Is Azure Arc legit?

    We find Azure Arc to be a legitimate service. It's a safe and reliable way to manage your servers and Kubernetes clusters across different environments from a central control plane in Azure. It simplifies hybrid and multi-cloud management.

  • How much does Azure Arc cost?

    Azure Arc itself doesn't have a separate cost. You pay for the Azure services you manage and use with Arc, such as Azure VMs, Azure Kubernetes Service, or Azure SQL. We find this billing model to be flexible and efficient.

  • Is Azure Arc customer service good?

    We find that Azure Arc's customer service receives mixed reviews. While some users praise the excellent support, others report slow response times. Overall, the experience seems to vary.


Reviewed by

MK
Michal Kaczor
CEO at Gralio

Michal has worked at startups for many years and writes about topics relating to software selection and IT management. As a former consultant for Bain, a business advisory company, he also knows how to understand needs of any business and find solutions to its problems.

TT
Tymon Terlikiewicz
CTO at Gralio

Tymon is a seasoned CTO who loves finding the perfect tools for any task. He recently headed up the tech department at Batmaid, a well-known Swiss company, where he managed about 60 software purchases, including CX, HR, Payroll, Marketing automation and various developer tools.

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