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6: Azure Native Tools

Cost Analysis, Monitor, Advisor

Azure Service Pricing​

Azure Pricing page - https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/

  • Pricing details per product

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Step-by-Step Guide to Using the Azure Pricing Page​

  1. Access the Azure Pricing Page: Go to Azure Pricing to get started.

  2. Explore Pricing Options:

    • Browse by Category: The page is organized into various categories, such as Compute, Networking, Storage, Databases, etc. Click on a category to view pricing for related services.

    • Search for a Service: Use the search bar at the top of the page to quickly find pricing information for a specific Azure service.

  3. View Pricing Details:

    • Service-Specific Pricing: Click on a service to see detailed pricing information. This will include options for different configurations, such as region, instance type, and more.

    • Pricing Tiers: Many services offer multiple pricing tiers (e.g., Basic, Standard, Premium). Review the details for each tier to understand the features and costs associated with them.

  4. Use the Azure Pricing Calculator:

    • Access the Calculator: Click on the "Pricing Calculator" link or go directly to the Azure Pricing Calculator.

    • Add Services: Use the calculator to add the services you plan to use. Adjust the configurations (e.g., region, instance size) to match your needs.

    • Estimate Costs: The calculator will provide a cost estimate based on your selected services and configurations. You can adjust the inputs to see how changes affect the total cost.

  5. View Additional Pricing Resources:

    • Cost Management Tools: Explore tools and resources for managing and optimizing your Azure costs, such as Azure Cost Management + Billing.

    • Pricing Updates and Offers: Stay informed about the latest pricing updates, special offers, and discounts.

Azure Pricing Calculator​

Estimating costs before deployment is a huge advantage Use the Azure Pricing Calculator to estimate costs - https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/calculator/

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Demo​

Price out a VM

  • Ubuntu Linux
  • D8_v5
  • West US region

Gather 3 prices:

  • Pay as you go
  • 3 year reserved
  • 3 year savings plan

Toggling the 3 cost options as shown at the bottom give you these 3 prices. image.png

Advanced demo​

Add in:

  • A managed disk
  • Standard SSD
  • LRS
  • 1TB in size

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Total Cost of Ownership Calcuator​

TCO Calculator - https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/tco/calculator/

Cloud Management Data​

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/costs/

Cost Analysis​

Can be navigated to by Management Group, Subscription, Resource Group. This graph shows the actual, forecast and budget in one image.

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Step-by-Step Guide to Using Azure Cost Analysis​

  1. Access Cost Analysis:

    • Go to the Azure portal and navigate to Cost Management + Billing.

    • Select Cost Management and then Cost Analysis.

  2. Select a View:

    • When you first open Cost Analysis, you'll see a list of available views. These views provide different insights into your costs1.

    • Smart Views: These are pre-configured views that offer intelligent insights and details by default.

    • Customizable Views: These views can be edited, saved, and shared to meet your specific needs.

  3. Explore Built-in Views:

    • Resources View: Shows costs by individual resources.

    • Resource Groups View: Shows costs by resource groups.

    • Subscriptions View: Shows costs by subscriptions and resource groups.

  4. Customize Views:

    • Group Costs: Use the "Group by" option to group costs by common properties like resource tags or resource groups.

    • Apply Filters: Use filters to narrow down the data you want to analyze.

    • Change Display Settings: Customize how data is displayed, such as viewing charts or tables.

  5. Analyze Costs:

    • Identify Top Cost Contributors: Look for the resources or resource groups that are driving the most costs.

    • Understand Charges: Drill down into specific resources to understand how you're being charged.

    • Find Savings Opportunities: Identify areas where you can reduce costs, such as shutting down idle resources or resizing underutilized VMs.

  6. Export Data:
    • You can export cost data for further analysis or reporting using tools like Power BI.
  7. Save and Share Views:

    • Save your customized views for future reference.

    • Share views with team members to collaborate on cost management efforts.

Cost Analysis - Prebuilt views​

Resources: image.png

Services: image.png

Resource Groups: image.png

Subscriptions: image.png

Demo: Cost Analysis Data​

Show Virtual Machines and Storage costs Segment by RGs

Advanced:

  • show all non marketplace charges for US Central region
  • segment by subscription.

Answers: Service or Meter category to select VM, Storage Group By: Resource Group

Marketplace = filter on Publisher Type, Location, Group by RG

Budgets and Alerts​

Budget documentation - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/costs/tutorial-acm-create-budgets?tabs=psbudget Monitor and control spending using budgets. Set up alerts on the cost details.

Budgets can alert to an action group

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Azure Budgets​

  1. Access Cost Management:

    • Go to the Azure portal and navigate to Cost Management + Billing.

    • Select Cost Management and then Budgets.

  2. Create a Budget:

    • Click on Create Budget.

    • Choose the Scope for your budget (e.g., Subscription, Resource Group, etc.).

    • Set the Time Period for the budget (e.g., Monthly, Quarterly, Annually).

    • Define the Budget Amount you want to set.

  3. Configure Alerts:

    • Set up Alerts to notify you when your spending reaches certain thresholds (e.g., 80% of the budget).

    • You can configure alerts to be sent via email or other notification methods.

  4. Review Budgets:

    • Regularly review your budgets to monitor your spending and ensure you stay within your limits.

    • Use the Cost Analysis tool to get detailed insights into your spending patterns.

  5. Adjust Budgets as Needed:

    • If your spending needs change, you can adjust your budgets accordingly.

    • You can also create multiple budgets for different scopes or time periods.

  6. Use Budgets for Cost Control:

    • Leverage budgets to drive accountability and manage costs effectively.

    • Compare actual spending against your budget to identify areas where you can optimize costs.

Power BI​

https://youtu.be/KyHQRCS8_AQ?si=BUWHwZs6uCdZzHW2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYZjoc8ZXGw https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/connect-data/desktop-connect-azure-cost-management

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Power BI with Azure Cost Analysis​

  1. Install Power BI Pro:
    • Ensure you have a Power BI Pro license. This is required to install and use the Cost Management Power BI app1.
  2. Install the Cost Management Power BI App:

    • Go to the Power BI AppSource page.

    • Search for the Cost Management Power BI App and select Get it now.

    • Follow the prompts to install the app.

  3. Connect to Azure Cost Management Data:

    • Open the Cost Management Power BI App.

    • Select Connect your data.

    • Enter your Enterprise Agreement (EA) enrollment number or Billing Profile ID.

    • Specify the number of months of data you want to retrieve.

    • Follow the prompts to connect to your Azure data.

  4. Explore Pre-built Reports:

    • Once connected, you'll see pre-built reports that provide insights into your Azure costs, usage trends, and cost optimization opportunities.

    • Use these reports to monitor your spending and identify areas for cost savings.

  5. Customize Reports:

    • You can customize the reports to meet your specific needs.

    • Use the Cost Management connector in Power BI Desktop to join other data sources and create customized reports.

    • This allows you to create holistic views of your overall business costs.

  6. Share Reports:

    • Share your customized reports with team members to collaborate on cost management efforts.

    • Use Power BI's sharing features to distribute insights and drive accountability.

Power BI Connector​

How to Use Power BI Connectors:

  1. Open Power BI Desktop: Start by opening Power BI Desktop.

  2. Get Data: Go to the Home tab and click on Get Data.

  3. Select a Connector: Choose the appropriate connector from the list of available connectors.

  4. Connect to the Data Source: Follow the prompts to connect to your data source and import the data into Power BI.

  5. Transform Data: Use Power Query Editor to clean, transform, and shape your data as needed.

Azure Advisor​

  • Create alerts
  • Auto fix for findings

  1. Identify Idle Resources: Azure Advisor identifies resources that haven't been used for a certain period (e.g., VMs, databases) and recommends shutting them down to save costs.

  2. Right-Size Resources: It analyzes your resource usage and suggests resizing underutilized resources to a more cost-effective size.

  3. Apply Azure Reservations: Advisor recommends applying Azure Reservations for services like VMs, SQL Databases, and Cosmos DB to get discounted rates.

  4. Use Azure Hybrid Benefit: It suggests using your on-premises licenses with Azure to get discounts on Windows Server VMs and SQL Server.

  5. Optimize Storage: Advisor provides recommendations to optimize storage costs, such as deleting unneeded snapshots and moving data to more cost-effective storage tiers.

How to Access Cost Recommendations​

  • Sign in to the Azure Portal: Go to the Azure portal and search for "Advisor".

  • Navigate to the Cost Tab: On the Advisor dashboard, select the Cost tab to view cost-related recommendations.

  • Implement Recommendations: Follow the provided recommendations to optimize your costs.

Cost Allocation for Cost Financial Management​

Distribute network and other shared resources - this doesn't work well in Power BI for now.

  1. Identify Shared Costs
  2. Identify who owns the costs - business or subscription
  3. Distribution Algorithm method - how to calculate how to distribute the costs

Anomaly Detection and Alerting​

Add this to the subscriptions

  • Monitor network and custom performance metrics
  • Log Analytics services
  • Hybrid Environments
  • Storage IO metrics

Well Architected Framework Assessment Tool​

The Well-Architected Framework Assessment Tool is part of the Azure Well-Architected Framework, designed to help you evaluate and improve your workloads across five key pillars: Reliability, Security, Cost Optimization, Operational Excellence, and Performance Efficiency.

Key Features of the Assessment Tool:​

  1. Self-Assessment: The tool provides a self-assessment that consists of approximately 60 questions based on the key recommendations of the Well-Architected Framework.

  2. Personalized Recommendations: After completing the assessment, you receive curated and personalized guidance tailored to your specific scenarios.

  3. Integration with Azure Advisor: The tool can pull in recommendations from Azure Advisor for your Azure subscription or resource group.

  4. Exportable Results: You can export the recommendations into a CSV file for easy integration into your operational processes.

How to Use the Assessment Tool:​

  1. Access the Tool: Go to the Azure portal and search for "Well-Architected Framework Assessment Tool" or navigate to the Azure Well-Architected Framework page.

  2. Complete the Assessment: Follow the prompts to complete the assessment, answering questions about your workload's design and operational practices.

  3. Review Recommendations: After completing the assessment, review the personalized recommendations provided.

  4. Implement Recommendations: Prioritize and implement the recommendations to improve your workload's design and operations

Azure Migrate​

Azure Migrate is a comprehensive service that simplifies the process of migrating on-premises workloads to Azure. It helps you plan, assess, and execute your migration with minimal downtime and risk1. Here's an overview of what Azure Migrate offers:

Key Features of Azure Migrate:​

  1. Discovery and Assessment: Azure Migrate helps you discover and assess your on-premises servers, databases, web apps, and virtual desktops. It provides insights into the readiness and cost of hosting these workloads on Azure1.

  2. Migration Planning: The service helps you create a detailed migration plan, including right-sizing recommendations and cost estimates.

  3. Minimal Downtime: Azure Migrate supports seamless migration with minimal downtime, ensuring your business operations continue smoothly.

  4. Support for Various Workloads: It supports a wide range of workloads, including servers, databases, web apps, virtual desktops, and large-scale offline migration using Data Box.

  5. Unified Platform: Azure Migrate provides a unified platform for migration and modernization, making it easier to manage and track your migration progress.

How to Use Azure Migrate:​

  1. Deploy the Azure Migrate Appliance: Deploy a lightweight appliance in your datacenter to collect configuration and performance data for your servers.

  2. Assess Workloads: Use Azure Migrate assessments to evaluate the readiness and cost of migrating your workloads to Azure.

  3. Create a Business Case: Generate a business case to decide if migrating to Azure is the right choice for your organization.

  4. Plan Migration: Develop a detailed migration plan based on the assessment results.

  5. Execute Migration: Follow the migration plan to move your workloads to Azure with minimal disruption.