As organizations continue to adopt cloud computing, the need for scalable, reliable, and secure platform services has never been greater. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a fully managed Kubernetes service offered by Microsoft that provides these capabilities and more. In this article, we will introduce you to what Azure Kubernetes Service is, detail what sets it apart from its competitors, compare its features with those of AWS and GCP, and finally introduce you to cost optimization services for containers.
What is Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)?
Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a fully managed Kubernetes service that makes it easy to deploy, manage, and scale containerized applications using Kubernetes. AKS handles all the infrastructure management tasks, so you can focus on writing and deploying your applications. With AKS, you can create, manage, and scale your clusters without having to worry about the underlying infrastructure.
What Sets AKS Apart?
- Simplified Management: AKS simplifies the management of Kubernetes clusters, allowing you to focus on your applications instead of infrastructure. With AKS, you can create, manage, and scale your clusters without having to worry about the underlying infrastructure.
- Integration with Azure Services: AKS integrates seamlessly with Azure services such as Azure Container Registry, Azure Monitor, Azure Active Directory, and more. This allows you to take advantage of these services and simplify your deployment process.
- AKS is cost-effective and it provides a pay-as-you-go model that is based on the number of nodes in your cluster. You only pay for what you use, and there are no upfront costs.
Where does that put AKS in relation to its competitors?
- Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is the cheapest of the three services and appears to be providing most promptly the newer Kubernetes versions and patches among all three but Microsoft will only match the EKS 99.95% SLA if you use Availability Zones
- Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) was the first to market and has the most features out of the box and offers the most automated capabilities. It provides automatic upgrades for the control plane and nodes, and automatic node health repair. But GKE will only match the EKS 99.95% SLA if you use Regional Clusters and there is no government cloud option.
- Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) on the other hand is the most widely used managed Kubernetes service. It requires more manual configuration but offers a 99.95% Service Level Agreement. Unfortunately, it seems it requires the most effort to upgrade the Cluster components and it is a trade-off: you have more control over your cluster, but it also requires more time focused on operations. There is no automatic node health repair etc.
Undoubtedly your choice will be based on what other cloud services you are already using or planning on using and you are likely to stay within that hyper-scaler ecosystem.
Cost Optimization Services for Containers
Spot by NetApp and Ocean in particular is a cost optimization service for containers that allow you to take advantage of spare capacity in the cloud and reduce your cloud computing costs. Ocean provides cost optimization for containers running on AWS, Azure, and GCP. Ocean allows you to save up to 90% on your cloud computing costs, making it an excellent choice for organizations looking to reduce their cloud computing expenses.
Conclusion
Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a fully managed Kubernetes service that provides scalability, reliability, and security for your applications. AKS sets itself apart from its competitors by providing a simplified management experience, integrating seamlessly with Azure services, and being cost-effective. When compared to AWS EKS and GCP GKE, AKS provides the most cost-effective solution with the highest level of integration with Azure services. In addition, cost optimization services like Spot by NetApp and Ocean can help you reduce your cloud computing costs even further. If you’re looking for a platform to build scalable applications, AKS is an excellent choice.