Hey everyone! We're planning to transition two of our large on-prem Windows Server file servers (over 10 TB each) from two different remote offices to Azure Files. These servers primarily support less than 100 Windows clients at each site, and we don't have any Macs in the mix. I'm reaching out to see if anyone has experience with this type of migration and could share their insights, particularly regarding performance and costs. We're considering a Reserved Instance, but I've heard that transactions and modifications to the data could lead to separate charges. Is that true? Any advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated!
1 Answer
Money-wise, don't stress too much about costs at the start. You can find a balance between premium options and transaction fees without getting a nasty surprise. Going for Reserved Capacity could help lower your expenses a bit. However, keep in mind that performance can take a hit because of latency. Using SMB over significant latency can be a real drag, so if your clients aren't close to Azure, you'll likely notice a difference. If possible, think about sticking with your on-prem setup and using Azure File Sync alongside Azure Files for better results, unless you're considering a strong dedicated connection like ExpressRoute for faster speeds.
Exactly! Make sure to analyze your needs before making the leap.
Thanks for the insight! I’m aware the cloud latency is around 40-50 ms, which definitely won't match the local iSCSI experience. I've also got other smaller VMs on our VMware nodes, not just the large file share. Another thought is to do a lift-and-shift to a big VMware server on-prem with ample local storage and have a backup node, while retiring the SAN.