Optimizing Virtual Machine Costs in Azure: Best Practices

As organizations continue to embrace the cloud, managing and reducing costs for virtual machines (VMs) has become a critical priority. This comprehensive guide delves into the best practices you can implement to optimize the costs of your Azure virtual machines.

Use the Azure VM Selector to Identify the Right VMs for Your Needs

The first step in cost optimization is selecting the appropriate virtual machines for your workloads. Utilize the Azure Virtual Machines Selector to identify the best VMs based on your specific requirements.

For Development and Test Environments

  • Use B-Series VMs, with at least a B2 size for Windows machines
  • Opt for HDDs instead of SSDs when possible
  • Utilize locally redundant storage (LRS) accounts instead of geo- or zone-redundant options
  • Implement automatic start and stop schedules for your VMs using tools like Logic Apps or Azure Automation

For Production Environments

  • Leverage the dedicated Standard pricing tier or higher
  • Use a Premium SSD v2 disk and programmatically adjust its performance to match your workload patterns
  • Size your disks to achieve the desired performance without over-provisioning, accounting for fluctuating workloads and minimizing unused capacity

Leverage Azure Policies to Manage and Reduce Costs

Azure Policy can be a powerful tool in governing and optimizing the costs of your cloud resources. Explore the built-in policies for virtual machines and networking that can help you achieve cost savings:

  • Allowed Virtual Machine SKUs: This policy enables you to specify the virtual machine sizes that your organization can deploy, allowing you to restrict any sizes that exceed your desired budget. Remember to update this policy as new VM sizes are introduced.
  • Network Interfaces Should Not Have Public IPs: This policy restricts the creation of public IP addresses, helping to reduce bandwidth and virtual network data costs.

You can also create custom Azure Policies to:

  • Limit the allowed resource types for deployment
  • Restrict the locations where virtual machines can be deployed
  • Audit resources incurring costs after VM deletion
  • Enforce the use of the Azure Hybrid Benefit for Windows and Linux licenses

Additional Cost-Saving Strategies

By implementing these best practices, you can effectively manage and reduce the costs associated with your Azure virtual machines, ensuring your cloud investments align with your organization’s financial goals.

For more information on virtual machine cost optimization, be sure to check out the following resources: