Microsoft Azure Storage
Microsoft Azure Storage is a family of managed cloud services for objects, shared files, messages, and structured key-value data. You choose a service, storage account type, redundancy model, access method, and protection controls to match how an application stores and retrieves data.
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Intro
Microsoft Azure Storage
Microsoft Azure Storage is a family of managed data services. It gives applications durable places for objects, shared files, messages, and key-value entities.
The family matters more than the brand name. Each service presents a different data model and access contract:
- Blob Storage stores unstructured objects.
- Azure Files provides managed file shares.
- Queue Storage holds messages for asynchronous work.
- Table Storage stores schemaless key-value entities.
A storage account is the management boundary around these services. It provides a unique namespace and carries shared choices such as region, account type, redundancy, network access, and authorization policy.
Start with the data model. Then decide the failure scope, access path, protection features, and cost behavior. A storage account created before those decisions often becomes a container for unrelated workloads with incompatible requirements.
Match the service to the access pattern
Blob Storage is object storage. A blob is data addressed by name inside a container. Applications access blobs through HTTP or HTTPS, a client library, a command-line tool, or another supported protocol.
Blob Storage fits images, documents, logs, backups, archives, media, and analytics data. It does not behave like a general-purpose local disk. An application that requires ordinary shared-file semantics may fit Azure Files better.
Azure Files exposes managed shares through Server Message Block, Network File System, or the Azure Files REST API. Multiple clients can mount a share. This makes Azure Files useful for applications that already expect a shared file system or for teams replacing a conventional file server.
Queue Storage holds messages. A producer adds work to a queue, and a consumer processes that work later. This separation helps an application absorb bursts and move slow work out of an interactive request. A queue is not object storage and does not replace a database.
Table Storage is a schemaless NoSQL key-value store. A table contains entities. Each entity has properties, a partition key, and a row key. It fits structured data that does not need relational joins, foreign keys, or stored procedures.
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Sources
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/
Supports
- Azure Storage includes object, file, and block storage plus data-management and migration services
- The documentation hub provides official paths for the major Azure storage services
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/storage-account-overview
Supports
- A storage account contains blobs, files, queues, and tables and provides a unique namespace
- General-purpose version 2 accounts support blobs, files, queues, and tables
- Premium account types focus on block blobs, file shares, or page blobs
- Account type determines supported services, features, redundancy, and pricing
- Changing storage account type requires a new account and data copy
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/storage-blobs-introduction
Supports
- Blob Storage is cloud object storage for unstructured text and binary data
- Blob resources form an account, container, and blob hierarchy
- Blob Storage supports REST, command-line tools, and language client libraries
- Block, append, and page blobs serve different data shapes
- Common Blob Storage uses include documents, media, logs, backup, archive, and analytics
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/files/storage-files-introduction
Supports
- Azure Files provides managed file shares
- Azure Files supports SMB, NFS, and REST with protocol-specific clients
- Multiple cloud or on-premises clients can mount supported shares
- Azure File Sync can cache SMB shares on Windows servers
- Azure Files supports file-server replacement and applications that expect shared-file semantics
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/queues/storage-queues-introduction
Supports
- Queue Storage stores messages accessed through authenticated HTTP or HTTPS
- Queues support backlogs for asynchronous processing
- Queue resources form an account, queue, and message hierarchy
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/tables/table-storage-overview
Supports
- Table Storage is a schemaless NoSQL key-value store for structured non-relational data
- Tables contain entities made of properties
- Partition keys and row keys identify and organize entities
- Table Storage does not provide relational joins, foreign keys, or stored procedures
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/storage-redundancy
Supports
- Azure Storage maintains multiple copies of data
- The account redundancy setting is shared by all storage services in the account
- LRS keeps replicas in one physical datacenter in the primary region
- ZRS copies data synchronously across three or more availability zones
- GRS and GZRS add asynchronous replication to a secondary region
- Read-access variants expose the secondary endpoint for reads
- Replicas reflect deletions and overwrites, so redundancy is not backup
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/authorize-data-access
Supports
- Azure Storage data access supports Microsoft Entra ID, shared access signatures, Shared Key, and anonymous access in supported scenarios
- Microsoft recommends Microsoft Entra ID with managed identities when possible
- Authorization and control-plane resource management are separate concerns
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/shared-key-authorization-prevent
Supports
- Shared Key authorization can be disabled at the storage account
- User delegation SAS uses Microsoft Entra authorization for Blob Storage
- Service SAS and account SAS use Shared Key and fail when Shared Key is disabled
- Authorization logs and metrics can identify clients before migration
- Clients and service integrations can break when Shared Key is disabled without preparation
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/storage-private-endpoints
Supports
- A private endpoint gives a storage service a private address in a virtual network through Private Link
- Creating a private endpoint does not automatically block the public endpoint
- Private endpoints are created for specific storage subresources
- DNS resolution routes the normal service name to the private endpoint inside the connected network
- Blob copies require network access to both source and destination accounts
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/common/storage-service-encryption
Supports
- Azure Storage automatically encrypts persisted data with service-side encryption
- Encryption covers blobs, files, queues, and tables
- Microsoft-managed keys are the default
- Supported configurations can use customer-managed keys through Azure Key Vault or Managed Hardware Security Module
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/access-tiers-overview
Supports
- Hot, cool, and cold are online Blob Storage tiers
- Archive is offline and requires rehydration before read
- Tiers trade storage cost against access, retrieval, and retention behavior
- Access tier support applies to block blobs and varies by account configuration
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/lifecycle-management-overview
Supports
- Lifecycle management uses rules to tier or delete eligible blob data
- Rules can target accounts, containers, prefixes, or blob index tags
- Lifecycle management covers supported current versions, previous versions, and snapshots
- Lifecycle rules cannot rehydrate archived blobs to an online tier
- Blob type, account type, and immutability can limit lifecycle actions
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/data-protection-overview
Supports
- Blob Storage offers controls for deleted or overwritten data
- Blob soft delete, container soft delete, versioning, point-in-time restore, immutability, and backup address different incidents
- Data protection and disaster recovery are separate from redundancy
- Feature support varies with account capabilities and protocols
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/soft-delete-blob-overview
Supports
- Blob soft delete retains deleted or overwritten objects for a configured retention period
- Soft-deleted data can be restored during retention
- Soft delete does not protect the storage account from deletion
- Retained soft-deleted data can add storage cost
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/files/files-data-protection-overview
Supports
- Azure Files data protection includes share snapshots, soft delete, Azure Backup, and Azure File Sync
- File share snapshots are point-in-time copies of a share
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/monitor-blob-storage
Supports
- Azure Monitor provides metrics and resource logs for Blob Storage
- Diagnostic settings route monitoring data to configured destinations
- Metrics and logs support request, latency, availability, capacity, and authorization analysis