The four main strategies for managing cloud costs include right-sizing, cleaning up unused resources, reservations and savings plans, and database and application tuning.
Right-sizing is the process of determining the optimal size and type of Azure resources needed to meet your performance requirements while minimizing costs. This involves balancing the cost of resources with the performance needs of your applications. For example, if you need a web server to handle a certain amount of traffic, you should choose the smallest available virtual machine that can handle that amount of traffic.
Cleaning up unused resources is another important strategy for managing cloud costs. When you create new resources in Azure, there’s a chance that some of them might not be used or needed anymore. These unused resources continue to incur charges, even if they are not being used. Regularly reviewing your Azure environment and removing any unneeded resources can help reduce your overall costs.
Reservations and savings plans are another way to manage cloud costs. Reservations provide a discount on the cost of using specific types of Azure resources for a one- or three-year commitment. For example, if you commit to running virtual machines for a year, you can save up to 72% compared to pay-as-you-go pricing. Savings plans are similar to reservations but offer more flexibility by allowing you to save on usage across multiple types of resources.
Database and application tuning involves optimizing your databases and applications to run more efficiently in Azure. This can help reduce costs associated with data transfer, storage, and networking. For example, if your database is slow and resource-intensive, it may be because the queries are not properly optimized. By analyzing and tuning your database queries, you can improve performance and reduce costs.
To kickstart your cloud computing efficiency, you should start by holding regular meetings with all stakeholders involved in managing Azure costs. This includes representatives from your cloud team, finance department, and other teams that may be impacted by cloud costs. During these meetings, you should identify quick wins, such as cleaning up unused resources or tuning databases and applications, to fund larger cost-saving initiatives.
The Road to Azure Cost Governance is an e-book published by Packt and written by Paola Annis and Giuliano Caglio. You can request your free copy from Microsoft here: https://info.microsoft.com/ww-landing-the-road-to-azure-cost-governance-e-book.html
Cost Optimization is one of the pillars within the Azure Well-Architected Framework which you can reference it’s design principals at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/well-architected/cost-optimization/principles
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