Microsoft Azure Brisbane
Microsoft Azure services for Brisbane businesses of 5 to 100 people. Azure can run anything from a single server to a whole office's desktops and for many businesses it is the answer or part of it. We assess Azure alongside your other options, recommend what fits your business and your budget and look after it.
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Azure has real strengths and so do the alternatives
Azure is Microsoft's cloud, where you rent servers, storage and desktops from Microsoft instead of buying and housing them yourself. It is strong where a business changes. You can add capacity in minutes and take it away again, staff can work from anywhere, there is no hardware to replace every few years and it sits alongside Microsoft 365.
It is one of several good ways to run your systems and the best fit depends on what you run. Cost is part of that. A system that changes a lot suits paying for use. A system that runs all day for years can suit owned hardware in a secure data centre.
| Option | What it is | It tends to suit |
|---|---|---|
| Azure | Your systems run in Microsoft's cloud. No servers of your own. | Growing businesses, spread out teams, systems that change |
| Hybrid | Some systems in Azure, some on servers of your own | A staged move or systems that suit different places |
| Secure data centre | Your servers in a professional data centre in Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne | Systems that run steadily and businesses that prefer to own their hardware |
| Your own office | Servers on your premises | Particular equipment or needs that have to stay on site |
We assess more than one option
A business that comes to us may already be set on Azure or may be weighing it against something else. Either way we start by working out what you need to run, what it should cost and what you want from it.
One firm we work with wanted to move the servers in its office to Azure. We assessed it alongside the alternatives. Spread over three years, Azure cost considerably more than buying the hardware and housing it in a data centre. They chose the hardware and spent far less overall. For another business the assessment points to Azure and we recommend it.
We recommend Azure only when it is the right answer for you
Who this is for
Moving to Azure or already on it
Businesses of 5 to 100 people who are looking to move to Azure or are already on Azure and want it looked after.
Prefer to hold the subscription yourself?
If you would rather hold the Azure subscription yourself, we can still help. We normally handle that as a project, not an ongoing arrangement.
How the assessment works
The assessment is free. We recommend on cost and on what you need your systems to do.
It normally takes one to two weeks from the first meeting to the follow-up meeting and longer when your current setup is complicated.
We meet
We schedule a meeting to hear what you run, what you need and what you want from your systems.
We gather the details
You tell us roughly what you run today and we find the rest.
We assess your options
We price Azure and the other solutions that fit, side by side, for your business.
We give you a written outcome
You receive our recommendation and the reasons for it in writing and we meet again to go through it with you.
What we run in Azure
We can run any Azure service and any of them can be part of what we offer you. These are the common ones.
Virtual machines
Virtual servers, including SQL Server, sized to what you use, in place of physical servers in your office.
Virtual desktops
A Windows desktop that looks the same to staff in the office, at home or on the road.
Storage and backups
Files held in Australia and copied to a second location.
VPNs and networks
Secure connections between Azure, your office and your staff.
Your servers run in the cloud, sized to what your business uses
Where your data sits
We can run Azure in any location. Our usual choice is Microsoft's Sydney location, for two reasons. Your data stays under Australian law and Sydney is the nearest to Brisbane, so it is fast for your staff. When it makes sense we add Melbourne as well, for backups or to run your systems in two places at once.
Microsoft has no Azure location in Queensland, so Azure for a Brisbane business runs interstate. For most work that makes no difference and for a system that needs the quickest possible connection it is part of the assessment. A secure data centre in Brisbane is the other route, described below.
Microsoft Learn, List of Azure regions.
How Azure is billed
We resell Microsoft Azure, so you receive one invoice from us and we look after the subscription and what it costs. Our management is charged separately from Azure itself. It is an add-on on our Gold plan and included on Platinum. It is the same care you would pay for to look after servers in your office, so it is not a cost that Azure adds. You can take the subscription with you if you leave.
Microsoft, Azure reservations. The figures are the ranges Microsoft quotes and depend on what you run.
Azure has two main ways to pay and the right mix depends on what you run:
Pay as you go
Pay for what you use, with no commitment. Best while you learn what you will use.
Commit for one or three years
A lower price in return for a steady spend. Microsoft says savings on virtual machines run from about 36% to 72%, depending on size, location and term.
We check which apply to you when we price your options.
Looking after Azure month by month
Most Azure services need ongoing management and oversight, which is why our managed Azure services sit in our Managed IT plans. Looking after Azure is included on Platinum and an add-on on Gold. Think of it as having an IT team in house looking after your Azure, without the hiring. Your Azure servers get the same security as servers in your office, with security settings tightened and kept that way, threat protection watched around the clock and monitoring and maintenance every day. We can also do one-off Azure projects if that is what you need.
| Part | What we do | Starts with |
|---|---|---|
| Azure management | We look after the subscription, what it costs, its security and its patching, the way an in-house IT team would. | Gold plan, add-on Included on Platinum |
| Backup and restore testing | Azure servers are backed up the same way as the servers we look after and the backups are tested by restoring them. | Gold plan, add-on |
| Recovery plan outside Azure | We can set up disaster recovery that sits outside Azure, so a problem at one provider does not stop you. | Gold plan, add-on Included on Platinum |
Our Managed IT plans are called Silver, Gold and Platinum. They start at $75 per person per month, excluding GST and cover much more than Azure. All three are on our Managed IT page.
We look after Azure the way an in-house IT team would
Secure data centre hosting on its own or alongside Azure
We already host servers for clients in NEXTDC and Equinix data centres in Brisbane and can do the same in Sydney and Melbourne. These are commercial data centres built for the purpose. Both hold independent certification for information security and both publish independent audit reports on their security. We manage the servers, the backups and the connection back to your office.
For systems that run steadily this can cost less than renting the same capacity and it can sit alongside Azure, with each system in the place that suits it best.
NEXTDC certifications page and Equinix Brisbane BR1 specifications.
How we move you to Azure
A move needs planning, so we do it in four steps.
We list what you have today and what depends on what.
We plan the move and agree a time with you.
We move in stages and test after each one.
We keep a way back ready and only switch over when everything works.
We schedule the switch-over for a time that suits you and the project, out of hours or during the working day.
Already have an Azure subscription with another provider? We can take it over from them, including access and billing, so everything is in one place. If you would rather leave it where it is, we can manage it there.
What our clients say5.0★★★★★45+ Google reviews
Questions about Azure
Have a different question? Ask us directly.
Tell us what you run
Call (07) 3179 6766 or send the form. We will come back to arrange your free assessment.
(07) 3179 6766
support@itstart.com.au