Azure Services
Our Azure-certified experts can monitor your cloud, respond to alerts, or manage and optimize the whole shebang for you.
Azure Aware
Gain visibility into the performance, availability, and health of your Azure environment for free. Escalate to Deft’s team of Azure-certified experts as needed.
Azure Aware is a free audit-logging, monitoring, and alerting service. Alerts go directly to your team for troubleshooting, with the option to escalate to Deft Support. On-demand support can be purchased hourly or in blocks:
- One-off support requests with no commit: $350/hr
- 5-10 hours/month: $300/hr* (save $50/hour)
- 10+ hours/month: $250/hr* (save $100/hour)
*A 30-day cancellation notice is required.
Bonus: Optimization recommendations are included for free.
Azure Optimize
Let Deft keep your Azure environment healthy. We’ll proactively implement routine optimizations that improve your cost savings, performance, and security. And all monitoring alerts will be resolved on your behalf.
Azure Optimize is a completely managed Azure service. Deft’s team of Azure-certified engineers handle everything from patching and backups to recoveries and encryption.
Pricing depends on our assessment of your Azure environment and starts at $1500/month.
We’re certified by Microsoft so you don’t have to be.
Comparing Azure Aware and Azure Optimize:
Configuration Management
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| OS Patching and Updates | ✗ | ✓ | Comprehensive patch and update processes. Patches and updates are automatically applied to the operating system (OS). Deliver summary of patches/updates and validation. |
| Configuration Management Automation | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Custom, automated configuration management system. Contained in code and applied automatically to minimize errors and provide detailed reporting and validation. |
| Audit Logging | ✓ | ✓ | Comprehensive, automated Audit Logging. Audit Logging is configured and managed on an ongoing basis. |
| Credential Resets | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Setup, management, and administration of all OS or application-level credentials. We validate all credential requests, including resets, to ensure end-to-end compliance and security for your cloud. |
| Packaged/Repository App Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Configuration and management of all standard software components or repositories that are part of the OS environment. |
Backup, Resilience, and BC/DR
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Full VM and Volume Snapshots/Backups | ✗ | ✓ | Daily snapshots of all block store virtual machines and volumes. Standard retention policy is 30 days. Snapshots stored in platform’s default backup repository. Long-term data retention is available when requirements exceed our standard 30-day configurations. Please note that the time required to execute restore requests of data or files in long-term retention will vary. Additional and more detailed snapshot and backup capabilities are available via our Managed Backup & Recovery Services. |
| File Backups/Restores | ✗ | ✓ | Includes file restore requests from full-volume snapshots. A support ticket to our Service Desk will initiate the file restore process for you. Self-service restores are also available. |
| Backup Validation Reporting and Semiannual Testing | ✗ | ✓ | Deliver backup validation reporting and collaborate to perform semiannual backup testing. |
| Disaster Recovery Planning | ✗ | ✗ | Standard Disaster Recovery event planning. |
| Disaster Recovery Drills | ✗ | ✓ | Standard Disaster Recovery event drills. |
| Fully Automated Disaster Recovery | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Optional service provides the automatic execution of DR operations without requiring manual intervention or event declaration. |
User Access Control
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Cloud User Access (IAM/RBAC) | ✗ | ✗ | Setup, configuration, management, and administration of all cloud users within the cloud console. |
| User Access Change Control | ✗ | ✗ | Setup, configuration, management, and administration of all change controls and change control processes for cloud users within the cloud console. |
| OS-Level UAC (AD/LDAP/SSH) | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | We recommend Deft Cloud MSP environments include setup, configuration, management and administration of all necessary OS-Level UAC controls (Active Directory, LDAP, SSH). |
DevOps
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Infrastructure IaC Development | ✗ | ✓ | Development of all necessary Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and automation templates. Optional application IaC/automation is available. |
| Infrastructure IaC Deployment | ✗ | ✓ | Deployment of all IaC components throughout the environment – whether they are developed by you or Deft. At your request, this can be achieved by manual or automated processes based upon the nature of the cloud environment and your code development pipelines. |
| CI/CD Setup | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | We recommend environments include design, development, and setup of Continuous Integration/ Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipelines for your applications. |
| CI/CD Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | We recommend environments include the ongoing management and refinement of CI/CD processes. NOTE: In many cases, we establish the CI/CD pipeline, set it up, and provide management structure and guidance while you execute the day-to-day CI/CD pipeline management. |
| Custom Application Lifecycle Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Optional evaluation of development processes available. |
Monitoring and Alerting
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| OS Health and Performance | ✓ | ✓ | OS Health and Performance Monitoring. Agent-based system to provide metrics from the OS. (System availability and CPU, bandwidth, memory, and disk utilization are monitored). Service Desk also receives this information and can address it based upon predefined support rules as necessary. |
| Endpoint Health and Performance | ✓ | ✓ | Cloud Endpoint Health and Performance Monitoring. |
| Network Performance Monitoring | ✓ | ✓ | Cloud Network Performance Monitoring. |
| Database Performance Monitoring | ✓ | ✓ | Database Health and Performance Monitoring for cloud-native database services. |
| Application Performance | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | We recommend environments include Application Health and Performance Monitoring for all applications deployed within your cloud system. |
| Infrastructure Alert Response and Triage | ✗ | ✓ | Infrastructure Alert Response and Triage for all infrastructure elements. |
| AI/ML Correlation | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Automatic analysis of all system events and alerts, focusing primarily on non-threshold-based alerting and minimizing false positives (not actionable incidents) to reduce cost and improve operational efficiency and effectiveness. |
| AI/ML Historical Log Analysis | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Analysis of historic system event information and alerts. |
| Environment Change Monitoring | ✗ | ✓ | Environment Change Management and Monitoring processes. |
| Environment Usage Delta | ✗ | ✓ | Management and monitoring of Environment Usage statistics. Focus on unexpected changes in utilization (bandwidth, compute, memory, storage, cloud-native services, etc.). |
| Environment Alert Response | ✗ | ✓ | Investigation and remediation of the Environment Usage Delta. |
Security
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Edge Network Configuration & Firewall Rules | ✗ | ✓ | All Deft Cloud MSP environments include the setup, management, administration and change control for the cloud edge network configurations, security policies and firewall rules. |
| Data Encryption Enforcement | ✗ | ✓ | Implementation of automated encryption processes for all data at rest. |
| Key Management | ✗ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of system-wide keys. |
| Application Endpoint Firewall(s) | ✗ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of application endpoint security. Rules, management, administration, and change management processes are based upon your specific architecture and requirements. |
| Compliance Support | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Assistance with compliance initiatives. In addition to support, we can also highlight and share best practices in the design and operation of compliance processes and procedures. |
| IDS Monitoring | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Setup, management, and administration of cloud-native Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS). |
| IDS Alert Response | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | We recommend environments include setup, management, and administration of IDS Alert Response processes. |
Support
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Support/Incident Portal | ✓ | ✓ | All Deft Cloud MSP environments include access to our support portal. All support, monitoring and incident aspects of your account are managed in this portal. |
| Incident Response | ✗ | ✓ | Incident Response is triggered by an alert automatically or manually identified within the cloud system. |
| Request Response (In-Scope of MSP) | ✗ | ✓ | Response to customer-specific, proactive requests. Service Desk receives these requests and addresses them based upon predefined support rules. |
| Standard Dashboards | ✓ |
✓ |
Customer Dashboard, which highlights the environment utilization and operation in real time. |
| Custom Dashboards | ✗ | ✓ | Custom Customer Dashboard, which highlights specific environment utilization and operation metrics in real time. |
| On-Demand Cloud Support (Out-of-Scope of MSP) | ✓ | ✓ | Ability for you to request On-Demand support. On-Demand support that is outside the scope of the MSP will likely incur an additional cost and be subject to a different SLA. You will be informed of all options, timeframes, and potential costs before any work is performed. |
Cost Optimization
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Historical Usage Analysis | ✗ | ✓ | Historical Usage Analysis of the environment (identify the minimum viable infrastructure required to maintain day-to-day operations to maximize cost optimization and enable optimal autoscaling baseline). Historical Usage Analysis projects can be conducted monthly, quarterly, annually or on-demand, based upon your unique business requirements. |
| Reserved Capacity Management | ✗ | ✓ | An outcome of Historical Usage Analyses, Reserved Capacity Management is a regular assessment of possible capacity reservations. |
| Cost Allocation | ✗ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of cloud utilization and cost allocation centers. If cost centers (including “show-back” and “charge-back” concepts) do not exist in your business today, we can guide you through the implementation and introduction of this process to the business through a consulting engagement. |
Procurement and Licensing
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Planning | ✗ | ✓ | All Deft Cloud MSP environments begin with detailed planning. Upfront planning is the single most important factor for cloud success. Included is planning for account/subscription hierarchy, licensing strategy, etc. |
| Procurement | ✓ | ✓ | Procurement of cloud accounts/subscriptions and software licensing necessary for your business. Deft’s setup, management, and administration of this process ensures you can take full advantage of the cost and operational benefits we receive as a certified MSP. |
| Billing | ✓ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of the cloud billing accounts and subscriptions. Deft assumes responsibility for interfacing with the cloud provider(s) to manage the complex billing operations, including monthly bill analysis. Includes access to cost management/analysis portals. |
Audit Trail
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize | Description |
| Cloud Infrastructure Logs | ✓ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of comprehensive Cloud Infrastructure Logging capabilities. Environments are architected to log all available Cloud Infrastructure operations, providing the maximum amount of information available. |
| OS-Level Logs | ✓ | ✓ | Setup, management, and administration of comprehensive OS-Level Logging capabilities. |
| Application-Level Logs | ✗ | Available as an upgrade | Setup, management, and administration of comprehensive Application-Level Logging capabilities. |
| Compliance Initiatives | ✗ | ✗ | All environments are architected to support existing compliance initiatives. |
Configuration Management
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| OS Patching and Updates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Configuration Management Automation | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Audit Logging | ✓ | ✓ |
| Credential Resets | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Packaged/Repository App Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
Backup, Resilience, and BC/DR
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Full VM and Volume Snapshots/Backups | ✗ | ✓ |
| File Backups/Restores | ✗ | ✓ |
| Backup Validation Reporting and Semiannual Testing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Disaster Recovery Planning | ✗ | ✗ |
| Disaster Recovery Drills | ✗ | ✓ |
| Fully Automated Disaster Recovery | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
User Access Control
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Cloud User Access (IAM/RBAC) | ✗ | ✗ |
| User Access Change Control | ✗ | ✗ |
| OS-Level UAC (AD/LDAP/SSH) | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
DevOps
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Infrastructure IaC Development | ✗ | ✓ |
| Infrastructure IaC Deployment | ✗ | ✓ |
| CI/CD Setup | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| CI/CD Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Custom Application Lifecycle Management | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
Monitoring and Alerting
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| OS Health and Performance | ✓ | ✓ |
| Endpoint Health and Performance | ✓ | ✓ |
| Network Performance Monitoring | ✓ | ✓ |
| Database Performance Monitoring | ✓ | ✓ |
| Application Performance | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Infrastructure Alert Response and Triage | ✗ | ✓ |
| AI/ML Correlation | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| AI/ML Historical Log Analysis | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Environment Change Monitoring | ✗ | ✓ |
| Environment Usage Delta | ✗ | ✓ |
| Environment Alert Response | ✗ | ✓ |
Security
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Edge Network Configuration & Firewall Rules | ✗ | ✓ |
| Data Encryption Enforcement | ✗ | ✓ |
| Key Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Application Endpoint Firewall(s) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Compliance Support | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| IDS Monitoring | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| IDS Alert Response | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
Support
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Support/Incident Portal | ✓ | ✓ |
| Incident Response | ✗ | ✓ |
| Request Response (In-Scope of MSP) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Standard Dashboards | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom Dashboards | ✗ | ✓ |
| On-Demand Cloud Support (Out-of-Scope of MSP) | ✓ | ✓ |
Cost Optimization
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Historical Usage Analysis | ✗ | ✓ |
| Reserved Capacity Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Cost Allocation | ✗ | ✓ |
Procurement and Licensing
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Planning | ✗ | ✓ |
| Procurement | ✓ | ✓ |
| Billing | ✓ | ✓ |
Audit Trail
| Service | Azure Aware | Azure Optimize |
| Cloud Infrastructure Logs | ✓ | ✓ |
| OS-Level Logs | ✓ | ✓ |
| Application-Level Logs | ✗ | Available as an upgrade |
| Compliance Initiatives | ✗ | ✗ |
Get in touch with our Azure Services team.
Prefer to book a meeting? Schedule a 15-minute call with us here. Otherwise, go ahead and submit your info below and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!
“We knew there was stuff that we didn’t know. And we were looking for a resource that wasn’t too big. So we called Deft. We made an Azure decision years ago. Now we’re able to take advantage of the platform in ways we weren’t before.”
PSD Solutions
Get in touch with our Azure Services team.
Prefer to book a meeting? Schedule a 15-minute call with us here. Otherwise, go ahead and submit your info below and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!
“We knew there was stuff that we didn’t know. And we were looking for a resource that wasn’t too big. So we called Deft. We made an Azure decision years ago. Now we’re able to take advantage of the platform in ways we weren’t before.”
PSD Solutions
Book a 15-min call with our team to discuss your Azure needs →
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Domestic
SCTG’s Colocation services can extend beyond regional deployments to include comprehensive domestic footprints with the addition of San Jose, CA and Ashburn, VA. Data center facility partners in San Jose, CA and Ashburn, VA include Equinix. Critical power, environmentals, and network connectivity remain delivered in fully redundant configurations by default.
SCTG maintains a separate, private network core at each data center. Each core contains redundant sets of network equipment to provide core routing for the data center network and internet-facing routing infrastructure. This is the demarcation point for SCTG’s Global Network, a multi-gigabit private backbone enabling colocation customers to connect to services and infrastructure in every other SCTG data center. The services delivered from the network core are 100-Gigabit-enabled, offer disparate physical paths to each location, and are built using resilient, standards-based protocols.
Colocation customers have the option of migrating existing infrastructure to a SCTG facility or working with SCTG to provide a fully managed data center migration. SCTG provides comprehensive physical data center migrations that leverage internal staff and resources. Migration services generally include physical inventory & documentation, written assessments of the work to be performed, project management, planning & execution of the migration, and knowledge transfer. Customers can also opt to have SCTG Managed Services support the final environment.
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Cloud-Enabled
ServerCentral’s Colocation services can extend to third-party cloud partners including, but not limited to, AWS, Backblaze, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure.
SCTG maintains a separate, private network core at each data center. Each core contains redundant sets of network equipment to provide core routing for the data center network and internet-facing routing infrastructure. This is the demarcation point for SCTG’s Global Network, a multi-gigabit private backbone enabling colocation customers to connect to services and infrastructure in every other SCTG data center. The services delivered from the network core are 100-Gigabit-enabled, offer disparate physical paths to each location, and are built using resilient, standards-based protocols.
SCTG offers its CloudLink service in each facility. CloudLink is managed by SCTG and leverages multi-gigabit, carrier-class infrastructure to connect your infrastructure to third-party cloud platforms, including Amazon, Google, Microsoft, or to SCTG’s Enterprise Cloud & Managed Private Cloud offerings.
Colocation customers have the option of migrating existing infrastructure to a SCTG facility or working with SCTG to provide a fully managed data center migration. SCTG provides comprehensive physical data center migrations that leverage internal staff and resources. Migration services generally include physical inventory & documentation, written assessments of the work to be performed, project management, planning & execution of the migration, and knowledge transfer. You can also opt to have SCTG Managed Services support your final environment.
Click to expand
Global
SCTG’s Colocation services can extend beyond the U.S. to include comprehensive global footprints with the addition of Tokyo, Japan, Sydney, Australia, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, London, England and over 55 additional PoPs worldwide. Global data center facility partners vary by market and can be provided upon request. Critical power, environmentals, and network connectivity are delivered in fully redundant configurations by default for global deployments.
SCTG maintains a separate, private network core at each data center. Each core contains redundant sets of network equipment to provide core routing for the data center network and internet-facing routing infrastructure. This is the demarcation point for SCTG’s Global Network, a multi-gigabit private backbone enabling colocation customers to connect to services and infrastructure in every other SCTG data center. The services delivered from the network core are 100-Gigabit-enabled, offer disparate physical paths to each location, and are built using resilient, standards-based protocols.
SCTG offers its CloudLink service in each facility. CloudLink is managed by SCTG and leverages multi-gigabit, carrier-class infrastructure to connect your infrastructure to third-party cloud platforms, including Amazon, Google, Microsoft, or to SCTG’s Enterprise Cloud & Managed Private Cloud offerings.
All colocation deployments are connected via SCTG’s fully redundant, global VPLS network.
Colocation customers have the option of migrating existing infrastructure to a SCTG facility or working with SCTG to provide a fully managed data center migration. SCTG provides comprehensive physical data center migrations that leverage internal staff and resources. Migration services generally include physical inventory & documentation, written assessments of the work to be performed, project management, planning & execution of the migration, and knowledge transfer. You can also opt to have SCTG Managed Services support your final environment.
