Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

OpenStack VS Azure Virtual Machines

Compare OpenStack VS Azure Virtual Machines and see what are their differences

OpenStack logo OpenStack

OpenStack software controls large pools of compute, storage, and networking resources throughout a datacenter, managed through a dashboard or via the OpenStack API.

Azure Virtual Machines logo Azure Virtual Machines

Build Linux and Windows virtual machines (VMs) and save up to 80 percent with Azure Reserved Virtual Machine Instances and Azure Hybrid Benefit for Windows Server.
  • OpenStack Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-22
  • Azure Virtual Machines Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-19

OpenStack features and specs

  • Open Source
    OpenStack is open source, which means there is no licensing fee and a broad community of users and developers contributes to its development and support.
  • Flexibility
    It supports a wide variety of hardware and software, allowing organizations to customize their cloud infrastructure to meet specific needs.
  • Scalability
    OpenStack can scale horizontally, allowing organizations to add or remove resources as their needs change, effectively managing large pools of compute, storage, and networking resources.
  • Vendor Neutrality
    Being vendor-neutral, OpenStack offers flexibility to avoid vendor lock-in and choose from a wide range of compatible technologies and service providers.
  • Community Support
    A large and active community provides extensive documentation, forums, and support, which can be very helpful for troubleshooting and development.

Possible disadvantages of OpenStack

  • Complexity
    Setting up and managing OpenStack can be complex and requires a significant level of expertise, which may necessitate specialized training for staff.
  • Performance Overhead
    Being a feature-rich platform, it often involves more performance overhead compared to other simpler, more streamlined services.
  • Resource Intensive
    OpenStack can be resource-intensive in terms of CPU, memory, and storage, which might not be suitable for all organizations, especially smaller ones with limited resources.
  • Interoperability Issues
    Integrating OpenStack with existing systems and third-party tools can sometimes present challenges, especially when dealing with legacy infrastructure.
  • Evolving Platform
    The platform is constantly evolving, which can be both a pro and a con. Keeping up to date with the latest releases and changes can be time-consuming and may require ongoing maintenance.

Azure Virtual Machines features and specs

  • Scalability
    Azure Virtual Machines allow you to easily scale up or down based on your needs, providing flexibility to handle varying workloads.
  • Global Reach
    Azure offers a vast network of data centers around the world, enabling low-latency access and compliance with local data regulations.
  • Wide Range of VM Sizes
    Azure provides a variety of VM sizes and configurations to suit different types of applications and workloads.
  • Integrated Ecosystem
    Azure VMs can seamlessly integrate with other Azure services like Azure SQL Database, Azure App Services, and Azure Active Directory.
  • High Availability
    Azure offers features such as Availability Zones and VM Scale Sets to ensure high availability and resilience of your applications.
  • Security
    Azure VMs come with built-in security features, including Azure Security Center, for monitoring and defending against threats.
  • Pay-As-You-Go Pricing
    Azure's pricing model allows you to pay only for what you use, which can be cost-effective for many businesses.

Possible disadvantages of Azure Virtual Machines

  • Complexity
    Managing Azure Virtual Machines can be complex, especially for companies without dedicated IT teams or cloud experts.
  • Cost Management
    While Azure provides a pay-as-you-go model, costs can quickly add up if not monitored and managed effectively.
  • Learning Curve
    There is a significant learning curve associated with understanding and utilizing all the features and services offered by Azure.
  • Dependence on Internet
    Performance and availability are highly dependent on internet connectivity, which may not be universally reliable or fast.
  • Resource Limitations
    There are certain quotas and limits on resources that can be allocated, which might require quota increase requests for larger deployments.
  • Vendor Lock-In
    Using proprietary technologies and services from Azure can lead to being locked into the Microsoft ecosystem, making migration to other platforms challenging.
  • Downtime
    While Azure aims for high availability, there can still be occasional downtime due to maintenance or unforeseen issues.

Analysis of OpenStack

Overall verdict

  • OpenStack can be an excellent choice for businesses and enterprises looking to deploy a cloud infrastructure, particularly if they value flexibility, scalability, and control over their environment. Being open-source, it also offers cost advantages compared to proprietary solutions, provided the organization has the necessary expertise to manage and maintain it. However, it may be challenging for smaller teams without dedicated IT resources due to its complexity and the steep learning curve associated with its deployment and management.

Why this product is good

  • OpenStack is a popular open-source cloud computing platform that enables users to build and manage both public and private clouds. It offers a flexible and scalable solution for organizations that need to handle large amounts of data and infrastructure. OpenStack is developed by a vast community of developers and organizations, ensuring continuous improvement and adaptation to new technologies. It supports a wide range of APIs, which allows for customization and integration with other services and tools.

Recommended for

    OpenStack is particularly recommended for large enterprises, organizations with skilled IT teams, academic institutions, and service providers that need a highly customizable and scalable cloud solution. It's also a great fit for entities with specific compliance requirements or those that need to run a private cloud with tailored configurations.

Analysis of Azure Virtual Machines

Overall verdict

  • Azure Virtual Machines are highly regarded for their performance, reliability, and integration capabilities. They are a solid choice for businesses looking for a comprehensive cloud infrastructure solution.

Why this product is good

  • Azure Virtual Machines are considered good because they offer a robust and flexible cloud computing service, allowing businesses to run applications with high availability and scalability. They provide extensive support for different operating systems and application environments, integration with other Azure services, and advanced security features. With a global infrastructure, Azure Virtual Machines ensure better performance and lower latency for users worldwide.

Recommended for

  • Organizations needing scalable infrastructure for applications
  • Businesses requiring a global presence with low-latency access
  • Teams looking for integrated solutions within the Microsoft ecosystem
  • Developers needing extensive OS and application environment support
  • Enterprises prioritizing security and compliance features

OpenStack videos

OpenStack Summit Primer, The Who, What, Why and How of OpenStack

More videos:

  • Review - Red Hat OpenStack Platform GPU use case
  • Review - Performance Analysis Review for Production OpenStack Private Cloud in SaaS

Azure Virtual Machines videos

No Azure Virtual Machines videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to OpenStack and Azure Virtual Machines)
Cloud Computing
61 61%
39% 39
VPS
100 100%
0% 0
Virtual Machine Management
Cloud Infrastructure
65 65%
35% 35

User comments

Share your experience with using OpenStack and Azure Virtual Machines. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare OpenStack and Azure Virtual Machines

OpenStack Reviews

35+ Of The Best CI/CD Tools: Organized By Category
OpenStack is a cloud framework. It provides users and enterprises with horizontal scale infrastructure. Its tools allow you to compute, store and share data and resources. It also provides self-service administration that users can interact with directly.

Azure Virtual Machines Reviews

10 Best VMware Alternatives and Similar Software
Azure Virtual Machines are one of the numerous forms of scalable, on-demand computing resources like VMware. VMs are typically used when you want greater control over any computer system than the other options provide.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Azure Virtual Machines should be more popular than OpenStack. It has been mentiond 9 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

OpenStack mentions (2)

  • Learn OpenStack by Example: Part 1 - Install DevStack
    In my first post, I looked into what is OpenStack and how, if done right, can be quite a powerful ally in our cloud deployment strategies. In this post, I want to start looking at how we can create an application to learn the basics and components of the system. - Source: dev.to / about 4 years ago
  • Learn OpenStack by examples: Part 0 - Summary and Goals
    While searching for solutions and documentation on the various problems I've come across, I would often see references to OpenStack and it got my curiosity going. What is OpenStack? What services does it offer and who owns it? How do I learn to use it? What are it's costs and limitations? - Source: dev.to / about 4 years ago

Azure Virtual Machines mentions (9)

  • Stealing everything you've ever typed on your Windows Recall PC is now possible
    More than 60% of Azure is run on Linux [1] and the writing was already on the wall when the Linux subsystem was conceived so I don't think it's a good example of EEE. [1] https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/virtual-machines/linux. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Open source versus Microsoft: The new rebellion begins
    Https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/virtual-machines/linux#:~:text=Get%20up%20and%20running%20with,CentOS%2C%20Debian%2C%20and%20CoreOS. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Linux Crosses 4% Market Share Worldwide
    "More than 60 percent of customer cores in Azure run Linux workloads" https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/virtual-machines/linux So the Linux share would actually decrease if you exclude Azure ;). - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Azure has run out of compute. Anyone else affected?
    So does google, so does azure etc. etc. https://cloud.google.com/spot-vms, https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/virtual-machines/spot/ Spot instances exist just to try to turn over-provisions in to not a complete loss. You're at least making some money from your mistake. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Infrastructure as code (IaC) for Java-based apps on Azure
    You can use virtual machines or virtual machine scale sets to host your Java applications. Scale sets, in particular, allow you to scale your applications across hundreds to thousands of VMs very rapidly. As we all probably know, virtual machines require a high level of management and configuration versus some other options out there. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing OpenStack and Azure Virtual Machines, you can also consider the following products

Linode - We make it simple to develop, deploy, and scale cloud infrastructure at the best price-to-performance ratio in the market.

vSphere - Get started with VMware vSphere editions, the world’s leading server virtualization platform and the best foundation for your apps, your cloud, and your business.

Proxmox VE - Proxmox is an open-source server virtualization management solution that offers the ability to manage virtual server technology with the Linux OpenVZ and KVM technology.

Amazon EC2 - Amazon Web Services offers reliable, scalable, and inexpensive cloud computing services. Free to join, pay only for what you use.

DigitalOcean - Simplifying cloud hosting. Deploy an SSD cloud server in 55 seconds.

Google Compute Engine - Google Compute Engine is not just fast. It’s Google fast.