Get Started with SharePoint Server 2013 Quickly on Windows Azure
Get Started with SharePoint Server 2013 Quickly on Windows Azure
In order to remain competitive in today’s business climate you need to be able to respond to change and challenges quickly. Sometimes that means adjusting your SharePoint infrastructure on a moment’s notice to maintain a competitive advantage.
Infrastructure as a Service solves these challenges through a ready-to-use, pay as you go solution which means you can deploy in hours as opposed to days, whether you’re looking to deploy a simple SharePoint-based Internet site or to quickly provision a development environment.
SharePoint 2013 on Windows Azure Virtual Machines enables you to rapidly deploy and host your business websites on a secure, scalable cloud infrastructure.
What are Windows Azure Virtual Machines?
Windows Azure Virtual Machines enable organizations to deploy custom Windows Server images to Windows Azure. Virtual Machines provide developers complete control of the application environment and allow easy migration of existing applications to the cloud. To learn more about Windows Azure Virtual Machines see also http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/home/scenarios/virtual-machines/.
How can I benefit from Azure IaaS?
Business Mobility
Windows Azure Virtual Machines allow you to easily move your applications and infrastructure back and forth from on-premises to the cloud without requiring any changes to the existing code – if you’ve virtualized SharePoint 2013 in on-premises you can quickly and easily move your virtual hard drives between your datacenter and the cloud.
License Mobility
With License Mobility through Software Assurance, you can deploy certain server application licenses purchased under your Volume Licensing agreement in an Authorized Mobility Partner’s datacenter. To learn more about License Mobility see also http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/software-assurance/license-mobility.aspx . With License Mobility through Software Assurance, you can deploy certain server application licenses purchased under your Volume Licensing agreement in an Authorized Mobility Partner’s datacenter.
Hybrid Connectivity
Windows Azure IaaS enables IT to establish a VPN connection to on-premises infrastructure which means you don’t need to move your Active Directory infrastructure to the cloud, simply deploy SharePoint 2013 in Windows Azure IaaS and have users authenticate behind the firewall. Hybrid connectivity also means you can connect to your line of business applications behind the firewall with your Azure IaaS deployment.
Getting Started
To get started with SharePoint 2013 on Windows Azure navigate to the Windows Azure Portal (https://manage.windowsazure.com/) and sign-in with your credentials.
Select + New.
Select Compute click Virtual Machine and click From Gallery
On the Create Virtual Machine Dialog click Platform Images and then click SharePoint Server 2013 Trial.
Click -> Next.
Complete the remaining details to provision your virtual machine.
NOTE
Extra Large, A6, or A7 are the recommended virtual machine sizes recommended for use with SharePoint Server 2013.
The virtual machine contains a complete installation of SharePoint Server 2013 and expires on October 16, 2013. To continue using the virtual machine after October 16, 2013 you will need to convert the installation to use a Retail or Volume License key. SharePoint Server 2013 and prerequisites are preinstalled with links to SharePoint 2013 Central Administrations, the SharePoint 2013 Management Shell, and SharePoint Products Configuration on the desktop. SQL Server 2008 R2 with Service Pack 1 or SQL Server 2012 is required to complete the configuration.
Conclusion
Azure enables IT to reduce overhead and operation burden allowing more time and resources to focus on innovation. Through a flexible IaaS architecture you can scale on demand adding compute capacity as it becomes necessary, quickly, without having to install additional hardware in your data centers, reducing your compute footprint - you’ll spend less time supporting hardware and more time innovating.