Azure CDN
Azure CDN: An Overview
Azure CDN is a content delivery network (CDN) service provided by Microsoft as part of its Azure cloud platform. Launched in 2009, Azure CDN aims to enhance the performance, scalability, and reliability of web applications by delivering content from a network of strategically placed edge servers worldwide. Headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA, Microsoft Azure has grown rapidly, offering a wide range of cloud services including compute, analytics, storage, and networking.
Features
Comparison with Top CDN Providers
| Feature | Azure CDN | Akamai | Google Cloud CDN | AWS CloudFront | Cloudflare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of PoPs | 130+ | 300+ | 140+ | 450+ | 200+ |
| Web Application Firewall | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| DDoS Protection | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SSL/TLS Support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Origin Shield | No | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Image Optimization | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Real-Time Analytics | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Edge Computing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| API Gateway | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Support for HTTP/2 and HTTP/3 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Global Anycast Network | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Developer-Friendly Tools | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Notable Outages and Events
- September 2020: Azure CDN experienced an outage affecting several regions due to a network infrastructure issue. Microsoft quickly addressed the problem, and services were restored within a few hours.
- March 2021: Azure CDN faced a significant outage impacting multiple services worldwide. The incident was caused by a DNS misconfiguration and was resolved after a few hours.
Notable Customers
Technology
Azure CDN leverages a global network of PoPs to deliver content efficiently and reliably to users worldwide. The service supports modern protocols such as HTTP/2 and HTTP/3 and provides robust security features, including a Web Application Firewall (WAF) and comprehensive DDoS protection. Azure CDN integrates seamlessly with other Azure services, offering real-time analytics, image optimization, and edge computing capabilities to enhance the performance and scalability of web applications.
Contributions to Open Source
Microsoft Azure is committed to supporting the open-source community and has contributed to various projects. Notable open-source projects and contributions by Azure include:
- Dapr: Distributed Application Runtime, an open-source project for building distributed applications.
- KEDA: Kubernetes-based Event Driven Autoscaling, an open-source component for scaling Kubernetes deployments.
- Terraform AzureRM Provider: A Terraform provider for managing Azure resources.
Pricing
Azure CDN’s pricing model is based on data transfer, requests, and additional features. Below is a general overview of potential pricing components:
| Service Component | Estimated Price Range |
|---|---|
| Data Transfer Out | $0.02 - $0.19 per GB |
| HTTP/HTTPS Requests | $0.0075 per 10,000 requests |
| Web Application Firewall | Additional cost |
| DDoS Protection | Additional cost |
| SSL/TLS | Included |
| Real-Time Analytics | Included |
| Edge Computing | Additional cost |
For detailed and tailored pricing, businesses are encouraged to visit the Azure CDN pricing page or contact Microsoft Azure directly for a customized quote based on their specific needs.