Azure Stack HCI - Azure Stack Edge - Azure Stack Hub

Question

Just trying to get a clear picture in what these technologies are and how they can be used, I have read some documentation, watched some videos but have some doubts.

Here's what I currently get:

Azure Stack HCI is the operating system that can be installed in branded servers meant for these type of workloads, and I can host arc enabled VMs, manage them in Azure, SDN and storage. (Can these resources be presented to different tenants as service, or is it for my own tenant usage only?)

Azure Stack Edge (I've read Edge Pro in other places)

A server that's also arc enabled, and can be used for AI workloads.

Azure Stack Hub, this one is the one I struggle the most to understand, I can have VMs like HCI but I can also host my own and run apps in an on-premises environment and deliver Azure services in your datacenter.

Maybe good examples of each own would help?

Answer 1

Azure Stack HCI is a hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solution that brings the agility and innovation of cloud computing to your on-premises environment. The most important feature of HCI is that it can run ‘disconnected’ from Azure. To put it very simple: HCI works like the commonly known branch office-server. Basically, HCI is a box that contains compute power, storage and network connections. Example- Fujitsu has its PRIMEFLEX hardware certified for Azure Stack which is one of the fastest and easiest way to extend your data center to the cloud leveraging Azure Stack HCI. The box holds Hyper-V based virtualized workloads that you can manage with Windows Admin Center.

Azure Stack HCI is a good choice for organizations that want to:

• Run virtualized Windows and Linux workloads on-premises
• Connect to Azure for cloud-based backup, recovery, and monitoring
• Have a consistent operational experience across on-premises and cloud environments

Azure Stack Edge acts as a network storage gateway and performs high-speed transfers to Azure. Azure Stack Edge can be used to run containerized applications, VMs, and AI workloads at the edge.

Azure Stack Edge is a good choice for organizations that want to:

• Process data close to the source to reduce latency and improve performance
• Run AI workloads at the edge to gain insights from data quickly
• Transfer data to Azure for further compute or archival purposes

Azure Stack Hub is a hybrid cloud platform that extends Azure to your on-premises environment. Azure. In case of Azure HCL, you can run Stack HCI ‘stand alone’, but in case of Hub, it is an integrated solution with Azure public cloud.

To put it very simple: Azure Stack Hub is really the on premise extension of Azure public cloud. Almost everything you can do in the public cloud, you could also deploy on Hub: from VM’s to apps, all managed through the Azure portal or even Powershell.

Azure Stack Hub is a good choice for organizations that want to:

• Run Azure services on-premises
• Have a consistent operational experience across on-premises and cloud environments
• Meet regulatory requirements or data sovereignty needs
• Have more control over their IT environment

Official MS documentation for- Azure Stack HCI Azure Stack Edge Azure Stack Hub

Examples of Deployment using Azure Stack HCI Sandbox Deploying VMs on your Azure Stack Edge Deploying VMs on your Azure Stack Hub

Checkout this article on Azure: fully stacked by Jeroen Mulder for further clarity.

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Answer 2

According to Microsoft documentation, Azure Stack Hub is on premise cloud i.e. private cloud and Azure Stack HCI is hybrid cloud.

https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/products/azure-stack/