Creating a manageable Microsoft Azure subscription model

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In the rapidly evolving world of cloud services, managing technical subscriptions can become a daunting task. At Microsoft, we faced a similar challenge—Microsoft Azure subscription sprawl.

“If customers don’t have a formal system in place to manage their Azure subscriptions, it can lead to subscription sprawl,” says Trey Morgan, a principal product manager on our Microsoft Digital Azure Optimization team. “This can cause potential legal and security risks.”

Our solution?

The Azure Information Request System (AIRS).

The impact of AIRS has been significant, particularly in governance and cost management. By assigning subscriptions to the business hierarchy from day one, they don’t get lost in a company of our size. We can quickly identify who to contact for security issues, cost issues, and understand how these cloud resources fit into Microsoft’s business.

— Trey Morgan, principal product manager, Microsoft Digital Azure Optimization team

AIRS streamlines the process of setting up new Azure subscriptions.

Portrait photo of Morgan. — Trey Morgan is a principal product manager on our Microsoft Digital Azure Optimization team.

“AIRS is an internal system we’ve developed that offers a solution to govern and track subscriptions, a strategy that Microsoft has effectively used,” Morgan says.

Users requesting a new subscription fill out a form detailing cost assignment and ownership. The system also helps assign the subscription to our business hierarchy, providing visibility on where the cloud resources fit within the company.

“The impact of AIRS has been significant, particularly in governance and cost management,” Morgan says. “By assigning subscriptions to the business hierarchy from day one, they don’t get lost in a company of our size. We can quickly identify who to contact for security issues, cost issues, and understand how these cloud resources fit into Microsoft’s business.”

We’ve also integrated AIRS with tooling that benefits several different parts of our business.

“Azure governance, security, finance, and leadership all benefit from AIRS,” Morgan says. “Without it, we would lack crucial information about these Azure subscriptions or why they exist.”

Azure subscription sprawl strategies

To prevent subscription sprawl in your Azure environment, consider implementing the following strategies:

Consistent landing zones: Establish consistent landing zones based on application archetype subscription strategies. This approach minimizes the growth of subscriptions by providing predefined structures for different types of workloads.
Requisite components definition: Expand the definition of requisite components to better align with the governance and compliance needs of a mature cloud enterprise. Clearly define what components are necessary for each subscription, ensuring that they meet organizational standards.
Subscription policies: Control the movement of Azure subscriptions out of the current directory and into it. Global administrators can allow or disallow users from changing the directory of an Azure subscription. For specific scenarios, configure a list of exempted users who can bypass the policy settings that apply to everyone else.
Restrict self-service subscriptions: Disable self-service purchases to prevent standard users from creating subscriptions without proper authorization.

Remember that effective governance and clear policies play a crucial role in managing subscription sprawl and maintaining a well-organized Azure environment. As we continue to evolve and improve AIRS, we hope our journey can provide valuable insights for other companies navigating their own cloud subscription challenges.

The future of AIRS

Having a company operating model and policies is effective and IT leaders need to adhere to them and regularly review cloud subscriptions and usage to use them for the greatest security, flexibility, and output value. As we look to the future, we’re confident that AIRS will continue to evolve and provide even greater benefits to the company.

Consider using a system like AIRS to streamline the process of setting up new Azure subscriptions and assign them to the business hierarchy. Here are some tips on how you can get started at your company:

Establish consistent landing zones based on application archetype subscription strategies to minimize the growth of subscriptions.
Expand the definition of requisite components to align with the governance and compliance needs of a mature cloud enterprise.
Control the movement of Azure subscriptions in and out of the current directory by setting subscription policies.
Disable self-service purchases to prevent standard users from creating subscriptions without proper authorization.
Remember that effective governance and clear policies play a crucial role in managing subscription sprawl and maintaining a well-organized Azure environment.