AZ-305 Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions Exam

Recommend a Virtual Machine-Based Solution

Select Appropriate VM Series and Sizes

When selecting an appropriate Azure Virtual Machine (VM) series and size, it's important to consider several key factors related to workload requirements, cost constraints, performance needs, and availability objectives. This process ensures that the chosen VM configuration is optimal for providing a scalable, resilient, and cost-effective compute solution.

Workload Requirements

Analyzing the specifics of the workload is crucial before selecting a VM series and size. This involves assessing CPU, memory, disk I/O, and network throughput requirements. For example, workloads with high computational demand may benefit from choosing VMs in the Compute Optimized or High Performance Compute series. For memory-intensive workloads, Memory Optimized VMs such as the E-series are more suitable.

Cost Constraints

One must balance performance with budget considerations by evaluating various cost-saving options:

• Spot instances offer significant discounts for fault-tolerant and flexible workloads but come with the possibility of eviction.
• Burstable VMs such as the B-series allow for spikes in performance while maintaining a lower cost for consistent use.
• Utilizing Reserved Instances and Azure Hybrid Benefit can reduce costs by committing to longer-term usage and reusing on-premises licenses.

Performance Needs

The performance of different VM series must be matched with the workload's requirements. Azure provides different VM families that cater to varied performance needs:

• General Purpose VMs are balanced with a mixture of CPU, memory, and storage resources.
• Compute Optimized VMs offer high CPU-to-memory ratios ideal for scenarios demanding heavy computation.
• Memory Optimized VMs are tailored for high memory demands typical in databases and analytics workloads.
• GPU-accelerated VMs are essential for compute-intensive tasks like AI and machine learning.

Availability Objectives

To ensure high availability, selecting VMs in different availability sets or zones reduces the risk of simultaneous failure. Additionally, enabling features like Trusted Launch enhances security through features such as secure boot and virtual Trusted Platform Module (vTPM).

Next Steps

After determining the appropriate VM series and sizes based on these multiple factors, it's essential to utilize tools such as:

• Sizes Table to compare available sizes.
• Pricing Calculator to estimate cost implications accurately.
• Azure Migrate Assessment, which analyzes on-premises workloads to suggest suitable Azure VM sizes and calculate costs.

Understanding the nuances of these considerations leads to a well-architected, efficient, and cost-effective deployment in Azure. This synthesis will help in selecting the most appropriate Azure VM configurations tailored to specific workload demands.

Conclusion

In summary, when recommending a virtual machine-based solution in Azure, one must thoroughly analyze workload requirements in terms of CPU, memory, disk I/O, and network throughput. Balancing performance needs and cost constraints is crucial, with options like Spot instances, burstable VMs, and Reserved Instances providing flexibility. Consideration of performance across General Purpose, Compute Optimized, Memory Optimized, and GPU-accelerated VMs is essential. Ensuring availability through availability sets or zones and leveraging security features like Trusted Launch adds resilience. Tools like the Sizes Table, Pricing Calculator, and Azure Migrate Assessment facilitate informed decision-making for optimizing VM selections based on specific demands.