Skytap on Azure Service Adds Options for Apps Running on IBM Systems -- Redmondmag.com

Skytap on Azure Service Adds Options for Apps Running on IBM Systems

By Kurt Mackie
02/27/2020

Applications that use IBM Power processors in "on-premises" datacenters can now be moved to Microsoft Azure datacenters via a "Skytap on Azure" service, according to Thursday announcements by both Microsoft and Skytap.

The Skytap on Azure service is just available now for the East U.S. Azure region. Microsoft, though, has future expansion plans to add the service in other Azure regions "across Europe, the United States, and Asia Pacific."

The service supports running x86 workloads alongside IBM workloads (AIX, IBM i and Linux on IBM POWER), bringing the ability to tap various Azure services, according to a Skytap on Azure summary document. Skytap is a partner on both Microsoft Azure and IBM Cloud services.

The Skytap on Azure service is designed to support software developers and enterprises with their so-called "business-critical" applications. It's for dev/test and disaster recovery scenarios. It's possible to use the Skytap on Azure service in "hybrid" computing environments, combining Microsoft's cloud services with workloads housed in an organization's datacenters.

Here's Skytap's illustration of that hybrid scenario, where an Azure Dedicated subscription is indicated:

**[Click on image for larger view.]** *Skytap for Azure service, combining on-premises datacenters with Microsoft Azure services. (Source: Skytap's Web page)*

Organizations making the move to using Skytap on Azure get access to "Azure native services such as Blob Storage, Azure NetApp Files, or Azure Virtual Machines," Microsoft's announcement explained. Production environments also have the option to use Microsoft's ExpressRoute service for high-bandwidth private Internet connections.

The Skytap for Azure service is currently available from the Azure Marketplace, where it's described as offering "consumption-based pricing, on-demand access to compute and storage resources, self-service provisioning, and extensibility through RESTful APIs."

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

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