What is Azure Storage Discovery?
Azure Storage Discovery is an assessment tool within Azure Migrate that analyzes your existing storage infrastructure and provides recommendations for migration to Azure Storage. The service scans on-premises storage systems, captures usage patterns and calculates optimal target configurations in Azure.
The tool examines file servers, NAS systems and other storage sources regarding capacity, access patterns, file size distribution and performance requirements. Based on this analysis, concrete migration recommendations are generated: which Azure storage service is best suited, which tier configuration would be most cost-effective and how the migration should be structured.
Storage Discovery forms the foundation for an informed migration decision and minimizes the risk of misconfigurations after migration.
Core Features
- Automatic discovery and inventory of storage systems
- Analysis of access patterns, capacity and performance requirements
- Recommendations for optimal Azure storage services and tier configurations
- Cost estimation for various migration scenarios
- Integration with Azure Migrate for seamless transition to migration
Typical Use Cases
Migration Preparation: Systematic analysis of the existing storage landscape before a cloud migration to minimize risks and realistically plan costs.
Cost Assessment: Comparing current on-premises storage costs with various Azure configurations for building a solid business case.
Capacity Planning: Capturing actual storage usage and growth trends as a basis for Azure target sizing.
Benefits
- Available free as part of Azure Migrate
- Data-driven migration recommendations instead of estimates
- Reduced migration risk through thorough analysis
- Transparent cost estimation for various scenarios
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Azure Storage Discovery free?
Yes. Storage Discovery is part of Azure Migrate and can be used at no cost. There are no license or usage fees.
Which storage systems can be analyzed?
Storage Discovery supports analysis of Windows file servers, Linux NFS servers and NetApp systems. Discovery is agentless or uses a lightweight collector.
How accurate are the cost estimates?
Estimates are based on actually captured usage data and current Azure pricing. The longer the analysis period, the more accurate the prediction. Microsoft recommends an analysis duration of at least 30 days for reliable results.
Integration with innFactory
As a Microsoft Solutions Partner, innFactory supports you with Azure Storage Discovery: from setting up analysis tools to interpreting results and deriving a concrete migration strategy.
