Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
Deploy and scale containers on managed Kubernetes.
Innovate, deploy, and operate Kubernetes seamlessly
Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) offers the quickest way to start developing and deploying cloud-native apps in Azure, datacenters, or at the edge with built-in code-to-cloud pipelines and guardrails. Get unified management and governance for on-premises, edge, and multicloud Kubernetes clusters. Interoperate with Azure security, identity, cost management, and migration services.
Automated management and scalability of Kubernetes clusters for enterprise-grade container orchestration.
End-to-end developer productivity with debugging, CI/CD, logging, and automated node maintenance.
Advanced identity and access management to monitor and maintain container security for governance at scale.
Support for Linux, Windows Server, and IoT resources with AKS deployment on the infrastructure of your choice using Azure Arc.
The fastest way to spin up managed Kubernetes clusters
Streamline deployment with prebuilt cluster configurations for Kubernetes with smart defaults. Connect and deploy your applications faster with app images. Prepare apps for production by using Draft for AKS to ready source code and non-containerized apps for deployments to a Kubernetes cluster. Autoscale apps using Kubernetes Event Driven Autoscaler (KEDA). Leverage commercial Kubernetes solutions and services in Azure Marketplace with click-through deployments to the Kubernetes platform and flexible billing models.
Automate integrated end-to-end CI/CD pipelines
Iteratively develop and debug microservice applications with the Kubernetes extensions for Microsoft Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code. Add CI/CD pipelines through GitHub Actions and simplify runtime and portability with Dapr. Quickly set up a test deployment strategy and gain observability into your environment. Detect failures with the Kubernetes resource view, control-plane telemetry, log aggregation, and container health.
Build secure apps on a trusted platform
Enforce regulatory compliance controls using Azure Policy, with built-in guardrails and internet security benchmarks. Get fine-grained identity and access control using Azure Active Directory. Grant privileged access with just-in-time cluster access. Use Microsoft Defender for Containers to improve, monitor, and maintain security.
Get flexible deployment options from the cloud to the edge with Azure Arc
Run an on-premises implementation of AKS on supported customer-managed infrastructures. Deploy containerized Windows and Linux applications in datacenters and at the edge. Create GitOps configurations to keep Kubernetes clusters in sync and automate updates for new and existing deployments. Use Azure Migrate to plan and execute a successful migration to AKS. Set up your cloud environment with help from the Azure Migration and Modernization Program.
Comprehensive security and compliance, built in
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Microsoft invests more than USD1 billion annually on cybersecurity research and development.
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We employ more than 3,500 security experts who are dedicated to data security and privacy.
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Azure has more certifications than any other cloud provider. View the comprehensive list.
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Use AKS and pay only for compute resources
- Pay only for the virtual machines and the associated storage and networking resources consumed.
- Use the free tier for cluster management at no charge while exploring, experimenting, and getting started.
- Upgrade to the standard tier for production, large-scale applications, and mission-critical workloads and benefit from high performance, scalability, and a comprehensive SLA.
Get started with an Azure free account
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After your credit, move to pay as you go to keep building with the same free services. Pay only if you use more than your free monthly amounts.
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Optimize delivery across scenarios
"Using AKS puts us into a position to not only deploy our business logic in Docker containers, including the orchestration, but also… to easily manage the exposure and control."
Thomas Gossler, Lead Architect, Digital Ecosystem Platform, Siemens Healthineers
"With the migrations to AKS and Azure Database for PostgreSQL - Flexible Server, we are fulfilling our plan to save costs and simplify processes for our application teams."
Olof Spångö, DevOps Digital System Owner, Scandinavian Airlines
Training materials and resources
Overview
Documentation
Videos, events, and webinars
Blog and updates
Forums and community
Common uses for Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
Migrate your existing application to the cloud, build a complex application that uses machine learning, or take advantage of the agility offered by a microservices architecture.
Lift and shift to containers with AKS
Easily migrate existing applications to containers and run them in a fully managed Kubernetes service with AKS.
Microservices with AKS
Use AKS to simplify the deployment and management of microservices-based architecture. AKS streamlines horizontal scaling, self-healing, load balancing, and secret management.
Secure DevOps for AKS
Kubernetes and DevOps are better together. Achieve the balance between speed and security, and deliver code faster at scale, by implementing secure DevOps with Kubernetes on Azure.
Bursting from AKS with ACI
Use the AKS virtual node to provision pods inside ACI that start in seconds. This enables AKS to run with just enough capacity for your average workload.
Machine learning model training with AKS
Training models using large datasets is a complex and resource-intensive task. Use familiar tools such as TensorFlow and Kubeflow to simplify training of machine learning models.
Data streaming scenario
Use AKS to easily ingest and process a real-time data stream with millions of data points collected via sensors. Perform fast analysis and computations to develop insights into complex scenarios quickly.
Frequently asked questions about Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
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AKS is available in more than 40 regions worldwide, and new ones are being added regularly.
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Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) offers the quickest way to start developing and deploying cloud-native apps in Azure, datacenters, or at the edge, with built-in code-to-cloud pipelines and guardrails. As a hosted Kubernetes service, Azure handles critical tasks, like health monitoring and maintenance. You only manage and maintain the agent nodes.
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Kubernetes is open-source software for deploying and managing containerized applications at scale. It orchestrates a cluster of Azure virtual machines, schedules containers, automatically manages service discovery, incorporates load balancing, tracks resource allocation, and manages the health of individual resources using automatic restart/replication. AKS is a managed service that automates provisioning, upgrading, on-demand scaling, and more. Visit the Kubernetes website and topic page for details.
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Docker and Kubernetes are complementary. Docker provides an open standard for packaging and distributing containerized applications, while Kubernetes provides for the orchestration and management of distributed, containerized applications created with Docker. In other words, Kubernetes provides the infrastructure needed to deploy and run applications built with Docker.
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AKS can run in on-premises datacenters or edge environments, such as a retail store or branch office. Azure Kubernetes Service is enabled by Azure Arc and can be deployed on Azure Stack HCI and on both Windows Server 2019 and 2022 Datacenter. These flexible deployment options are enabled by Azure Arc and make it quicker to get started hosting Linux and Windows containers in your datacenter or edge locations.