Cloud Foundry on Azure keeps getting better.

We now support the use of Azure Blob Storage and Managed Disks with Cloud Foundry.

These enhancements come on the heels of the launch of Pivotal Cloud Foundry on Azure and a series of Azure Service Broker releases. We continue to invest in deeper integration of Azure’s enterprise grade services with the open source Cloud Foundry platform.

Here’s how to get started with these new capabilities!

1.Use Azure Blob Storage for the Cloud Foundry Cloud Controller Blobstore

The Cloud Controller blobstore is a critical data store. Buildpacks, droplets, packages, and resource pools are all hosted this way. Operators can now use Azure Blob Storage for this component. Consequently,they will enjoy greater availability and scalability. Previously, an NFS server was required.

By default, the blobstore configuration uses the Fog Ruby gem. The Azure team worked with Fog community updating the Fog Azure RM gem to support this new feature.

Check out the Cloud Foundry documentation for background and configuration instructions. The BOSH deployment template (multi-node) is updated, using Azure Blob storage by default. This is also integrated with the upcoming Pivotal Cloud Foundry 1.10 release.

2. Use Azure Managed Disks

The Azure CPI V21 now supports  the Azure Managed Disk Service in BOSH.

This simplifies VM/disk deployment and management. It also provides superior scalability, security and reliability.

Operators can choose to create new deployments using managed disks. They can also migrate existing deployments to managed disks. Just make a quick edit to the BOSH manifest file and you’re done! Check the guidance for Using Managed Disks for detailed steps.

This enhancement will be baked into the BOSH and Pivotal Cloud Foundry deployment templates soon. Look for those to be published in the coming months.

We’ve seen tremendous interest in Cloud Foundry running atop Azure. As a result, we are making additional investments. Engineers are working to bring more Azure database services to the Cloud Foundry runtime and service broker. And soon, you'll be able to interact with logs and metrics from your Cloud Foundry apps using Azure OMS. Let us know if you have any suggestions by entering your ideas here.