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Azure
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Azure Local

Operate infrastructure across distributed locations with unified management enabled by Azure Arc.
Bring the power of Azure directly to your infrastructure. Run virtual machines (VMs), containers, and select Azure services with a distributed infrastructure solution.
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Overview

Extend Azure to your on-premises infrastructure

  • Deploy modern container apps and traditional virtualized apps side-by-side on the same hardware.
  • Identify the right solution to match your scenario from a validated list of hardware partners.
  • Set up and manage your on-premises and cloud infrastructure with a more consistent Azure experience.  
  • Safeguard workloads with advanced security-by-default in all validated hardware solutions.  
Features

Discover what you can do with Azure Local

Cloud-based operations

Use Azure tools and APIs for more consistent infrastructure provisioning and lifecycle operations across distributed locations.
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 Central management and visibility

Monitor, update, and secure Azure Local infrastructure directly from the Azure portal using familiar Azure services.
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Support for diverse workloads

Run containers, VMs, and select Azure services—including Azure Virtual Desktop and Azure IoT Operations—side by side.
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Multiple-node clustering

Increase resilience and uptime with high availability and robust software-defined storage.
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Cloud-based VM management

Expand cloud practices with VM extensions, Azure Marketplace images, templates, and role-based access control (RBAC).
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Integrated Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) experience

Simplify Kubernetes management and enhance developer productivity with built-in AKS.
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Cost-effective migration

Reduce costs by moving workloads from other on-premises virtualization platforms.
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Disconnected operations for Azure Local (preview)

Support data residency regulations with a locally hosted, fully disconnected control plane.
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Secure collaboration and control with Sovereign Private Cloud

Azure Local with Microsoft 365 Local delivers Microsoft cloud services in customer locations, enabling organizations to meet strict data residency and sovereignty requirements.
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Security

Embedded security and compliance

34,000
Full-time equivalent engineers dedicated to security initiatives at Microsoft.
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15,000 
Partners with specialized security expertise.
 
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>100
Compliance certifications, including over 50 specific to global regions and countries.
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Learn more about security on Azure
CUSTOMER STORIES

Trusted by companies of all sizes

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  1. Fortune Brands
  2. Solv logo
Fortune Brands
Fortune Brands Innovations unifies their brands under one portal with Microsoft Power Pages
Fortune Brands Innovations created a more streamlined customer experience using Microsoft Power Pages and Dynamics 365 Customer Experience.
Products
Solv logo
Solv eliminates 98% of clerical errors with Dynamics 365 Business Central
Solv improved report accuracy and efficiency by switching to Dynamics 365 Business Central, saving 40 man-hours monthly and enhancing financial controls.
Products
Syensqo.AI leverages Azure OpenAI Service to develop SyGPT chatbot in record time
Syensqo.AI, a division of the Belgian science and technology leader Syensqo, has developed SyGPT, an advanced AI chatbot using Azure OpenAI Service.
Products
Back to SUCCESS STORIES section
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Pricing

Azure Local pricing

Purchase an Azure subscription and activate only the cores you need.
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Find hardware solutions from your preferred vendor

Browse the catalog
Resources

Get started with Azure Local

  1.
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News

NVIDIA AI development is now supported on Azure Local

Together, Microsoft and NVIDIA are accelerating some of the most groundbreaking innovations in AI.
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A Gartner Magic Quadrant chart for Distributed Hybrid Infrastructure.
Analyst report

A Leader in Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Distributed Hybrid Infrastructure 1

This evaluation focuses on Microsoft distributed infrastructure with Azure Local which includes Azure Stack HCI and Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) enabled by Azure Arc.
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Learn

Operate infrastructure across distributed locations

Learn about all end-to-end scenarios enabled by Azure Local.
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Documentation

Step-by-step guidance
 

Explore in-depth technical documentation.
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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

  • Azure Local is full-stack infrastructure software that runs directly on bare metal hardware validated by OEM partners. With it, you can run containers, virtual machines, and some Azure services at distributed locations with central management from the cloud, enabled by Azure Arc. Microsoft provides and supports the complete software stack, so you don’t need separate tools or vendors for the underlying virtualization or storage.
  • Azure Arc is a bridge that extends Azure to existing environments and other clouds. Azure Local is an infrastructure solution that includes the capabilities of Azure Arc built-in and sets up automatically. Use Azure Local when you need new or refreshed infrastructure at distributed locations. Use Azure Arc when your environment already has infrastructure.
  • No, customers own the hardware and have operational control of their Azure Local environment. Day-to-day monitoring, management, support, and other functions are surfaced through Azure tools, but actions are customer-initiated. For example, when a software update is available, a notification appears in the Azure portal prompting you to apply the update. Customers may choose to outsource some or all operations to their solution vendor or another professional services provider.
  • Azure Stack HCI is now part of Azure Local. The same features and functionality continue to be offered in Azure Local. Azure Local provides additional flexibility. It supports smaller and larger deployments, more hardware, disconnected operations, and other capabilities such as new supported Azure services.
  • Review networking requirements and other prerequisites and then browse the solutions catalog to find validated hardware from your preferred vendor. Many preinstalled and ready-to-use solutions come with Azure Local software. If they’re not included, you can download and install Azure Local from the Azure portal. Once installed, Azure Local connects to Azure for day-to-day monitoring, management, support, and other functions. Azure Local is billed automatically to your Azure subscription.
  • Azure Local allows you to take advantage of cloud and on-premises resources working together and natively monitor, secure, and back up to the cloud.

    Customers often choose Azure Local in the following scenarios:   
    • Deploy Azure Virtual Desktop session hosts on your on-premises infrastructure.
    • Run Azure Arc services on-premises to build consistent hybrid and multicloud5 applications with support for VMs, data services, and app services.
    • Data center consolidation and modernization to improve scalability, retire legacy SAN storage, lower costs, and simplify operations with unified tools and single-vendor support.
    • Support branch office and edge workloads with cost-efficient two-node clusters, switchless networking, and centralized management in the Azure portal. 
  • Azure Local is supported for the following regions:

    Azure public

    These public regions support geographic locations worldwide, for clusters deployed anywhere in the world:
     
    • East US
    • West Europe 
    • Australia East
    • Southeast Asia
    • India Central
    • Canada Central 
    • Japan East
    • South Central US
       
    Azure Government (Preview)

    Regions supported in the Azure Government cloud:
     
    • US Gov Virginia

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Next steps

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Pay as you go or try Azure free for up to 30 days.
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Browse the Microsoft business solutions hub to find the products and solutions that can help your organization reach its goals.
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  1. [1]
    Gartner®, Magic Quadrant™ for Distributed Hybrid Infrastructure, Julia Palmer, Jeffrey Hewitt, Dennis Smith, Tony Harvey, Elaine Zhang, 8 September 2025.

    GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally, and MAGIC QUADRANT is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

    Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product, or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.