Demystifying Azure VMware Solution: From Implementation to Workload Migration

Introduction

Implementing Azure VMware Solution (AVS) is only the beginning of your hybrid cloud journey. To ensure the long-term success of your environment, ongoing management, proactive monitoring, and continuous optimization are critical. High availability, performance, and cost efficiency aren’t automatic—they require consistent effort, guided by tools and insights built into both Azure and VMware ecosystems.

As workloads evolve and licensing models shift, IT administrators must adapt their operational practices to ensure SLAs are met and cloud investments deliver value. In this post, we’ll explore key strategies and tools to manage, monitor, and optimize an AVS environment—equipping you with actionable insights to maintain operational excellence.

Monitoring Strategies for AVS Environments

Effective monitoring is essential for identifying performance bottlenecks, managing capacity, and maintaining compliance. AVS administrators have access to both Azure-native tools and VMware-native solutions to achieve comprehensive visibility.

Azure Monitor and Azure Log Analytics

Azure Monitor collects telemetry data from AVS resources and integrates with Log Analytics to provide rich dashboards and query capabilities.
Enable diagnostic settings on AVS Private Clouds to forward logs and metrics to Log Analytics workspaces.
Use workbooks to create visual dashboards for vSAN health, cluster CPU/memory usage, and NSX networking insights.

Example: Monitor Cluster CPU Usage

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resource avsMonitor 'Microsoft.Insights/diagnosticSettings@2021-05-01-preview' = {
  name: 'AVS-Diagnostics'
  scope: avsPrivateCloud
  properties: {
    workspaceId: logAnalyticsWorkspace.id
    logs: [
      {
        category: 'vCenter'
        enabled: true
      }
    ]
    metrics: [
      {
        category: 'AllMetrics'
        enabled: true
      }
    ]
  }
}

VMware vRealize Operations (vROps) and vRealize Log Insight

For admins familiar with the VMware stack, vRealize Operations Cloud offers in-depth analytics and predictive capacity planning.
Log Insight Cloud aggregates logs from vCenter, ESXi, and NSX-T for troubleshooting and auditing.

Best Practice: Leverage vROps Cloud for AVS-specific dashboards while integrating with Azure Monitor for broader hybrid visibility.

Scaling and Performance Optimization

Workload demands fluctuate, and your AVS environment must scale accordingly. Right-sizing clusters and tuning workloads ensures you meet performance requirements without over-provisioning.

Scaling Strategies

Vertical scaling: Upgrade node types (e.g., from AV36 to AV52) to gain more CPU/RAM per host.
Horizontal scaling: Add additional hosts to clusters for greater workload capacity and availability.
Use Azure policies and automation via Bicep or ARM templates to manage scaling events systematically.

Example: Automate Host Addition with Bicep

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resource avsPrivateCloud 'Microsoft.AVS/privateClouds@2021-12-01' existing = {
  name: 'myAvsPrivateCloud'
}

resource cluster 'Microsoft.AVS/privateClouds/clusters@2021-12-01' = {
  name: 'cluster-1'
  parent: avsPrivateCloud
  properties: {
    clusterSize: 6 // scaled from 3 to 6
  }
}

Performance Tuning

Enable DRS (Distributed Resource Scheduler) to balance workloads across hosts.
Regularly review vSAN health and network throughput to identify bottlenecks.
Monitor VM latency and perform storage reclamation for overused disks.

Tip: Use vCenter’s Performance Charts to visualize trends in memory ballooning, CPU ready time, and IOPS per datastore.

Cost Management Techniques

Azure VMware Solution is a premium service—so cost governance is vital.

Best Practices for Cost Optimization

Right-size workloads: Avoid over-provisioned VMs and idle capacity.
Utilize Azure Reservations for 1- or 3-year commitments to save up to 50%.
Implement tagging policies to track usage by department or project.

Tools to Use:

Azure Cost Management + Billing: Analyze spend, forecast trends, and enforce budgets.
Azure Advisor: Receive recommendations for underutilized resources or scaling suggestions.
vROps Cost Analysis: Detailed VMware-based insights into VM cost distribution.

Common Challenges and Troubleshooting Tips

Challenge: Unexpected Host Failures

Solution: Enable vSphere HA, configure proper DRS affinity rules, and ensure NSX-T overlay health is green. Review ESXi logs using Log Insight for root cause analysis.

Challenge: Performance Degradation

Solution: Check for noisy neighbors, VM sprawl, and vSAN contention. Use Azure Monitor alerts for thresholds on CPU/Memory saturation.

Challenge: License Compliance and Drift

Solution: Maintain up-to-date vSphere and NSX license usage reports. Review AVS SKU constraints and monitor for non-compliant configurations via Azure Policy.

Conclusion

Managing an Azure VMware Solution environment requires a proactive, holistic approach. By leveraging Azure-native tools like Azure Monitor and Cost Management in tandem with VMware-native capabilities like vROps and Log Insight, administrators can ensure optimal performance, availability, and cost-efficiency.

Key takeaways:

Automate routine tasks with Bicep templates or ARM.
Implement scaling strategies aligned with workload patterns.
Monitor and tune performance continuously using telemetry from both platforms.
Use cost analysis tools to drive efficient cloud consumption.

Ongoing success with AVS hinges on continuous improvement. As your workloads evolve, so must your operational strategies.