Forward Azure VMware Solution logs anywhere using Azure Logic Apps

Overview 

As enterprises scale their infrastructure in Microsoft Azure using Azure VMware Solution, gaining real-time visibility into the operational health of their private cloud environment becomes increasingly critical. Whether troubleshooting deployment issues, monitoring security events, or performing compliance audits, centralized logging is a must-have. 

Azure VMware Solution offers flexible options for exporting syslogs from vCenter Server, ESXi Hosts, and NSX components. While many customers already use Log Analytics or third-party log platforms for visibility, some have unique operational or compliance requirements that necessitate forwarding logs to specific destinations outside the Microsoft ecosystem.  With the advent of VMware Cloud Foundation on Azure VMware Solution, customers can now have more choices and can leverage tools like VCF Operations for Logs to monitor, analyze, and troubleshoot their logs. 

In this post, we’ll show you how to use Azure Logic Apps, Microsoft’s low-code, serverless integration platform, to forward Azure VMware Solution private cloud logs to any log management tool of your choosing. With a newly released workflow template tailored for Azure VMware Solution, you can set this up in minutes—no custom code required. 

Figure 1. Architectural flow of syslog data from an Azure VMware Solution private cloud to a log management server via Azure Logic Apps

Background 

The Azure VMware Solution and Azure Logic Apps product teams have partnered to deliver a built-in integration that allows Azure VMware Solution customers to forward logs to any syslog-compatible endpoint—whether in Azure, on-premises, or another cloud. This new Logic Apps template is purpose-built for Azure VMware Solution and dramatically simplifies log forwarding. 

 Figure 2. Azure VMware Solution template in Azure Logic Apps template catalog

Historically, forwarding logs from Azure VMware Solution required customers to develop custom code or deploy complex workarounds, often involving multiple services and significant manual configuration. These methods not only introduced operational overhead but also made it difficult for platform teams to standardize logging across environments. With this new integration, customers who previously spent days in frustration trying to get their private cloud logs have now done so in under an hour, a massive improvement in both speed and simplicity. 

This new capability is particularly timely given recent industry changes. Following VMware’s announcement to discontinue the SaaS versions of Aria Operations, including Aria Operations for Logs, many customers have begun exploring alternative solutions for their log management needs. For those looking to use the on-premises alternative of Aria Operations for Logs, the ability to send Azure VMware Solution logs directly from Azure to their self-managed VCF Operations for Logs servers is now possible—with zero custom code. Using Azure Logic Apps, customers can seamlessly bridge their hybrid cloud monitoring environments and avoid gaps in visibility or compliance. 

This solution empowers Azure VMware Solution customers with more flexibility, shorter time-to-value, and a consistent logging strategy across both legacy and modernized environments. 

Why Azure Logic Apps? 

Azure Logic Apps is a powerful, low-code integration platform that enables IT administrators and platform teams to automate workflows and connect services—without having to manage any infrastructure. With over 1,400 connectors to Azure services, popular SaaS applications, and on-premises APIs, and more, Logic Apps provides a flexible and reliable foundation for routing log data across infrastructure environments. 

For Azure VMware Solution users, this means you can now easily forward logs from your Azure VMware Solution private cloud to any log management solution—on-premises or in the cloud—without writing custom code. Logic Apps acts as a dynamic “translator” or “dispatcher” in your architecture, listening for logs streamed to Event Hubs and securely forwarding them to your target syslog endpoint with the required formatting, headers, and authentication.  

This new capability not only accelerates time-to-value for log forwarding but also gives Azure VMware Solution customers the freedom to integrate with the logging platform of their choice—improving visibility, operational efficiency, and compliance in hybrid cloud environments. Future iterations of this integration will include support with Azure Blob Storage as well, another common method Azure VMware Solution customers use to retain and forward their logs. 

How to get started 

In addition to this blog, check out the links below to learn more about this integration, understand how Azure Logic Apps work, and use the pricing calculator to cost and size Azure Logic Apps. With large enterprise solutions for strategic and major customers, an Azure VMware Solution Architect from Azure, Broadcom, or a Broadcom Partner should be engaged to ensure the solution is correctly sized to deliver business value with the minimum of risk. 

If you are interested in using Logic Apps with Azure VMware Solution, please use the resources to learn more about the service: 

• Detailed instructions on sending logs via Logic Apps: Send VMware syslogs to log management server using Azure Logic Apps - Azure VMware Solution | Microsoft Learn 

• An overview of Logic Apps: Overview - Azure Logic Apps | Microsoft Learn 

• Pricing calculator: Pricing - Logic Apps | Microsoft Azure 

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Azure VMware Solution is a VMware validated first party Azure service from Microsoft that provides private clouds containing VMware vSphere clusters built from dedicated bare-metal Azure infrastructure. It enables customers to leverage their existing investments in VMware skills and tools, allowing them to focus on developing and running their VMware-based workloads on Azure. 

Author Bio 

Varun Hariharan is a Senior Product Manager on the Azure VMware Solution team at Microsoft, where he is focusing on observability and workload strategies for customers. His background is in Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), log management, enterprise software, and DevOps. 

Kent Weare is a Principal PM Manager on the Azure Logic Apps team at Microsoft, where he is focusing on providing enterprise integration and automation capabilities for customers.