As a nonprofit organization, your data is your digital backbone—whether it’s donor records, program files, financial documents, or training videos. Losing access to that data, even for a short time, can disrupt your mission. That’s where Azure Storage Redundancy comes in. And the best part? If your nonprofit is eligible for Microsoft’s grant program, you likely have $2,000 in Azure credits to spend each year. These credits can help you implement redundancy strategies that protect your data without affecting your operating budget.
At the heart of this post is Kairos IMS, an innovative Impact Management System designed to empower human-serving nonprofits and social impact organizations. Co-developed by the Urban League of Broward County and our trusted technology partner, Impactful, Kairos IMS reduces administrative burdens, enhances holistic care, and enables organizations to leverage data for increased agility and seamless service delivery. In this blog series, we’ll take a closer look at the powerful technologies that fuel Kairos IMS, from Azure services to security frameworks, offering insight into how modern infrastructure supports mission-driven impact. Click here to learn more.
What Is Azure Storage Redundancy?
Azure storage redundancy refers to how your data is copied and stored across multiple physical locations to keep it safe and accessible—even if hardware fails or a data center goes offline.
Think of it as creating backup copies in real-time, so if one server goes down, another one picks up right where it left off.
Azure offers several redundancy options, each with a different level of protection and cost:
- Locally Redundant Storage (LRS): Data is replicated three times within a single data center. Great for budget-conscious orgs. Cheapest option.
- Zone-Redundant Storage (ZRS): Data is stored across three different availability zones in the same region. Offers higher resilience. Mid-tier pricing.
- Geo-Redundant Storage (GRS): Data is copied to a secondary region hundreds of miles away. Ideal for disaster recovery. Higher cost.
- Read-Access Geo-Redundant Storage (RA-GRS): Like GRS, but you can read from the secondary region even if the primary one is down.
Why Redundancy Matters for Nonprofits
Nonprofits are often targets of cyberattacks and also operate in environments where internet outages or power failures can occur. Redundancy ensures that:
- You don’t lose important grant or donor data.
- Services like SharePoint or hosted databases stay online.
- You can continue serving your community even in unexpected situations.
Using Your $2,000 in Azure Credits Wisely
Microsoft offers approved nonprofits $2,000 in Azure credits each year through its Microsoft for Nonprofits program.
Here’s how you can use those credits for storage redundancy:
- Start small with LRS or ZRS for frequently used files or backups.
- Use GRS for mission-critical data like financial or compliance documents.
- Back up virtual machines or databases with geo-redundancy for restore-anywhere capabilities.
- Pair with Azure Backup or Site Recovery for additional resilience.
Tip: Monitor your credit usage in the Azure Cost Management and Billing dashboard so you don’t overspend.
Getting Started
If your nonprofit already has an Azure subscription through Microsoft's grant, you're ready to go! Here’s what to do next:
- Log into the Azure portal with admin credentials.
- Navigate to Storage Accounts > + Create.
- Choose your region and desired redundancy level.
- Configure Advanced, Networking, Data protection, Encryption, and Tag settings and then select Review + create to go over your configuration. Select Create to make your storage account.
- Start uploading files or connecting services like Microsoft 365 or backup tools.
If you’re unsure which redundancy level is right for your nonprofit, a good starting point is to use LRS for general storage and reserve GRS for the most critical data.
Storage redundancy isn’t just a technical term—it’s peace of mind. With Azure and your nonprofit credits, you can build a more resilient and secure digital foundation without spending out of pocket.
Not sure how to get started? Microsoft has nonprofit partners and tech support that can help you make the most of your credits.
Your mission is too important to risk downtime—let’s make sure your data is always safe and accessible.
