AHEAD helps us launch the Strategic Azure Storage Services Partner Program
AHEAD becomes the first Azure Storage Strategic Channel Partner by demonstrating their expertise in helping customers select the ideal Azure Storage, or Azure Storage ISV, Service to offer the ideal price / performance solution for their application and helping customers to migrate to Azure quickly and safely.
Transforming Data migration using Azure Copilot
Introduction Data migration is critical, yet it is one of the most complex tasks in any cloud adoption journey. Whether you’re moving workloads from on-premises environments, consolidating hybrid deployments, or transitioning from other cloud providers, the migration process involves multiple tools, intricate planning, and risk management. What’s New in Azure Copilot With the new “Storage Migration Solutions Advisor” capability in Azure Copilot, Microsoft is transforming this experience into a conversational, AI-driven workflow that accelerates decision-making and reduces operational friction. Why This Matters Traditionally, customers faced challenges such as: Weeks of advisory time spent choosing the right migration tool amongst the many (Azure Storage Mover, AzCopy, Data Box, File Sync etc., and various Partner solutions). High support overhead due to missteps during migration if a sub-optimal tool or service is used. The Storage Migration Solutions Advisor feature introduces: Conversational Guidance: Share your migration needs with Copilot, like talking with an Azure advisor. Scenario-Based Recommendations: Tailored suggestions based on transfer data size, protocol, and bandwidth. Expanded Coverage: Supports on-premises to Azure, cloud-to-cloud (AWS/GCP to Azure), and hybrid scenarios. Native and Partner solutions: Copilot can recommend Microsoft-native (1P) solutions and third-party (3P) tools for specialized scenarios —ensuring flexibility for enterprise needs. User Workflow: Step-by-Step Initiate Migration: Start with a prompt like “How can I migrate my data into Azure?” or “What’s the best tool for moving 1 PB from AWS S3 to Azure Blob?” Provide Details: Copilot will guide you by asking for details about your requirement, such as source type (e.g., NAS, SAN, AWS S3, GCS), protocol (e.g., NFS, SMB, S3 API), target (e.g., Azure Blob, Files, Elastic SAN), data size, and bandwidth. Azure and Partner Solutions: Based on your requirements, Copilot recommends the best-fit Azure solution. If a partner solution is better suited to your requirement, Copilot will also select and recommend the appropriate solution with links to its documentation and/or its Azure marketplace page. Examples Copilot generates recommendations for migrating an on-premises file share to Azure Files. Figure 1 Prompt from user invokes Copilot Migration recommendation workflow Figure 2 Copilot understanding protocols that customer environment has access to Figure 3 Copilot asking user's target Storage type Figure 4 Copilot gathering inputs on data size, network bandwidth availability and transfer direction Figure 5 Copilot recommendation for user scenario Copilot recommends Partner solutions for specialized migration scenarios Figure 1 Prompt from user invokes Copilot Migration recommendation workflow Figure 2 Copilot understanding protocols that customer environment has access to Figure 3 Copilot asking user's target Storage type Figure 4 Copilot gathering inputs on data size, network bandwidth availability and transfer direction Figure 5 Copilot recommendation for user scenario Pro Tips Run a small proof-of-concept migration to estimate throughput and timing, especially for large datasets or small file sizes. Combine Copilot’s recommendations with Azure Storage Discovery for visibility into your storage estate after migration. Getting Started Navigate to Azure Portal → Copilot. Try prompts like: o “Help me migrate an NFS share to Azure Files.” o “What’s the best tool for moving 1 PB from AWS S3 to Azure Blob?” Explore Manage and migrate storage accounts using Azure Copilot | Microsoft Learn for detailed guidance. Ready to simplify your migration journey? Start using Azure Copilot’s Storage Migration Solutions Advisor today and experience AI-driven efficiency for your cloud transformation.
Announcing General Availability of Next generation Azure Data Box Devices
Today, we’re excited to announce the General Availability of Azure Data Box 120 and Azure Data Box 525, our next-generation compact, NVMe-based Data Box devices. These devices are currently available for customers to order in the US, US Gov, Canada, EU and the UK Azure regions, with broader availability coming soon. Since the preview announcement at Ignite '24, we have successfully ingested petabytes of data, encompassing multiple orders serving customers across various industry verticals. Customers have expressed delight over the reliability and efficiency of the new devices with up to 10x improvement in data transfer rates, highlighting them as a valuable and essential asset for large-scale data migration projects. These new device offerings reflect insights gained from working with our customers over the years and understanding their evolving data transfer needs. They incorporate several improvements to accelerate offline data transfers to Azure, including: Fast copy - Built with NVMe drives for high-speed transfers and improved reliability and support for faster network connections Ease of use - larger capacity offering (525 TB) in a compact form-factor for easy handling Resilient - Ruggedized devices built to withstand rough conditions during transport Secure - Enhanced physical, hardware and software security features Broader availability – Presence planned in more Azure regions, meeting local compliance standards and regulations What’s new? Improved Speed & Efficiency NVMe-based devices offer faster data transfer rates, providing a 10x improvement in data transfer speeds to the device as compared to previous generation devices. With a dataset comprised of mostly large (TB-sized) files, on average half a petabyte can be copied to the device in under two days. High-speed transfers to Azure with data upload up to 5x faster for medium to large files, reducing the lead time for your data to become accessible in the Azure cloud. Improved networking with support for up to 100 GbE connections, as compared to 10 GbE on the older generation of devices. Two options with usable capacity of 120 TB and 525 TB in a compact form factor meeting OSHA requirements. Devices ship the next day air in most regions. Learn more about the performance improvements on Data Box 120 and Data Box 525. Enhanced Security The new devices come with several new physical, hardware and software security enhancements. This is in addition to the built in Azure security baseline for Data Box and Data Box service security measures currently supported by the service. Secure boot functionality with hardware root of trust and Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0. Custom tamper-proof screws and built-in intrusion detection system to detect unauthorized device access. AES 256-bit BitLocker software encryption for data at rest is currently available. Hardware encryption via the RAID controller, which will be enabled by default on these devices, is coming soon. Furthermore, once available, customers can enable double encryption through both software and hardware encryption to meet their sensitive data transfer requirements. These ISTA 6A compliant devices are built to withstand rough conditions during shipment while keeping both the device and your data safe and intact. Learn more about the enhanced security features on Data Box 120 and Data Box 525. Broader Azure region coverage A recurring request from our customers has been wider regional availability of higher-capacity devices to accelerate large migrations. We’re happy to share that Azure Data Box 525 will be available across US, US Gov, EU, UK and Canada with broader presence in EMEA and APAC regions coming soon. This marks a significant improvement in the availability of a large-capacity device as compared to the current Data Box Heavy which is available only in the US and Europe. What our customers have to say For the last several months, we’ve been working directly with our customers of all industries and sizes to leverage the next generation devices for their data migration needs. Customers love the larger capacity with form-factor familiarity, seamless set up and faster copy. “We utilized Azure Data Box for a bulk migration of Unix archive data. The data, originating from IBM Spectrum Protect, underwent pre-processing before being transferred to Azure blobs via the NFS v4 protocol. This offline migration solution enabled us to efficiently manage our large-scale data transfer needs, ensuring a seamless transition to the Azure cloud. Azure Data Box proved to be an indispensable tool in handling our specialized migration scenario, offering a reliable and efficient method for data transfer.” – ST Microelectronics Backup & Storage team “This new offering brings significant advantages, particularly by simplifying our internal processes. With deployments ranging from hundreds of terabytes to even petabytes, we previously relied on multiple regular Data Box devices—or occasionally Data Box Heavy devices—which required extensive operational effort. The new solution offers sizes better aligned with our needs, allowing us to achieve optimal results with fewer logistical steps. Additionally, the latest generation is faster and provides more connectivity options at data centre premises, enhancing both efficiency and flexibility for large-scale data transfers.” - Lukasz Konarzewski, Senior Data Architect, Commvault “We have had a positive experience overall with the new Data Box devices to move our data to Azure Blob storage. The devices offer easy plug and play installation, detailed documentation especially for the security features and good data copy performance. We would definitely consider using it again for future large data migration projects.” – Bas Boeijink, Cloud Engineer, Eurofiber Cloud Infra Upcoming changes to older SKUs availability Note that in regions where the next-gen devices are available, new orders for Data Box 80 TB and Data Box Heavy devices cannot be placed post May 31, 2025. We will however continue to process and support all existing orders. Order your device today! The devices are currently available for customers to order in the US, Canada, EU, UK, and US Gov Azure regions. We will continue to expand to more regions in the upcoming months. Azure Data Box provides customers with one of the most cost-effective solutions for data migration, offering competitive pricing with the lowest cost per TB among offline data transfer solutions. You can learn more about the pricing across various regions by visiting our pricing page. You can use the Azure portal to select the requisite SKU suitable for your migration needs and place the order. Learn more about the all-new Data Box devices here. We are committed to continuing to deliver innovative solutions to lower the barrier for bringing data to Azure. Your feedback is important to us. Tell us what you think about the new Azure Data Box devices by writing to us at DataBoxPM@microsoft.com – we can’t wait to hear from you.Announcing the Next generation Azure Data Box Devices
Microsoft Azure Data Box offline data transfer solution allows you to send petabytes of data into Azure Storage in a quick, inexpensive, and reliable manner. The secure data transfer is accelerated by hardware transfer devices that enable offline data ingestion to Azure. Our customers use the Data Box family to move petabytes-scale data into Azure for backup, archival, data analytics, media and entertainment, training, and different workload migrations etc. We continue to get requests about moving truly massive amounts of data in a secure, simple and quick manner. We’ve heard you and to address your needs, we’ve designed a new, enhanced product to meet your data transfer needs. About the latest innovation in Azure Data Box Family Today, we’re excited to announce the preview of Azure Data Box 120 and Azure Data Box 525, our next-generation compact, NVMe-based Data Box devices. The new offerings reflect insights gained from working with our customers over the years and understanding their evolving data transfer needs. These new devices incorporate several improvements to accelerate offline data transfers to Azure, including: Fast copy - Built with NVMe drives for high-speed transfers and improved reliability and support for faster network connections Easy to use - larger capacity offering (525 TB) in a compact form-factor for easy handling Resilient - Ruggedized devices built to withstand rough conditions during transport Secure - Enhanced physical, hardware and software security features Broader availability – Presence in more Azure regions, meeting local compliance standards and regulations What’s new? Improved Speed & Efficiency NVMe devices offer faster data transfer rates, with copy speeds up to 7 GBps via SMB Direct on RDMA (100-GbE) for medium to large files, a 10x improvement in data transfer speeds as compared to previous generation devices. High-speed transfers to Azure with data upload up to 5x faster for medium to large files, reducing the lead time for your data to become accessible in the Azure cloud. Improved networking with support for up to 100 GbE connections, as compared to 10 GbE on the older generation of devices. Two options with usable capacity of 120 TB and 525 TB in a compact form factor meeting OSHA requirements. Devices ship the next day air in most regions. Learn more about the performance improvements on Data Box 120 and Data Box 525. Enhanced Security The next generation devices come with several new physical, hardware and software security enhancements. This is in addition to the built in Azure security baseline for Data Box and Data Box service security measures currently supported by the service. Secure boot functionality with hardware root of trust and Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0. Custom tamper-proof screws and built-in intrusion detection system to detect unauthorized device access. AES 256-bit BitLocker software encryption for data at rest is currently available. Hardware encryption via the RAID controller, which will be enabled by default on these devices, is coming soon. Furthermore, once available, customers can enable double encryption through both software and hardware encryption to meet their sensitive data transfer requirements. These ISTA 6A compliant devices are built to withstand rough conditions during shipment while keeping both the device and your data safe and intact. Learn more about the enhanced security features on Data Box 120 and Data Box 525. Broader Azure region coverage Recurring request from our customers has been for wider availability of our higher-capacity device to ease large migrations. We’re happy to share Data Box 525 will be available across most Azure regions where the Data Box service is currently live. This marks a significant improvement in availability of a large-capacity device as compared to the current Data Box Heavy. What our customers have to say For the last several months, we’ve been working directly with our customers of all industries and sizes to leverage the next generation devices for their data migration needs. Customers love the larger capacity with form-factor familiarity, seamless set up and faster copy. “This new offering brings significant advantages, particularly by simplifying our internal processes. With deployments ranging from hundreds of terabytes to even petabytes, we previously relied on multiple regular Data Box devices—or occasionally Data Box Heavy devices—which required extensive operational effort. The new solution offers sizes better aligned with our needs, allowing us to achieve optimal results with fewer logistical steps. Additionally, the latest generation is faster and provides more connectivity options at data centre premises, enhancing both efficiency and flexibility for large-scale data transfers.” - Lukasz Konarzewski, Senior Data Architect, Commvault “We have been using the devices to move 1PB of archival media data to Azure blob storage using the Data Box transfer devices. The next generation devices provided a very smooth setup and copy experience, and we were able to transfer data in larger chunks and much faster than before. Overall, this has helped shorten our migration lead times and land the data in the cloud quickly and seamlessly.” - Daniel Perry, Kohler “We have had a positive experience overall with the new Data Box devices to move our data to Azure Blob storage. The devices offer easy plug and play installation, detailed documentation especially for the security features and good data copy performance. We would definitely consider using it again for future large data migration projects.” – Bas Boeijink, Cloud Engineer, Eurofiber Cloud Infra Sign up for the Preview The Preview is available in the US, Canada, EU, UK, and US Gov Azure regions, and we will continue to expand to more regions in the coming months. If you are interested in the preview, we want to hear from you. Customers can sign up here ISV partners can sign up here You can learn more about the all-new Data Box devices here. We are committed to continuing to deliver innovative solutions to lower the barrier for bringing data to Azure. Your feedback is important to us. Tell us what you think about the new Azure Data Box preview by writing to us at DataBoxPM@microsoft.com – we can’t wait to hear from you. Stop by and see us! Now that you’ve heard about the latest innovation in the product family, do come by and see the new devices at the Ignite session What’s new in Azure Storage: Supercharge your data centric workloads, on 21st November starting 11:00 AM CST. You can also drop by the Infra Hub to learn more from our product experts and sign up to try the new devices for your next migration!
