Equinix, Inc. has announced a partnership to bring Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute to 16 global markets inside Equinix International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) data centers. As the first data center provider to deliver this global offering, Equinix will enable customers to directly connect to Azure in Equinix IBX data centers across five continents including: North America, South America, Asia, Europe and Australia. Additionally, customers interested in previewing the solution can now connect to ExpressRoute via the Equinix London data center (LD5).
"Businesses are demanding private and secure connections to the cloud to ensure optimal performance and scalability," said Melanie Posey, research vice president at IDC. "On-site applications such as virtual desktops and customer relationship management (CRM) are migrating to the cloud, alongside born-on-the-cloud Big Data and Internet of Things (IoT) business processes. As a result, companies are looking for cloud connectivity alternatives which offer more consistent performance than the public Internet can provide. Businesses require low-latency and highly reliable connectivity for distributed applications that are increasingly being delivered via the hybrid cloud model. A dedicated private network also returns control to the internal teams responsible for the applications. With Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute, Equinix and Microsoft are enabling high-performance hybrid cloud on a global basis."
Bypassing the Internet with Private Access
ExpressRoute is designed to help customers bridge public cloud and on-premise IT to cost effectively and securely extend enterprise networks while improving performance, reliability and scalability.
ExpressRoute provides private, high throughput, more reliable and lower-latency connections between customer data centers and Microsoft Azure. As a result, Equinix is enabling enterprise customers to seamlessly deploy hybrid cloud environments that extend their networks and enhance on-premises investments. Because ExpressRoute connections do not go over the public Internet, they also offer higher security than typical connections, with access to a multitude of network service providers that are part of Equinix's business ecosystems.
Microsoft's physical infrastructure for Azure ExpressRoute resides in Equinix data centers and is available via an Equinix switching fabric that provides secure connectivity and real-time provisioning. By connecting to ExpressRoute across Platform Equinix™, companies are able to bridge their cloud and data center strategies and benefit from full integration between cloud services and internal applications. Azure is commonly leveraged for key workloads that include Big Data, storage, backup and recovery, hybrid applications, productivity applications and media.
"Enterprises are drawn to hybrid cloud to benefit from cloud computing efficiencies, while maximizing their existing infrastructure. With 57% of Fortune 500 companies already using Microsoft Azure combined with Equinix's global data center footprint, we look forward to working together to help customers bridge their cloud and on-premises technology to build hybrid environments with enterprise-grade control and reliability," said Steven Martin, general manager, Microsoft Azure at Microsoft.
Equinix Delivers ExpressRoute Globally
Microsoft is using Equinix data centers to benefit from access to over 975 networks, as well as the ability to scale across Equinix's global platform which includes more than 450 cloud and 600 IT service providers. The partnership will provide Microsoft the ability to interconnect with Equinix's 4,500 customers around the globe.
ExpressRoute is currently available as a "public preview" offering in Equinix IBX data centers in Silicon Valley, Washington, D.C. and now London, and will become generally available in those markets later this spring. The service will be rolled out in multiple metro areas in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and South America throughout 2014.
Equinix data centers are an interconnection point for companies to gain direct and secure access to public and private cloud services. Once connected within an Equinix global data center, these businesses have the broadest selection of high-performance cloud services to create the architecture that best fits their objectives. Equinix offers direct access to a robust and dynamic cloud ecosystem for the rapid integration of services, technologies, and customer opportunities.
