How Azure Virtual Network Manager Works?
Centralized within Microsoft Azure is a common tool that aids in the management and configuration of virtual networks (VNets), called Azure Virtual Network Manager (AVNM). It simplifies several network management operations, such as VNet creation, peering networks together, VPN connections and managing network security and monitoring.
Key Functionalities
VNet Creation and Management
- Creating VNets: Simply named specifying the account details (Name, ADdress space and Subnet), which is used to create the VNet in Azure Portal. Users are able to specify subnets in a VNet, with their individual address ranges. It means resource-based logical separation.
Network Peering
- Peering Configuration: A VNET peering enables you to securely connect two vnets within the same region through low-latency Authorized connectivity between of the vnets. This is done in the Azure Portal by choosing the VN to peer with and enabling the options needed for it.
- Peering Setting Configuration: Users can set up settings like permitted forwarded traffic or gateway transit to better customize the peering connection.
VPN Connections
- VPN Gateway: Allows users to have secure connections between Azure VNets and on-premises networks using VPN gateways.
- Configure VPN settings: Gateway type, SKU, IP addresses (local and remote), and routing settings to setup the connection.
- Creating VPN Connections: This can be site-to-site, point-to-site or VNet to VNet based on the need.
Network Security
- Network Security Groups (NSGs): NSGs are used to define rules that allow or deny inbound and out bound traffic to resources within VNets. Defining Security rules and allowing Users to specify Source for IP addresses Port and Protocol allows further increased security
Monitoring & Troubleshooting
- Network manager Performance Monitoring: Delivers real-time monitoring of network performance, traces for traffic analysis, and security logs. All above mentioned services can be used in Azure Portal for proactive troubleshooting the issue and to have better network performance/security.
What is Azure Virtual Network Manager
If you think about it, in the big picture of cloud computing, network management is a critical functionality for proper operation and communication signaling across disparate nodes. Of course, Microsoft Azure offers you quite a bit more than just this and that is what we are going to explore shortly but again, the topic of Azure Virtual Network Manager would always be one of the basic tool for managing virtual networks. In this post, I will go through everything you should know about Azure Virtual Network Manager. Including what it is, the features and benefits, typical use cases and best practices to ensure that you use this tool in a manner that befits your workloads.