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Multiple Azure Subscription Benefits

In Azure, a subscription is more than just a billing unit. It's a logical container for resources, acting as a boundary for governance, security, and cost management. When using Azure, it's essential to recognize the value of a multi-subscription strategy, especially for larger environments or organizations. Leveraging multiple subscriptions can offer substantial benefits related to governance, cost optimization, and security, especially when aligned with an Azure Landing Zone.

Benefits of a Multi-Subscription Environment​

1. Cost Optimization​

A multi-subscription approach helps optimize costs by segmenting resources into specific environments and applying targeted cost management strategies:

  • Separate budgets for production, development, and testing environments to avoid unexpected costs.
  • Use Dev/Test subscriptions for non-production resources, which can take advantage of discounted pricing or free credits.
  • Avoid excessive spending by limiting the use of expensive SKUs in non-production environments.

2. Improved Governance​

Multiple subscriptions enhance governance by allowing more granular control over policies and access:

  • Azure policies can be enforced at the subscription level, ensuring each subscription adheres to specific rules.
    • Production subscriptions may restrict resource provisioning to certain regions (e.g., only allow resources in Australia).
    • Dev/Test subscriptions can allow for greater flexibility, enabling the use of experimental resources in multiple regions without impacting production.
  • By separating production and non-production subscriptions, you prevent non-critical resources from affecting your secure score, ensuring that your production environment remains compliant with organizational standards.

3. Enhanced Security​

Security can be more effectively managed by isolating critical production resources from less-sensitive workloads:

  • Production subscriptions can be highly locked down, enforcing stricter security controls and ensuring that only authorized personnel can access sensitive resources.
  • Non-production subscriptions can be more flexible, allowing for easier experimentation and testing without compromising production security.
  • You can limit access by assigning role-based access control (RBAC) at the subscription level, giving users specific permissions to manage only the resources they need.

4. Simplified Access Management​

When you implement a multi-subscription strategy, access control becomes more straightforward:

  • Different users and service accounts can be given access to specific subscriptions, improving security and minimizing accidental exposure.
  • It's easier to apply role-based access to subscriptions rather than dealing with multiple resource groups, streamlining user management.

Azure Landing Zone Architecture​

A well-structured Azure Landing Zone, which uses a multi-subscription model, can significantly enhance the organization of resources. Below is an example of the recommended subscription structure for an Azure Landing Zone:

Key Subscriptions:​

  • Connectivity Subscription: Host resources like Azure Firewall, VPNs, and App Gateways to manage ingress and egress traffic.
  • Management Subscription: Contains tools for central management such as logging, dashboards, cost management, and secrets.
  • Identity Subscription: Manages services related to identity, such as Entra ID Domain Services or domain controllers.
  • Landing Zone Subscriptions: Dedicated subscriptions for environments like Production or Quality Assurance.
  • Sandbox Subscription: Used for experimentation, testing, or development (e.g., Development), where flexibility is needed to test new features or configurations.

The image below illustrates a typical Azure Landing Zone setup, showcasing how each subscription serves a specific purpose and how they interact to maintain a robust, organized environment.

Azure Landing Zone Subscriptions

Best Practices for Multiple Subscriptions​

Adopting a multi-subscription approach aligns well with best practices, especially within the context of an Azure Landing Zone. This strategy not only enhances security, governance, and cost optimization, but also supports a structured and scalable environment that can grow with your organization's needs. Implementing policies, limiting resource access, and isolating production from non-production workloads are key benefits of utilizing multiple subscriptions effectively.

By investing time in setting up and managing multiple subscriptions, you're ensuring a more flexible, secure, and cost-effective Azure environment that is better prepared to scale and meet future demands.