Using App Service Environment v3 in compliance-focused industries

Summary

Organizations today are turning to cloud-based platforms to achieve their goals of digital customer experiences, technology-driven innovation, scalability, and operational efficiency. However, regulated sectors such as finance, insurance and healthcare have found themselves between a rock and a hard place. Historically, cloud-based environments lacked the compliance features they needed unless they were designed and orchestrated from scratch. As a result, compliance-focused organizations are stuck with technically inferior, rigid, but compliant on-premises solutions.

The latest iteration of Microsoft Azure App Service Environment (v3) includes features worth considering for such scenarios. App Service Environment (ASE) follows a platform-as-a-service (PaaS) approach, providing comprehensive application and service frameworks on which engineers can build application business logic. Unlike multi-tenant PaaS implementations, App Service Environment consists of a single-tenant instance whereby customer traffic and cloud management traffic run on separate virtual networks, with compute instances dedicated to customers.

This approach is particularly interesting for regulated industries. With App Service Environment v3, organizations can operate cloud-based services in a protected, policy-based environment. Additionally, it offers a managed application ecosystem that separates operations and application traffic lifecycle management. Therefore, cloud-based services can be operated and managed similarly to internal applications running behind the corporate firewall.

ASE v3 enables compliance-focused verticals to take full advantage of cloud-based services. They can deploy and manage applications at lower cost and with less technical know-how, unlocking the potential of cloud-based applications and opening the door to digital transformation. Outside of regulated industries, any business with large-scale corporate policies can also benefit from the agility and scalability of cloud-based services without losing control or risking non-compliance.

In this report, prepared for CIOs, CTOs, CISOs, Chief Architects, and VPs of Engineering, we take a look at what Microsoft’s App Service Environment offering looks like in practice. We outline the main needs of compliance-focused scenarios, examining how the platform’s capabilities match those needs. Based on these scenarios, along with end-user research, we develop lessons and strategies for getting the most out of App Service Environment v3 in the context of compliance.

In conclusion, we determine that App Service Environment v3 does indeed offer a path forward for regulated organizations as they seek to realize the benefits of digital transformation that the cloud can bring.