Azure Storage for Backup of Microsft 365 Data 

Every IT admin wishes they knew how to use Azure storage for backup of employee email, contacts, calendars, etc. This is because many industries have made this mandatory by adding it to the compliance requirements.

Azure itself is a hub of many different services out of which the blob storage is which allows you to keep massively scalable object storage for any type of unstructured data. However, those who are unfamiliar with Azure may find it tough to set up both a new account and build storage as well.

To avoid getting overwhelmed with information here we have compiled a list of steps that teach Azure account creation along with the process of setting up a blob storage. Before making a new account, readers may ask why Azure blob. We have an answer waiting for you.

Reasons to Choose Azure Blob for Backup of Organizational Data

Although outside the core Microsoft 365 service, Azure is still part of the overall ecosystem. So enjoys near-native compatibility with the data that we are about to keep there. Thus, restoration of the backed-up data also becomes easier. Here is a list of 5 reasons to pick the Azure blob as the backup.

• Scalable: Azure storage for backup can scale to handle large amounts of data.
• Durable: You can set data redundancy across multiple centers.
• Security: Encrypt data at rest and in transit. Also, set access controls and compliance certifications.
• Cost-Effective: Choose the Pay-as-you-go model or pay upfront for tiered storage options.
• Integration: Use external services to automate backup activity.

Next up we cover the steps for setting a new account from scratch.

Create an Azure Account to Use Blob Storage for Backup

Step 1. Visit https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/

Step 2. Click on Get started or Try Azure for Free button.

Step 3. Sign in via your Microsoft 365 account (preferably an admin account).

Step 4. Choose the Country/Region and start Azure storage for backup (be careful as selection is permanent meaning you won’t be able to change it later on and many other details like country code/credit card address derive from this so any wrong selection here will cause problems later on during the setup.)

Step 5. Complete the fillup of personal information in their corresponding tabs including first name middle name(optional) email(should be prefilled), and phone number.

Step 6. Perform the account verification process by entering the code sent on your phone.

Step 7. Mark the agreement checkbox you can leave the news and updates box unchecked. Then click Next.

Step 8. Add the credit card information (this step is mandatory even for a free tier account). No charges occur until you exhaust all the free credits. (Note you may have to validate the credit card twice depending on the security protocol)

Step 9. Once everything is set up, you’ll be directed to portal.azure.com. Login again, and familiarize yourself with the various services.

You are now free to make your own blob storage but before that, take a look at the differences between the Blob storage variants. As it would help you understand why a particular option is chosen for the backup activity.

Types of Azure Storage for Backup

As emails, contacts, calendars, and data inside OneDrive change regularly. Moreover, creating a backup is not a one-time event. Add the availability and costs to the equation and the storage type selection becomes clear. You can get an idea by looking at the tabular chart below.

Feature	Hot Tier	Cool Tier	Archive Tier
Availability	99.90%	99%	Offline
Intended data lifespan	Short term	Long term (30+ days)	Very long term
Access frequency	Frequent	Infrequent	Rare
Latency	Milliseconds	Milliseconds	Hours
Storage costs ($0.001 – $0.10 per GB/month)	Varies based on region and usage
Data retrieval costs (per GB)	$0	$0	$0.02
Data write costs (per 10,000 operations)	~$0.05	~$0.10	~$0.50
Data read costs (per 10,000 operations)	~$0.004	~$0.01	$5.00
Minimum storage duration	None	30 days	180 days
Data redundancy options*	LRS, ZRS, GRS, RA-GRS	RA-GRS, LRS, GRS,	LRS, GRS
Use cases	Active data, short-term backup, general storage	Azure storage for Backup, disaster recovery, archival data	Long-term backup, compliance data
First-byte latency	Immediate	Immediate	Up to 15 hours
Rehydration time	N/A	N/A	Up to 15 hours
Early deletion penalty	None	Prorated fee if deleted before 30 days	Prorated fee if deleted before 180 days

You can make a more accurate estimation of the monthly cost at https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/pricing/calculator/?service=storage

So now it is time to make an Azure project.

Build a Blob Storage with GUI

• Head over to the main page of the Azure portal and tap on the Storage accounts option.
• Click on the + Create button. This opens a new instance. Start by filling out the Project details.
• Choose a Subscription type in Azure storage for backup and pick an underlying Resource group.
• In the Instance details, enter the storage account name.
• Select a region (choose the closest one to reduce latency).
• Keep the performance option as standard.
• Inside the redundancy, open the hidden menu and select LRS. Tap Next
• Land on the Advanced settings. Here, not much has to be changed; you can continue with the default options.
• Tap on Review > Create.

For those who are familiar with PowerShell, there exists another method with which the following storage blob can be made let us see how.

Build an Azure Storage for Backup with PowerShell CLI

Here is a sample script. Mold the script to your liking.

# Set subscription (if you have multiple and need to switch)
Set-AzContext -SubscriptionId "YourSubscriptionId"

# Create resource group (if needed)
New-AzResourceGroup -Name "YourResourceGroupName" -Location "YourLocation"

# Create storage account
New-AzStorageAccount -ResourceGroupName "YourResourceGroupName" `
                     -Name "YourStorageAccountName" `
                     -Location "YourLocation" `
                     -SkuName "Standard_LRS" `
                     -Kind "StorageV2"

# Create container in Azure storage for backup
$storageAccount = Get-AzStorageAccount -ResourceGroupName "YourResourceGroupName" -Name "YourStorageAccountName"
$ctx = $storageAccount.Context
New-AzStorageContainer -Name "YourContainerName" -Context $ctx -Permission Off

This is faster and more customizable but only useful for those who have the necessary technical expertise. Nevertheless, the GUI-based method is more than sufficient for most use cases.

So now that we have the blob ready all that’s left is to back up the data. However, it is easier said than done, and attempting to do it manually defeats the purpose of being in the cloud. As organizations made the shift to automate processes, they do not want to get stuck in the endless loop of validation and uploading user data. So we have a service that frees admin time to conduct the backup task.

How to Automate M365 Backup on Azure Blob Storage

The best way to use this blob is to deploy the SysTools M365 Backup Service alongside it. The solution is designed to automatically schedule backups in advance. So administrators need not worry about saving a copy of data at any time in the future. Admins can delegate users to monitor the backup activity.

If you want there is also the option to save Office 365 data on a work computer in offline mode.

The same data (Email, OneDrive)  can be pulled back from the Azure blob and put back into the user account.

All this and much more is possible if you are willing to integrate this service with an Azure cloud environment.

Conclusion

In this blog post users got actionable insights into using Azure storage for backup of M365 data. We explained how the hot Azure blob variant is best for this use case. Along with that readers got a step-by-step procedure for new account creation. Together with the blob storage creation tutorial and the automated BAAS users are now equipped to make the best use of Azure cloud storage.