Implications of changing azure file storage hot tier to azure transaction optimized tier

Question

What are the implications of changing an Azure file storage tier from hot tier to transaction optimized tier? I'm looking for real user experiences. Did you experience any issues? Did anything change with the file storage attributes/properties? If you use ThreatLocker, did ThreatLocker get triggered? MS learn articles indicate there is no change or movement in the actual files and that this move is purely for billing calculations.

Answer 1

Hi @Kimberly Gillespie ,

related to your question "Did you experience any issues? Did anything change with the file storage attributes/properties?":

I didn't notice any issue and no change with the file storage details (files, attributes/properties).

For me it was just a change in the billing calculation (storage price at-rest and transactions).

I haven't any experience with ThreatLocker. No idea if ThreatLocker get's triggered if you change the tier of the Storage Account. Sorry.

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(If the reply was helpful please don't forget to upvote and/or accept as answer, thank you)

Regards

Andreas Baumgarten

Answer 2

Hello Kimberly Gillespie,

Greetings! Welcome to Microsoft Q&A Platform.

Changing an Azure file storage tier from the hot tier to the transaction optimized tier primarily impacts billing calculations as stated in Microsoft Documents.

Azure Files can satisfy performance requirements for most applications and use cases. This article explains the different factors that can affect file share performance and how to optimize the performance of Azure file shares for your workload refer - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/storage/files/understand-performance.

You can Manage the Azure Storage Tiers ( Hot, Cool) You can switch between different tiers for all files in the share. Different charges apply to each tier. Switching tiers causes transactions. Learn More

Hot: Hot file shares offer storage optimized for general purpose file sharing scenarios such as team shares. Hot file shares are offered on the standard storage hardware backed by HDDs. Cool: Cool file shares offer cost-efficient storage optimized for online archive storage scenarios. Cool file shares are offered on the standard storage hardware backed by HDDs.

Once you've created a file share in a storage account, you cannot move it to tiers exclusive to different storage account kinds. For example, to move a transaction optimized file share to the premium tier, you must create a new file share in a FileStorage storage account and copy the data from your original share to a new file share in the FileStorage account. We recommend using AzCopy to copy data between Azure file shares, but you may also use tools like robocopy on Windows or rsync for macOS and Linux.

File shares deployed within GPv2 storage accounts can be moved between the standard tiers (transaction optimized, hot, and cool) without creating a new storage account and migrating data, but you will incur transaction costs when you change your tier. When you move a share from a hotter tier to a cooler tier, you will incur the cooler tier's write transaction charge for each file in the share. Moving a file share from a cooler tier to a hotter tier will incur the cool tier's read transaction charge for each file in the share.

See Understanding Azure Files billing for more information.

• Please look at the Azure Files Pricing page for various cost components, which typically includes – Storage, Transactions (RW), Bandwidth (BW), any other related services like Azure File Sync/Azure Backup (optional). Standard and Premium tiers have different pricing model. Standard is Used storage + Transactions Premium is provisioned storage + no transactions. BW cost always apply.

Transactions/BW cost varies based on the workload patterns. For example, for a low end general purpose file server with 5-10% churn, we have seen that transactions typically cost < 5-10% of bill. For a high transaction, low latency, consistent performance workload, performance tier might work better e.g. Databases. For a low transaction workload that need reliable performance, standard tier will be suffice e.g. general purpose file servers.

• Storage capacity is billed in units of the average daily amount of data stored, in gigabytes (GB), over a monthly period. For example, if you consistently used 10 GB of storage for the first half of the month and none for the second half of the month, you would be billed for your average usage of 5 GB of storage. However, using the Cool (GPv2 accounts only) or Archive tier for less than 30 and 180 days respectively will incur an additional charge.

Data storage prices and you can also calculate using Azure Pricing calculator

If you still find any difficulties in Pricing, I would recommended to contact billing support who can provide you the detailed information based on your region and your scenario. https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/support/options/. Billing and Subscription team would be the best to provide more insight and guidance Free support has been provided.You can Manage the Azure Storage Tiers ( Hot, Cool) You can switch between different tiers for all files in the share. Different charges apply to each tier. Switching tiers causes transactions. Learn More

Hot: Hot file shares offer storage optimized for general purpose file sharing scenarios such as team shares. Hot file shares are offered on the standard storage hardware backed by HDDs.
Cool: Cool file shares offer cost-efficient storage optimized for online archive storage scenarios. Cool file shares are offered on the standard storage hardware backed by HDDs.

Once you've created a file share in a storage account, you cannot move it to tiers exclusive to different storage account kinds. For example, to move a transaction optimized file share to the premium tier, you must create a new file share in a FileStorage storage account and copy the data from your original share to a new file share in the FileStorage account. We recommend using AzCopy to copy data between Azure file shares, but you may also use tools like robocopy on Windows or rsync for macOS and Linux.

File shares deployed within GPv2 storage accounts can be moved between the standard tiers (transaction optimized, hot, and cool) without creating a new storage account and migrating data, but you will incur transaction costs when you change your tier. When you move a share from a hotter tier to a cooler tier, you will incur the cooler tier's write transaction charge for each file in the share. Moving a file share from a cooler tier to a hotter tier will incur the cool tier's read transaction charge for each file in the share.

See Understanding Azure Files billing for more information.

• Please look at the Azure Files Pricing page for various cost components, which typically includes – Storage, Transactions (RW), Bandwidth (BW), any other related services like Azure File Sync/Azure Backup (optional).
  Standard and Premium tiers have different pricing model.
  Standard is Used storage + Transactions
  Premium is provisioned storage + no transactions.
  BW cost always apply.

Transactions/BW cost varies based on the workload patterns. For example, for a low end general purpose file server with 5-10% churn, we have seen that transactions typically cost < 5-10% of bill. For a high transaction, low latency, consistent performance workload, performance tier might work better e.g. Databases. For a low transaction workload that need reliable performance, standard tier will be suffice e.g. general purpose file servers.

• Storage capacity is billed in units of the average daily amount of data stored, in gigabytes (GB), over a monthly period. For example, if you consistently used 10 GB of storage for the first half of the month and none for the second half of the month, you would be billed for your average usage of 5 GB of storage. However, using the Cool (GPv2 accounts only) or Archive tier for less than 30 and 180 days respectively will incur an additional charge.

Data storage prices and you can also calculate using Azure Pricing calculator

If you still find any difficulties in Pricing, I would recommended to contact billing support who can provide you the detailed information based on your region and your scenario. https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/support/options/. Billing and Subscription team would be the best to provide more insight and guidance Free support has been provided.

1.Billing and Cost: The main difference is in the cost structure. The transaction optimized tier is designed for workloads with high transaction rates, but lower storage costs compared to the hot tier.

2.Users have reported that the performance characteristics, such as latency and throughput, remain largely consistent when switching between these tiers. The transaction optimized tier is suitable for general-purpose file shares with moderate performance requirements.

3.There are no changes to the actual files or their properties when you switch tiers. The files remain in place, and only the billing calculations are adjusted.

4.There haven’t been widespread reports of Threat Locker being triggered by this change. Since the files themselves are not moved or altered, security monitoring tools like Threat Locker typically do not flag this operation.

5.Real user experiences suggest that the transition is smooth and does not disrupt ongoing operations. However, it’s always a good practice to monitor your system closely after making such changes to ensure everything functions as expected.

Similar thread about changing the file storage tiering - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/1398137/what-is-the-time-duration-of-azure-file-share-tier,https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/450001/cost-calculation-for-changing-the-storage-tier-fro

Hope the above information helps! Please do let us know if you have any further queries. I’m happy to assist you further.

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