Managed Instance Disk types

Question

What kinds of disks are used behind the scenes for General Purpose, Next Gen, and Business Critical Managed Instance? What are their performance characteristics in terms of IOPS and throughput, and how do they scale?

Any MS guidance that backs this up is much appreciated as well.

thanks!

Answer 1

Hi Abimbola Adeniran,

Thanks for reaching out in Microsoft Q&A forum,

What kinds of disks are used behind the scenes for General Purpose, Next Gen, and Business Critical Managed Instance? What are their performance characteristics in terms of IOPS and throughput, and how do they scale?Any MS guidance that backs this up is much appreciated as well.

It looks like you want to understand the disk types used for General Purpose, Next Gen, and Business Critical Managed Instances in Azure, as well as their performance characteristics in terms of IOPS and throughput. Here’s a breakdown:

Disk Types and Performance Characteristics

Azure Managed Disks come in several types that cater to various performance needs:

1. Ultra Disks:
   • Max IOPS: 160,000
   • Max Throughput: 4,000 MB/s
   • Use Case: Ideal for IO-intensive workloads like SAP HANA and high-performance databases.
   • OS Disk Compatible: No
2. Premium SSD v2:
   • Max IOPS: 80,000
   • Max Throughput: 1,200 MB/s
   • Use Case: Performance-sensitive workloads requiring low latency.
   • OS Disk Compatible: No
3. Premium SSD:
   • Max IOPS: 20,000
   • Max Throughput: 900 MB/s
   • Use Case: Production and performance-sensitive workloads.
   • OS Disk Compatible: Yes
4. Standard SSD:
   • Max IOPS: 6,000
   • Max Throughput: 750 MB/s
   • Use Case: Web servers and lightly used enterprise applications.
   • OS Disk Compatible: Yes
5. Standard HDD:
   • Max IOPS: 2,000
   • Max Throughput: 500 MB/s
   • Use Case: Suitable for backup and non-critical workloads.
   • OS Disk Compatible: Yes (but note that the ability to use Standard HDD as OS disks will be retired by September 2028.)

Disk Scalability

Each disk type can be scaled based on the necessity of workload. For instance, if you find yourself needing more IOPS or throughput, you can switch between these types (such as from Premium SSD to Ultra Disk) depending on your performance needs. Keep in mind that there are performance differences and pricing implications when you migrate between disk types.

References:

• Azure Managed Disks Overview
• Disk Type Comparison
• Migrate to Premium SSD v2 or Ultra Disk

Hope this clarity helps you with your Managed Instance configurations! If you have any more questions or need further details, feel free to ask!

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