Azure File Share vs Branch Cache to replace server file share and vpn for external access

Question

Hi all,

We have an old app that requires a drive letter mapping to a share on a server. It works fine when staff are in the office, but when out, they need to vpn in.

What we would like to do is keep the file share on the internal server, but setup some sort of Azure File Share with Azure File Sync.

the goal would be that staff when they are in the office, access the internal server share, but when they are out of office, the connection to the file share seemlesly redirects them to the Azure file share.

Is something like this possible with any Azure file sharing system - e.g. Azure File share, Azure branch cache? We can't use SharePoint because we need the local performance when in the office.

I'm not sure what the file share mapping would look like on the client pc e.g. in the office it would be \serverxxx\share, but on the internet it would have to be the Azure FS url, if this is the case how could it seamlessly remap?

Thanks, Simon

Answer 1

@SKT
I understand that you want to setup Azure File Sync so that when on-premises it mounts the local file server. When the client is not on-premises you want them to mount via the Azure File Share, not through VPN. Please correct me if I am misunderstanding.

There is not a supported feature currently to switch automatically between the two mount options. One thing you could consider doing is having both mounts present on the client. Client would use the faster mount when on-premises and they would have the other mount available.

One problem that you might face when connecting over the internet is that many ISPs block port 445 traffic which is needed to connect via SMB. See here for more information on mounting Azure Files. Another thing to keep in mind is that changes made to the Azure file share by using the Azure portal or SMB are not immediately detected and replicated like changes to the server endpoint. Azure Files does not yet have change notifications or journaling, so there's no way to automatically initiate a sync session when files are changed. For more info, please see the Azure File Sync FAQ.

For product feedback and feature requests I will refer you to our feedback forum. This allows the community to add their voice and upvote popular ideas. The forums are monitored and responded to by our product teams.
https://feedback.azure.com

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