Examine Azure Blob storage
Azure Blob storage is Microsoft's object storage solution for the cloud. Blob storage is optimized for storing massive amounts of unstructured data. Unstructured data is data that doesn't adhere to a particular data model or definition, such as text or binary data.
Blob storage is designed for:
- Serving images or documents directly to a browser.
- Storing files for distributed access.
- Streaming video and audio.
- Writing to log files.
- Storing data for backup and restore, disaster recovery, and archiving.
- Storing data for analysis by an on-premises or Azure-hosted service.
Objects in Blob storage can be accessed from anywhere in the world via HTTP or HTTPS.
Objects in Blob Storage are accessible via the Azure Storage REST API, Azure PowerShell, Azure CLI, or an Azure Storage client library. Client libraries are available for different languages, including:
- .NET
- Java
- Node.js
- Python
- Go
Clients can also securely connect to Blob Storage by using SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) and mount Blob Storage containers by using the Network File System (NFS) 3.0 protocol.
Types of storage accounts
Azure Storage offers several types of storage accounts. Each type supports different features and has its own pricing model. Consider these differences before you create a storage account to determine the type of account that is best for your applications. The types of storage accounts are:
| Type of storage account | Performance tier | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| General-purpose v2 | Standard | Standard storage account type for blobs, file shares, queues, and tables. Recommended for most scenarios using Blob Storage or one of the other Azure Storage services. |
| Block blob | Premium | Premium storage account type for block blobs and append blobs. Recommended for scenarios with high transaction rates or that use smaller objects or require consistently low storage latency. |
| Page blob | Premium | Premium storage account type for page blobs only. |