Explore the Azure Blob storage lifecycle

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Data sets have unique lifecycles. Early in the lifecycle, people access some data often. But the need for access drops drastically as the data ages. Some data stays idle in the cloud and is rarely accessed once stored. Some data expires days or months after creation, while other data sets are actively read and modified throughout their lifetimes.

Access tiers

Azure storage offers different access tiers, allowing you to store blob object data in the most cost-effective manner. Available access tiers include:

• Hot - An online tier optimized for storing data that is accessed frequently.
• Cool - An online tier optimized for storing data that is infrequently accessed and stored for a minimum of 30 days.
• Cold tier - An online tier optimized for storing data that is infrequently accessed and stored for a minimum of 90 days. The cold tier has lower storage costs and higher access costs compared to the cool tier.
• Archive - An offline tier optimized for storing data that is rarely accessed and stored for at least 180 days with flexible latency requirements, on the order of hours.

Data storage limits are set at the account level and not per access tier. You can choose to use all of your limit in one tier or across all three tiers.

Manage the data lifecycle

Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management offers a rule-based policy that you can use to transition blob data to the appropriate access tiers or to expire data at the end of the data lifecycle.

With the lifecycle management policy, you can:

• Transition blobs from cool to hot immediately when accessed, to optimize for performance.
• Transition current versions of a blob, previous versions of a blob, or blob snapshots to a cooler storage tier if these objects aren't accessed or modified for a period of time, to optimize for cost.
• Delete current versions of a blob, previous versions of a blob, or blob snapshots at the end of their lifecycles.
• Apply rules to an entire storage account, to select containers, or to a subset of blobs using name prefixes or blob index tags as filters.

Consider a scenario where data is frequently accessed during the early stages of the lifecycle, but only occasionally after two weeks. Beyond the first month, the data set is rarely accessed. In this scenario, hot storage is best during the early stages. Cool storage is most appropriate for occasional access. Archive storage is the best tier option after the data ages over a month. By moving data to the appropriate storage tier based on its age with lifecycle management policy rules, you can design the least expensive solution for your needs.