Azure Policy Questions

Question

Hi,

I am trying to understand the difference between a policy assignment with policies listed directly under the assignment, as opposed to using a defintion / initiative, and what are the pros and cons of each option.

Any guidance much appreciated.

Dave

Answer 1

Hello Dave O'Donohoe, Policy Assignment is when you assign a specific policy directly to a scope (like a subscription, resource group, or resource). Each policy assignment enforces a single policy definition.

Pros:

• Simplicity - Easy to understand and manage for small-scale or specific use cases.
• Direct Control - You can directly control and monitor the compliance of individual policies.

Cons:

• Scalability - Managing multiple individual policy assignments can become cumbersome as the number of policies grows.
• Consistency - Ensuring consistent policy application across multiple scopes can be challenging.

Policy Definition is a single policy that defines the conditions and effects to enforce. Initiative is a collection of policy definitions grouped together to achieve a specific goal.

Pros:

• Simplified Management - Initiatives allow you to manage multiple policies as a single unit, making it easier to apply and update policies across your environment.
• Consistency - Ensures consistent application of policies across different scopes.
• Scalability - Easier to scale and manage large numbers of policies by grouping them into initiatives.

Cons:

• Complexity - Can be more complex to set up initially, especially for smaller environments or specific use cases.
• Overhead - May introduce additional overhead in terms of management and monitoring, especially if not all policies in an initiative are relevant to all scopes.

When to use each:

• Use Individual Policy assignment when you have a small number of policies or specific, isolated use cases.
• Use initiatives when you need to manage a large number of policies, ensure consistency across multiple scopes, or achieve a specific compliance goal (e.g., PCI-DSS compliance).

In most cases, using initiatives is recommended for better scalability and management.

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Answer 2

Hi @YogiBear Using a Policy Definition

This involves creating a standalone policy definition that you can assign to multiple scopes (e.g., subscriptions or resource groups). It is generally called as adding a custom policy which can be created as per customer requirements

Pros:

Reusable: The policy definition can be assigned to multiple scopes, allowing you to enforce the same policy consistently in multiple environments.

Easier to manage: Centralized control allows you to update the policy in one place, and changes are reflected across all assignments wherever it’s applied.

Cons:

Complex: If each scope needs slight changes in the policy, then managing multiple policy definitions can create complexity.

Separate assignments: For every environment you have to create separate assignments

Using an Initiative (Policy Set)

An initiative is a collection of policy definitions grouped together under one policy assignment, which can be applied to a scope in one single step.

Pros:

Simplifies complexity: It Allows you to add multiple policy definitions together for one common compliance needs for e.g., applying a set of policies for adding tags.

Centralized management: Like standalone policy definitions, initiatives allow for centralized management, updates, and consistent policy application.

Streamlined assignments: Instead of creating multiple policy assignments, an initiative lets you group all policies in one single assignment, which can simplify configuration at large scales.

Cons:

Initiatives can include many policies, which might not be applicable to all scopes, leading to unnecessary compliance logs

Complexity in managing exclusions: If you need to exclude certain policies within the initiative for specific scopes, it can become challenging to manage.

For small-scale or one-off policy needs, using policies directly within assignments can be a quick solution.

When to use

For policies that need to be reused across multiple resources or environments, creating standalone policy definitions is more efficient and manageable.

For complex scenarios requiring compliance across multiple dimensions (e.g., security, data protection, cost management), initiatives provide a streamlined, scalable solution.

reference: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/governance/policy/concepts/initiative-definition-structure, https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/governance/policy/concepts/definition-structure-basics