Episode Details

Welcome to another episode of Knowledge Nuggets with Mirko Peters. In this episode, we're diving into one of the most important building blocks of every Azure Virtual Machine: Azure Disk Storage. Every VM relies on disks for its operating system, applications, and data—but choosing the wrong disk type can either slow your workloads down or significantly increase your cloud costs. In this episode, you'll learn the differences between Standard SSD, Premium SSD, Premium SSD v2, and Ultra Disk. We'll explain IOPS, throughput, latency, OS disks versus data disks, redundancy options, snapshots, security, and how to select the right storage tier for your workloads without overspending.

WHY AZURE DISK STORAGE MATTERS
Azure Disk Storage provides persistent block storage for Azure Virtual Machines. Unlike temporary storage that disappears when a VM shuts down, managed disks remain attached to your VM and retain all data through reboots, maintenance events, and VM deallocations. Choosing the correct disk type directly impacts three key performance metrics:

• IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) determines how many read and write operations the disk can process.
• Throughput measures how much data can be transferred every second.
• Latency represents how quickly data begins transferring after a request.

Higher performance disks deliver faster applications and databases but also come with higher costs. The goal is to match your workload's actual requirements rather than simply choosing the fastest option available.

OS DISKS VS DATA DISKS
Every Azure Virtual Machine automatically receives an Operating System Disk that stores Windows or Linux and allows the VM to boot. OS disks can be up to 4 TB in size and are optimized for hosting the operating system and core software. Additional Data Disks can be attached separately to store databases, applications, file repositories, or business data. Individual data disks can reach up to 64 TB, and multiple disks can be attached to a single VM depending on the VM size. Both OS disks and data disks support the same performance tiers, allowing organizations to independently optimize storage performance for operating systems and application workloads.

UNDERSTANDING THE FOUR DISK TYPES
Azure offers four primary managed disk performance tiers. Standard SSD provides affordable SSD performance for development, testing, low-traffic websites, and lightweight applications. It offers solid performance at the lowest SSD price but isn't recommended for demanding production databases. Premium SSD is designed for production workloads, virtual desktops, and business applications requiring consistently low latency. Performance scales with disk size, meaning larger disks provide more IOPS and throughput. Premium SSD v2 introduces independent scaling for storage capacity, IOPS, and throughput. Instead of purchasing additional storage simply to gain performance, organizations can configure each resource independently, significantly reducing costs while supporting enterprise databases and business-critical applications. Ultra Disk delivers Azure's highest storage performance with extremely low latency, hundreds of thousands of IOPS, and throughput measured in gigabytes per second. It's built for mission-critical systems such as SAP HANA, financial trading platforms, healthcare applications, and massive enterprise databases where every microsecond matters.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT DISK
Selecting the right Azure managed disk starts with understanding your workload. Development and testing environments usually perform perfectly with Standard SSD, helping reduce cloud costs. Most production workloads benefit from Premium SSD, while Premium SSD v2 offers the best balance between flexibility, performance, and pricing for modern enterprise applications. Ultra Disk should only be selected when workloads genu