Azure Kubernetes Service Enabled by Azure Arc on Azure Local

Simplify managing, deploying, and maintaining K8 clusters on-premises with a unified Azure control plane

Azure Kubernetes Service enabled by Azure Arc (AKS Arc) on Azure Local extends the fully managed Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) to on-premises environments, including Azure Local, Windows Server, Windows IoT, and Windows 11 Enterprise/Pro.

It simplifies managing, deploying, and maintaining Kubernetes clusters on-premises, making it quicker to get started hosting Linux and Windows containers in your data center or at the edge.

As a hosted Kubernetes service, AKS Arc on Azure Local handles critical day-to-day management—such as upgrades, automatic certificate rotations, and resilient control plane operations—so you can focus on running and developing containerized workloads, including AI-powered applications.

With native integration to Azure Arc, you gain a single Azure control plane to manage all your AKS clusters running anywhere—on Azure, on-premises, in disconnected scenarios, or across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

Learn more about the differences between AKS and AKS Arc on Azure Local

Why use AKS Arc for containerized and AI workloads?

If you’ve been using AKS in Azure to deploy and run your applications, it’s easy and seamless to extend your deployments on-premises or at the edge with AKS Arc. While you can manage a few containers manually using Docker and Windows, modern apps—and especially AI workloads—often leverage hundreds or thousands of containers, which is where Kubernetes orchestration shines.

Kubernetes is the open-source platform for automating container management at scale, and AKS Arc provides a consistent, cloud-native experience with wizards to set up Kubernetes, essential add-ons, and clusters to host your workloads. AKS Arc also powers AI from cloud to edge with improved portability, security, and disconnected operations..

Native integration with Azure Arc-enabled Kubernetes for unified hybrid and multi-cloud management

Create and manage AKS clusters using the Azure portal, Resource Manager templates, and Azure CLI

Integrated logging and monitoring via Azure Monitor, with managed Prometheus and Grafana for metrics

Software Defined Networking (SDN) enabled by Azure Arc for secure, high-performance connectivity across Kubernetes nodes and containerized applications

Cluster Autoscaler to automatically resize node pools, with support for mixed-SKU VM pools and intelligent placement via Azure Kubernetes Fleet Manager

Deploy and manage Windows-based containerized apps with full parity to Linux, including Windows exporter for health monitoring

AKS Arc supports deploying GPU-enabled nodes, with expanded hardware support for additional GPUs and small-form-factor bare metal at the edge

AKS Arc continues to evolve

Drawing from real-world experiences and user feedback, Microsoft continues to improve AKS Arc to deliver a more resilient, secure, and AI-ready Kubernetes experience across distributed environments. These improvements make AKS the most versatile platform for hybrid AI and modern apps, with a focus on edge portability and operational simplicity. Here are some recently added features to AKS Arc.

• AKS Arc Disconnected Operations: Run managed AKS clusters in fully disconnected mode, enabling production workloads in air-gapped or low connectivity environments while maintaining Azure consistency.
• Expanded Hardware and GPU Support: New small-form-factor bare metal deployments with GPU capabilities for industrial edge and IoT, plus broader hardware validation for greater flexibility.
• Azure Kubernetes Fleet Manager for Arc: Centralize management of Arc-connected clusters with intelligent workload placement, approval gates for updates, and cross-region/high-availability spreading—unifying operations from on-premises to multi-cloud.
• Security and Compliance Enhancements: Azure Key Vault Secret Store Extension for Arc-enabled Kubernetes, plus improved Microsoft Entra ID authentication to reduce vulnerabilities.
• Performance and Observability: SDN on Azure Local for faster networking; embedded Grafana dashboards in the Azure portal; and Windows exporter enabled by default for consistent monitoring.

DataON Integrated Solutions for AKS Arc on Azure Local

DataON Integrated Solutions for AKS Arc are designed to accelerate your hybrid cloud journey with a simple purchasing and deployment experience from a single vendor—empowering you to run Azure services anywhere, from data center to edge..

They combine AKS Arc with DataON Integrated Systems for Azure Local and hybrid cloud services for a complete validated hardware, software, and workload solution. DataON delivers an appliance-like experience with turnkey design—backed by white glove service and support—for rapid deployment and integration, ensuring fast onboarding and a smooth transition.

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