Azure File Sync - what is it really good for

[LudwigW]

looking at the Microsoft documentation Azure File Sync is seen as an option to sync files originally in a file space in an Storage Account to one or more Windows Server(s).

The word "sync" implies it could be used both ways and it works both ways.

A customer of mine is now looking at using Azure File Sync as an replacement for their usage of "rsync" to get rid of all the old Linux stuff. The real ask is to get one or more folders on a Windows Server synched and secured in a second solution. So sync direction is from the Server(s) to the Storage Account in Azure.

How do you see that? Can we and should we use it that way? Or is there another option built in to Azure that can be used and can do the job much better?

[LudwigW]

Hi Rachel,

thanks for the instructions. Seems you are deeply involved in the topic so you may be able to answer the other Question as well.

"Can we use Azure Sync Service as a replacement for rsync", or maybe other file sync solutions?

Greetings,

Ludwig

[rachelgomez_123]

For each server that you intend to use with Azure File Sync, including each server node in a Failover Cluster, disable Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration. This is required only for initial server registration. You can re-enable it after the server has been registered.

Open Server Manager.
Click Local Server:
"Local Server" on the left side of the Server Manager UI
On the Properties subpane, select the link for IE Enhanced Security Configuration.
The "IE Enhanced Security Configuration" pane in the Server Manager UI
In the Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration dialog box, select Off for Administrators and Users:
The Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration pop-window with "Off" selected
Deploy the Storage Sync Service
The deployment of Azure File Sync starts with placing a Storage Sync Service resource into a resource group of your selected subscription. We recommend provisioning as few of these as needed. You will create a trust relationship between your servers and this resource and a server can only be registered to one Storage Sync Service. As a result, it is recommended to deploy as many storage sync services as you need to separate groups of servers. Keep in mind that servers from different storage sync services cannot sync with each other.

Note

The Storage Sync Service inherits access permissions from the subscription and resource group it has been deployed into. We recommend that you carefully check who has access to it. Entities with write access can start syncing new sets of files from servers registered to this storage sync service and cause data to flow to Azure storage that is accessible to them.

Portal
PowerShell
Azure CLI
To deploy a Storage Sync Service, go to the Azure portal, click Create a resource and then search for Azure File Sync. In the search results, select Azure File Sync, and then select Create to open the Deploy Storage Sync tab.

On the pane that opens, enter the following information:

Name: A unique name (per region) for the Storage Sync Service.
Subscription: The subscription in which you want to create the Storage Sync Service. Depending on your organization's configuration strategy, you might have access to one or more subscriptions. An Azure subscription is the most basic container for billing for each cloud service (such as Azure Files).
Resource group: A resource group is a logical group of Azure resources, such as a storage account or a Storage Sync Service. You can create a new resource group or use an existing resource group for Azure File Sync. (We recommend using resource groups as containers to isolate resources logically for your organization, such as grouping HR resources or resources for a specific project.)
Location: The region in which you want to deploy Azure File Sync. Only supported regions are available in this list.
When you are finished, select Create to deploy the Storage Sync Service.

Regards,

Rachel Gomez