Azure Spot VMs for cost savings - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What are Azure Spot VMs?

Azure Spot VMs are virtual machines offered at a lower price because they use unused Azure capacity. They can be evicted when Azure needs the capacity back.

beginner

Why are Azure Spot VMs cheaper than regular VMs?

They use spare capacity in Azure datacenters, so Microsoft offers them at a discount. However, they can be stopped or evicted anytime when capacity is needed for other customers.

intermediate

What happens when Azure needs the capacity used by a Spot VM?

The Spot VM is evicted, which means it is stopped or deleted depending on the eviction policy. You lose the VM and any data on temporary storage unless saved elsewhere.

intermediate

Which workloads are best suited for Azure Spot VMs?

Workloads that can handle interruptions, like batch jobs, testing environments, or flexible applications that can restart without data loss.

beginner

How can you protect important data when using Azure Spot VMs?

By saving data on durable storage like Azure Disks or Azure Blob Storage, not on the VM's temporary storage which is lost on eviction.

What is the main reason Azure Spot VMs are cheaper than regular VMs?

A They run on slower hardware

B They have fewer features

C They use spare Azure capacity that can be reclaimed

D They have limited network access

Azure Spot VMs use unused capacity in Azure datacenters, so they are offered at a discount but can be evicted when needed.

What happens to a Spot VM when Azure needs the capacity back?

A It continues running without interruption

B It is evicted (stopped or deleted)

C It automatically upgrades to a regular VM

D It is paused indefinitely

Spot VMs can be evicted by Azure when capacity is needed, meaning they are stopped or deleted based on eviction policy.

Which type of workload is NOT ideal for Azure Spot VMs?

A Critical production databases

B Testing environments

C Batch processing jobs

D Flexible applications that can restart

Critical production databases require high availability and cannot tolerate interruptions, so Spot VMs are not suitable.

How should you store important data when using Azure Spot VMs?

A On durable Azure storage like disks or blobs

B Only on the VM's temporary storage

C On local machine outside Azure

D No need to store data separately

Data should be saved on durable Azure storage because temporary storage on Spot VMs is lost on eviction.

What is a key benefit of using Azure Spot VMs?

A Free technical support

B Guaranteed uptime

C Unlimited storage capacity

D Significant cost savings for interruptible workloads

Azure Spot VMs offer lower prices but can be evicted, making them ideal for workloads that can handle interruptions and save costs.

Explain what Azure Spot VMs are and how they help save costs.

Think about spare capacity and interruptions.

Describe best practices for using Azure Spot VMs safely.

Focus on data safety and workload type.