Mendix on Azure
What is Mendix on Azure?
Mendix on Azure is a managed solution in your Azure environment that configures, manages, and operates all the services needed to deploy Mendix applications on Azure.
Is Mendix on Azure a Good Fit for Me?
Mendix on Azure is a fully managed service that eliminates the complexity of deploying Mendix applications on Azure. By leveraging Azure Marketplace capabilities, Mendix configures, manages, and operates all the necessary services on your behalf.
This makes it the first choice when you are an existing Azure customer that seeks to adopt Mendix in your own security perimeter in the easiest and fastest way possible.
Common Use Cases
Data Sensitivity and Security Requirements
The application deals with highly sensitive data or is subject to stringent security regulations that can be met by hosting it within your own Azure subscription.
Industry-Specific Compliance
Customers needing to comply with regulatory frameworks (e.g SOC2) can use Mendix on Azure to speed up compliance
Legacy Systems Integration
Integrating with other systems that are hosted on Azure or reachable from Azure is a breeze with Mendix on Azure.
Geographical Data Control
Some organizations may have legal or contractual obligations to keep data within specific geographical regions. Mendix on Azure can be deployed on the majority (25+) of available Azure regions.
How Will My Experience Differ if I Use Mendix on Azure instead of Mendix on Kubernetes?
Running Mendix applications in a production environment on your own Azure infrastructure requires a significant technical setup. Without Mendix on Azure, you’ll need to configure and manage:
- Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
- Azure Container Registry (ACR)
- Database Service
- File Storage Service
- Monitoring and Alerting Systems (e.g., Grafana, Prometheus)
- DNS and Certificates
- Mendix Operator and Agent
These components require specific configurations for optimal performance with Mendix applications. This setup typically involves collaboration across multiple teams (infrastructure, database, DNS, security, architecture, and development) and requires approximately 140 hours of technical effort for initial setup, plus 8 hours per quarter for updates and maintenance.
For first-time users, the process can be prolonged due to organizational silos, competing backlogs, and lengthy architectural discussions due to the technical flexibility of the Mendix platform. These delays can postpone application deployment and delay business value realization.
With Mendix on Azure:
- Deployment Time: Set up Mendix applications in your Azure environment in 30 minutes, accelerating time-to-market for applications.
- Configuration: Azure best practices and Mendix-specific configurations are applied automatically, without requiring infrastructure knowledge. Allowing your teams to focus on developing business value, instead of infrastructure.
- Updates: Quarterly updates are automated, ensuring security and compliance with minimal effort.
- Effort Reduction: Avoid the 140+ hours of setup time and ongoing maintenance burden.
What Does Mendix on Kubernetes Architecture Look Like?
Mendix on Azure is hosted in a resource group in an Azure subscription of your choosing. Mendix leverages the Managed Applications capability of Microsoft Azure Marketplace to securely access the environment and conduct deployment and maintenance on your behalf.
Everything required to run Mendix applications is deployed and configured automatically as part of the scope of Mendix on Azure.
To ensure reliability and scalability, your own ability to modify the environment is restricted to a set of pre-defined options. Mendix will programmatically push quarterly updates to make sure your environment remains up-to-date and secure.
To further enhance the security posture and reliability, all communication between services hosted by Mendix and the customer environment never traverses the public internet (by leveraging Azure Private Link).
How Are My Apps and Data Secured in Mendix on Azure?
With Mendix on Azure your app data is fully stored in your own Azure subscription in compliance with all relevant best-practices from Microsoft and Mendix. This includes, for example, the use of private endpoints throughout the infrastructure to prevent traffic from traversing the public internet and the use of Workload Identity to enforce the use of credentialless access anywhere.
How Are the Responsibilities Divided with Mendix on Azure?
On a high level:
- The customer is responsible for developing apps.
- Mendix is responsible for developing a cohesive app hosting solution.
- Microsoft is responsible for the underlying Azure services consumed.
For more details, refer to the Mendix on Azure Support Policy.