(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — As Microsoft (www.microsoft.com) prepares for the commercial launch of its Azure cloud in November, Microsoft announced it will be limiting the geographic region options available to those given a Community Technology Preview of Azure. In the next few weeks, Microsoft said it would be disabling the “USA – Northwest” option for new applications due to a change in local tax laws affecting its Quincy, Washington data center.
According to a Microsoft blog post, Community Technology Preview users’ Azure options will be limited to “USA – Southwest,” and “USA – Anywhere” — presumably amounting to the same thing. All applications and storage accounts in the “USA – Northwest” region will need to migrate to another region in the next few months, or be deleted. Microsoft plans to provide an automated tool to migrate projects.
Those who chose specific regions should know if their data has to be moved, however, users who selected “USA – Anywhere” can use the “Where’s My App?” (wheresmyapp.cloudapp.net) tool to determine where their application or storage account is actually running.
Microsoft advises users that this warning does not demand immediate action. “For now, you don’t need to do anything,” the company blog notes. “When the migration tool comes online, you’ll need to use it if you want to preserve your applications that are currently running in “USA – Northwest.” This blog will be updated with details when the migration tool is available.”
According to PC World, Microsoft and other companies enjoyed tax exemptions on new data center projects by qualifying as “manufacturers.” The state’s attorney general, however, decided in 2007 that data centers do not qualify as manufacturers, disqualifying them from these benefits. More recently, Governor Christine Gregoire presented a bill to give data center operators tax discounts on their equipment, however, the bill was struck down, likely leading to Microsoft’s decision to move Azure out of Washington.
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