specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
provider: Azure Virtual Machines
providerId: microsoft-azure-virtual-machines
publisherName: Microsoft Corporation
serviceCategory: Cloud Compute / IaaS
created: '2026-05-04'
# Provenance stamped 2026-08-11: this artifact was written by the API Evangelist
# bulk sweep dated 2026-05-04, not harvested from the provider. See roadmap#35.
method: generated
modified: '2026-05-05'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - Cloud Computing
  - Compute
  - IaaS
  - Infrastructure
  - Virtual Machines
  - FinOps
  - FOCUS
description: FOCUS-aligned FinOps for Azure Virtual Machines — the largest single Azure spend
  category for most customers. Per-second metered with 1-minute minimum; multiple commitment
  paths (Reserved Instances, Savings Plans, Spot, Hybrid Benefit) drive 30–90% savings.
  Azure Advisor surfaces right-sizing opportunities; Cost Management exports are FOCUS-conformant.
sources:
  - https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/virtual-machines/linux/
  - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/
  - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/savings-plan/
  - https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Pay-As-You-Go + Committed Use + Spot
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD (settlement varies)
  chargeCategories:
    - Usage
    - Purchase
    - Tax
    - Adjustment
    - Refund
    - Credit
  chargeFrequency: Recurring
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Azure Virtual Machines
  ServiceCategory: Compute
  ProviderName: Microsoft Azure
  PublisherName: Microsoft Corporation
  InvoiceIssuerName: Microsoft Corporation
  PricingCategory: Usage-Based
  PricingUnit: instance-hour
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  RegionId: varies (eastus, westeurope, ...)
meters:
  - name: vm_instance_hours
    description: Pay-as-you-go VM compute hours by SKU and region.
    unit: instance-hour
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - vm_size
      - region
      - os_type
      - resource_group
  - name: vm_reserved_hours
    description: VM-hours covered by Reserved Instance commitments.
    unit: instance-hour
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - vm_family
      - term_years
      - scope
  - name: savings_plan_commitment
    description: Azure Savings Plan for Compute hourly $-commitment.
    unit: hour-commit
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - term_years
      - billing_account
  - name: spot_instance_hours
    description: Spot VM hours consumed.
    unit: instance-hour
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - vm_size
      - region
      - eviction_policy
  - name: managed_disk_gb_month
    description: Premium SSD / Standard SSD / Standard HDD storage attached to VMs.
    unit: GB-month
    aggregation: max
    dimensions:
      - disk_type
      - region
  - name: data_egress
    description: VM outbound data transfer billed under Azure bandwidth meter.
    unit: GB
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - source_region
      - destination_zone
  - name: license_premium
    description: Windows Server / SQL Server / RHEL / SUSE license premium per vCPU-hour
      (excluded if using Azure Hybrid Benefit).
    unit: vcpu-hour
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - license_type
      - bring_your_own_license
principles:
  - name: Visibility
    description: Cost Management + Billing exposes per-resource VM-hour, per-disk, and per-license
      line items. Azure Monitor metrics show CPU/memory/disk utilization to identify oversized
      VMs. FOCUS-aligned billing exports v2 ingest into BI / FinOps platforms with consistent
      column names (ResourceId, ServiceName, ChargeCategory).
  - name: Allocation
    description: Tag every VM with cost-center, environment, application, owner. Enforce via
      Azure Policy. Subscriptions / resource groups create natural chargeback boundaries.
      Multi-tenant clusters can use container-level allocation if VMs run AKS workloads.
  - name: Optimization
    description: Right-size via Azure Advisor (idle / underutilized VMs). Stop dev/test VMs
      off-hours via Auto-shutdown policies. Buy Reserved Instances or Savings Plans for steady
      base load (target 60-80% of PAYG hours covered). Use Spot for batch / fault-tolerant
      jobs (up to 90% off). Apply Azure Hybrid Benefit if you have Windows Server / SQL Server
      Software Assurance. Migrate older v1/v2 sizes to current-gen v5/v6 for better $/perf.
      Use AKS / Container Apps / Functions for workloads that don't need full VM.
  - name: Accountability
    description: Workload owners approve VM size changes. FinOps practitioner reviews monthly
      Reserved/Savings coverage and recommends rebalances quarterly. Set Cost Management
      budgets per resource group / subscription with alerts at 50/80/100%. Anomaly detection
      via Cost Management's Anomaly alerts catches unexpected spikes.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com
    url: https://azure.microsoft.com/services/virtual-machines/