Today I’m going to explain the difference between Azure Private Endpoint and Service Endpoints, and when to use which. Sounds exciting, right? Well, buckle up, because it’s going to be a wild ride.

First of all, what are these endpoints anyway? Well, they are both ways to connect your private network to Azure services, such as storage, SQL, or Cosmos DB. But they have different benefits and trade-offs.

Azure Private Endpoint is a network interface that connects you directly to an Azure service using a private IP address from your virtual network. This means that the traffic between your network and the service is isolated and secure. You can also use private DNS zones to resolve the service names to private IP addresses. This way, you can access the service as if it was in your own network, without any public exposure.

Azure Service Endpoint is a configuration of your subnet that enables you to access an Azure service using its public IP address, but with an identity-based firewall. This means that the traffic between your network and the service still goes through the internet, but only your subnet can access the service. You can also use policies to restrict which resources can access which services.

So, when should you use which endpoint? Well, it depends on your needs and preferences. Here are some factors to consider:

• Private Endpoint provides better security and performance than Service Endpoint, since it eliminates the exposure to the internet and reduces the latency.
  
  
• Service Endpoint is easier and cheaper to set up than Private Endpoint, since it does not require any additional resources or DNS configuration. However, know that Service Endpoints can only be accessed from Azure and specific vnets.
  
  
• Private Endpoint works with any service that supports Azure Private Link, which is a growing list of Azure and third-party services. Service Endpoint works only with a specific list of Azure services that support it.
  
  
• Private Endpoint allows you to access the service using the same name and IP address from different virtual networks or on-premises networks, as long as they are connected to Azure. Service Endpoint requires you to use different names and IP addresses for each subnet that accesses the service.
  
  

So, in summary, Private Endpoint is like a VIP backstage pass that lets you access the Azure service directly and securely, while Service Endpoint is like a regular ticket that lets you access the service through the internet, but only if you are on the guest list. Depending on your situation, you may prefer one or the other, or even use both for different services.

I hope this blog post was helpful and entertaining. If you have any questions or feedback, please leave a comment below. And remember, stay curious and keep learning!