Private Endpoints
Azure Private Endpoint is a network interface that connects you privately and securely to a PaaS service (like Azure Storage, Azure SQL Database, or Azure Key Vault) that is powered by Azure Virtual Network and Azure Private Link. It uses a private IP address from your virtual network, effectively bringing the service into your virtual network.
Key Benefit: Private Endpoint enables you to access PaaS services without exposing them to the public internet. This significantly enhances the security posture of your applications.
What is a Private Endpoint?
A Private Endpoint is a resource that provides a unique private IP address to an Azure service. This IP address is assigned from your virtual network's address space. Traffic between your virtual network and the service travels through the virtual network and a private Microsoft backbone network, eliminating exposure to the public internet.
How it Works
- Resource Deployment: You deploy a Private Endpoint in your virtual network.
- Service Association: The Private Endpoint is associated with a specific Azure service instance (e.g., a particular Azure SQL Database).
- IP Allocation: A private IP address is allocated to the Private Endpoint from your virtual network's subnet.
- DNS Configuration: A DNS record is created in your virtual network's DNS zone, mapping the service's fully qualified domain name (FQDN) to the private IP address of the Private Endpoint.
- Secure Connectivity: When a client within your virtual network attempts to connect to the service using its FQDN, the DNS resolution directs the traffic to the private IP address of the Private Endpoint. This traffic then routes securely over the Microsoft backbone network.
Benefits of Using Private Endpoints
- Enhanced Security: Eliminates public internet exposure for PaaS services.
- Private IP Connectivity: Access services using private IP addresses within your virtual network.
- Simplified Network Management: Reduces the need for complex network configurations like VPNs or ExpressRoute for PaaS access.
- Compliance: Helps meet regulatory compliance requirements by minimizing data exposure.
- Service Coverage: Available for a growing list of Azure PaaS services.
Key Concepts
- Private IP Address: The IP address assigned to the Private Endpoint within your virtual network.
- Virtual Network: The Azure Virtual Network where the Private Endpoint resides.
- Subnet: The specific subnet within the virtual network from which the private IP address is allocated.
- Service: The Azure PaaS service (e.g., Storage Account, SQL Database) that the Private Endpoint connects to.
- Private Link Service: A service that exposes your own services or Azure PaaS services over a private endpoint.
- Private DNS Zone: Used to manage the DNS records for private endpoints.
Use Cases
- Securely connecting applications hosted in Azure Virtual Networks to Azure SQL Database.
- Accessing Azure Storage accounts privately from within your virtual network.
- Enabling secure connections to Azure Key Vault for secrets management.
- Connecting on-premises networks to Azure PaaS services via VPN Gateway or ExpressRoute, leveraging Private Endpoints for secure access.
Prerequisites
Before creating a Private Endpoint, ensure you have:
- An existing Azure Virtual Network and a subnet.
- The target Azure PaaS service instance available and accessible (though not necessarily publicly).
- Necessary permissions to create Private Endpoints and manage DNS zones.
Note: When you create a Private Endpoint, it's associated with a specific resource (e.g., a Storage Account). You cannot create a Private Endpoint for an entire service type (like all storage accounts).
Configuration Steps
The general steps to configure a Private Endpoint involve:
- Navigating to the Azure portal and searching for "Private Endpoint".
- Specifying subscription, resource group, region, and name.
- Selecting the virtual network and subnet.
- Choosing the target Azure service and the specific resource instance.
- Configuring Private DNS integration.
For detailed guidance, refer to the specific configuration pages: