AWS and Azure Make Their Cloud Link Native
A new managed interconnect promises simpler private networking between the two clouds, but it is a public preview and its headline performance claims come from the vendors.
The 60-second version
AWS and Microsoft now offer a jointly managed private interconnect between AWS and Azure through cloud-native workflows, currently in public preview.
Key points
- The integration uses an open interoperability API to coordinate provisioning and lifecycle operations across the two providers.
- AWS describes four independent logical paths, MACsec between edge routers, and initial availability in four regions.
- The main gain is reduced operational assembly and troubleshooting, not proof that every workload will be faster or more resilient.
- Customers must still validate routing, failover, encryption, support ownership, regional coverage, and total cost.
Verdict. This is a meaningful simplification for organizations already running both clouds, but public-preview status and vendor-reported performance claims make it a test candidate rather than an automatic production standard.
AWS and Microsoft have opened a managed private-networking bridge between their clouds. AWS Interconnect - multicloud and Azure Multicloud Interconnect now work together so customers can request dedicated AWS-to-Azure connectivity through familiar cloud consoles and APIs instead of assembling every carrier circuit and handoff themselves. The Azure connection is available as a public preview, not a generally available service.
What changedOne managed connection instead of a networking project
Connecting two major clouds has usually meant coordinating ports, cross-connects, carriers, routing, security, monitoring, and separate support teams. The new integration hides more of that physical and operational assembly behind a standardized workflow. AWS says customers can initiate the link from its console or command-line tools, while Azure provides its side through the Azure portal and its Multicloud Interconnect service.
| Before | Teams often combined cloud connectivity products, carrier services, physical cabling, routing changes, and separate provisioning schedules. |
|---|---|
| In preview | AWS and Azure coordinate a dedicated private path through their managed interconnect products and a shared interoperability specification. |
| What stays | Customers still own network architecture, routing policy, application resilience, cost control, identity, and compliance decisions. |
How it worksOpen APIs coordinate a redundant private path
The collaboration uses an open API specification AWS introduced for cloud-network interoperability. That contract lets each provider automate its own side of the connection while presenting the customer with a more consistent lifecycle: create, monitor, modify, and retire the interconnect without treating every change as a bespoke carrier order. Microsoft also says the path can extend to Azure Private Link, supporting private access to Azure services from workloads spanning the two environments.
AWS describes four independent logical paths spread across physically diverse facilities and routers. It also says MACsec encrypts traffic between provider edge routers, and that Network Synthetic Monitor can help locate AWS-side packet loss. Those controls address the cloud-to-cloud transport, but they do not automatically encrypt every application session or validate an enterprise's end-to-end failover plan.
Where it startsCoverage is useful but deliberately narrow
AWS lists the initial Azure preview in US East (Northern Virginia), US West (Northern California), Asia Pacific (Sydney), and Europe (Frankfurt). The companies say they plan to add regions and bandwidth choices using preview feedback. Organizations should therefore map every workload and disaster-recovery route to the actual available locations rather than reading the announcement as global coverage.
Why it mattersThe operational layer may be more important than raw speed
The immediate beneficiaries are enterprises already split across AWS and Azure through acquisitions, software vendors serving customers on both platforms, regulated organizations seeking provider diversity, and AI teams whose applications and data live in different clouds. A managed lifecycle can reduce coordination and troubleshooting time even when the underlying traffic still follows familiar private-networking principles.
The real product is not merely a cable between clouds; it is a shared operating model for creating and supporting that cable.
What to verifyTreat the preview as an architecture test
- 1. Confirm supported region pairs, port and bandwidth options, quotas, preview terms, and the complete two-provider price before committing a production design.
- 2. Test failover under router, path, and full-site loss instead of assuming a four-path topology guarantees application continuity.
- 3. Measure latency, jitter, packet loss, and provisioning time with your own traffic; vendor statements about seconds, speed, and availability are not substitutes for workload evidence.
- 4. Document which provider owns each fault domain and how a cross-cloud incident is escalated, observed, and audited.
- 5. Keep application-level encryption, least-privilege routing, data residency, and egress-cost controls in the design.