We have added support for load-balancing to the recently released solution to run IBM WebSphere Application Server (Traditional) Network Deployment on Azure Linux Virtual Machines. The solution is jointly developed and supported by IBM and Microsoft. The solution enables easy migration of WebSphere workloads to Azure by automating most of the boilerplate resource provisioning tasks to set up a highly available cluster of WebSphere servers on Azure Virtual Machines. Evaluate the solution for full production usage and reach out to collaborate on migration cases.
IBM and Microsoft Partnership
The solution is part of a broader partnership between IBM and Microsoft to enable the WebSphere product portfolio on Azure. WebSphere products are key components in enabling enterprise Java workloads. The partnership aims to cover a range of use cases from mission critical existing traditional workloads to cloud-native applications. Offers target Open Liberty/WebSphere Liberty on Azure Red Hat OpenShift (ARO), WebSphere Application Server on Virtual Machines, and Open Liberty/WebSphere Liberty on the Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).
As part of the partnership, we released an initial version of the WebSphere Application Server on Azure VMs Marketplace solution in May. We previously released guidance for running WebSphere Liberty and Open Liberty on ARO in December, 2020. We also released guidance for running WebSphere Liberty and Open Liberty on AKS in March.
All offers enable further integration with services such as databases (Db2, Azure SQL, Azure PostgreSQL, Azure MySQL), Azure Active Directory, and ELK.
Solution Details and Roadmap
The WebSphere on Virtual Machines solution is aimed at automatically provisioning several Azure resources quickly. The automatically provisioned resources include virtual network, storage, network security group, Java, Linux, and WebSphere. With minimal effort, you can set up a fully functional n-node WebSphere cluster including the Deployment Manager and Console. You can now also have the offer provision and fully configure the IBM HTTP Server as a load-balancer. The solution supports WebSphere 9.0.5 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8.3.
The solution enables a variety of robust production-ready deployment architectures. Once the initial provisioning is completed by the solution, you are free to further customize the deployment including integrating with more Azure services.
In the next few months, IBM and Microsoft plan to provide jointly developed and supported Marketplace solutions targeting WebSphere Liberty/Open Liberty on ARO and WebSphere Liberty/Open Liberty on AKS.
The WebSphere on Virtual Machines solution follows a Bring-Your-Own-License model. You must have the appropriate licenses from IBM and be properly licensed to run offers in Azure. Customers are also responsible for Azure resource usage.
Get started with WebSphere on Azure Virtual Machines
Explore the solution, provide feedback, and stay informed of the roadmap. You can also take advantage of hands-on help from the engineering team behind these efforts. There is no charge to collaborate on a migration scenario while solutions are under active initial development.
