Get started with Azure Plan

Microsoft has introduced a new commerce experience for the Azure plan. With this new commerce experience, partners are gaining access to Azure services at pay-as-you-go rates for customers.

Microsoft Software Subscriptions, Azure Reservations, and Azure Plan are available on AppXite Platform in production. 

The following products are enabled:

• Azure Plan
• Azure Reserved Instances
• SQL Server Enterprise Core asd
• SQL Server Standard Core
• Windows Server CAL
• Windows Server Remote Desktop Services CAL
• Windows Server RMS CAL
• Windows Server Standard
• Windows 7 Extended Security Updates

To get started off: 

1. Make sure your MPA is signed via Microsoft Partner Center;
2. Confirm that your customer or you on behalf of the customer accept McuA, now available on the platform;
3. Add to your catalog Azure Plan or other recently released Microsoft products;
4. Start selling! 

Read more about How will I be invoiced for Azure Plan?

How to purchase Azure plan

After purchasing Azure plan customer has access to the full catalog of the latest Azure services at pay-as-you-go rates. Customer can have multiple Azure subscriptions under an Azure plan.

Subscription activities, such as name change, suspension or reactivation, can be performed on the AppXite platform. You have to manage subscriptions and configure resources for your customers through Azure Lighthouse as well as Azure portal. 

However, suspension can be achieved only after all Azure Subscriptions under this Azure Plan are deactivated. And all other services transacted through Azure Plan such as Subscriptions, Marketplace offers or other. If Azure Plan is suspended, then a new Azure Plan cannot be created, you can only reactivate the existing one.

You require admin access to manage your customer's services. 

How you purchase the Azure plan is similar to purchasing any other subscription. There are two ways how to proceed: 1. New Azure Plan - for your new customers or new subscriptions, however, a customer from existing CSP Azure offers to Azure services under the Azure plan have to 2. Transition customers to Azure Plan.

1. New Azure Plan 

       1.1. Place an order for Azure Plan via a platform, if necessary create a tenant for the customer. Only one Azure Plan can be purchased per respective CSP reseller. Once you purchase the Azure plan for a customer, you can no longer purchase Microsoft Azure for that customer. You'll need to create future subscriptions through the Azure plan.

With newly purchased Azure Plan there will be one active Azure subscription activated. 

       1.2. Add subscriptions and configure resources for your customer. You are also able to separate your customer's environment by workload or project. It is possible to manage subscriptions through Azure Lighthouse as well as Azure portal.

To manage your customer's resources and subscriptions in Azure portal, you need the right permissions.

2. Transition your customers to Azure Plan

Indirect resellers will need to work through AppXite in order to transition existing subscriptions. The transition capability is only for customers transitioning to the new commerce experience for Azure and not for other offers in CSP such as Office 365 or Dynamics 365.

Direct resellers can follow Microsoft guidelines on how to transition customers to Azure Plan. 

When you move to the Azure plan, you can no longer purchase Azure subscriptions for this customer. You create the subscriptions under the Azure plan. 

If you place new order on Azure Plan for existing CSP Azure offers platform will not complete the order, and an error message will display that you need to first transition your customer. 

        2.1. For transition select the customer you would like to transition. Find in the product catalog Azure Plan select the offer Transition to Azure Plan and place an order. Transitioning for the selected customer to the new Azure Plan will happen automatically and existing data will be synchronized with your platform within 24h. 

        2.2. Add subscriptions and configure resources for your customer. You are also able to separate your customer's environment by workload or project. It is possible to manage subscriptions through Azure Lighthouse as well as Azure portal.

To manage your customer's resources and subscriptions in Azure portal, you need the right permissions.

There won't be disturbances to Azure usage.