I want to create an Azure Functions free tier account, but apparently a storage account is required for that. What is the cheapest storage account configuration I can make? Also, the billing is based on usage, right? I dont want to use the storage account, just need it for the Azure functions.

LRS general purpose storage account would give you the lowest cost. Take into account the region - assuming you can choose one arbitrarily. The pricing model is relatively complex - but is essentially based on the volume of data and its processing (IOPS). Details at https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/storage/files/ If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated. hth Marcin

Storage account configuration for Azure functions

Accepted answer

Marcin Policht 26,385 Reputation points MVP

2024-11-13T18:32:07.3233333+00:00

LRS general purpose storage account would give you the lowest cost. Take into account the region - assuming you can choose one arbitrarily.

The pricing model is relatively complex - but is essentially based on the volume of data and its processing (IOPS). Details at https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/storage/files/

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin
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Jan 20 Reputation points

2024-11-14T09:44:04.32+00:00

Thank you! And what primary service should I choose?

Azure Blob Storage or Azure Data Lake Storage Gen 2

Azure Files

Other (Tables and queues)

Marcin Policht 26,385 Reputation points MVP

2024-11-14T13:47:10.4533333+00:00

Other (Tables and queues). This gives you general purpose storage account

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin

Jan 20 Reputation points

2024-11-14T15:03:28.4433333+00:00

Thank you! One last question, sorry, I am new to Azure:

Am I right that the consumption plan of Azure Functions is for the free Tier?

If I create the Azure Functions Account and select "Add an Azure Files connection" for automated CI from GitHub, will it only generate costs if there are code changes from GitHub?

Jan 20 Reputation points

2024-11-14T15:09:01.8566667+00:00

sorry, it posted the comment twice

Marcin Policht 26,385 Reputation points MVP

2024-11-14T21:14:32.7933333+00:00

In short - no.

The Azure Functions Consumption Plan is a pay-per-use model, not a free tier, although it does have a generous free grant each month. Here’s how it works and how costs may apply with an Azure Files connection and CI integration:

Consumption Plan Costs:

The Consumption Plan is charged based on the execution count, execution time, and memory usage of the function. There is a free grant of 1 million executions and 400,000 GB-seconds of compute time per month.

After the free grant is exceeded, you'll incur charges based on usage. However, if your function’s usage is very low, it may effectively operate within the free allocation.

Automated CI and GitHub Triggers:

When you set up continuous integration (CI) with GitHub for an Azure Function, it automatically deploys updates from GitHub to Azure when there are code changes. However, you are only charged for function executions, not deployments or CI integration itself.

If your Azure Function is only triggered by certain events or scheduled conditions, it will only generate execution costs when those triggers occur, regardless of how often you update the code in GitHub.

Adding Azure Files Connection:

When you add an Azure Files connection to your Function, there may be additional costs for the storage service, depending on the amount of storage used and any access costs associated with reading or writing to Azure Files.

However, if the function rarely accesses the Azure Files connection, those additional costs will be minimal. Usage costs for Azure Files are separate from the Azure Functions Consumption Plan and are based on storage usage and data transactions.

In summary:

You’ll incur costs based on the actual executions of your Azure Function, not on deployments or changes in GitHub.

Azure Files usage could generate additional costs, but they are tied to storage usage and access frequency, not the frequency of code changes in GitHub.

As long as usage remains minimal, the Consumption Plan's free monthly grant may cover a significant portion, if not all, of the costs.

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin

Jan 20 Reputation points

2024-11-15T14:32:34.5566667+00:00

Thank you, I just want to enable Azure Files here because this allows automatic GitHub deployment under "deployment", so this will only cause costs with every new deployment from GitHub?

Marcin Policht 26,385 Reputation points MVP

2024-11-15T15:47:36.5633333+00:00

In short, yes

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin
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