Microsoft has unveiled Azure Container Service, a new service for its Azure cloud-computing platform that is based on Kubernetes – a popular open-source cloud technology created by Google.
Kubernetes is a software project that started as a way to manage massive server infrastructure and has since become a tool for modern software developers.
While leading Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure offer Kubernetes support, Google Cloud prides itself on being the best place to use the software, since it was invented there.
Now, with Azure Container Service, Microsoft is betting that Azure can beat Google Cloud in the Kubernetes game. Azure Container Service makes it easier for customers to run Kubernetes at scale, with enhanced management and maintenance tools. It's currently available in beta.
Containers are transportable frameworks that developers can package their software programs into. They ensure that applications run the same way regardless of the computers that run them, whether they are laptops, servers, data centers, or cloud platforms.
In a sense, it's a big deal for Google that Kubernetes has become the standard in this space. However, with competitors Amazon and Microsoft betting big on Kubernetes, the onus is on Google to make sure that the technology it invented actually gives it an edge in the cloud wars.
