Azure Policy

Azure Policy manages maintaining consistent resource governance and compliance at scale within Azure environments. The technical architecture of Azure Policy revolves around creating, assigning, and managing policy definitions that enforce organizational standards and regulatory requirements.

At its core, Azure Policy uses JSON-based policy definitions that include elements such as displayName, description, mode, version, metadata, parameters, and policyRule. These definitions specify conditions under which policies are enforced and the effects that take place if those conditions are met, such as audit, deny, or modify actions.

Policy assignments can be applied at various scopes, including management groups, subscriptions, and resource groups, ensuring that all resources within those scopes adhere to the defined policies. Azure Policy also integrates with other Azure services, such as Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Key Vault, and Log Analytics, to manage settings and objects more deeply.

Key operational considerations include the use of policy parameters to simplify policy management by reducing the number of policy definitions needed. Parameters can be defined during policy creation and reused with different values when assigning policies, making the process more flexible and efficient.

Automated remediation is another crucial aspect, allowing for bulk remediation of existing non-compliant resources and ensuring that new resources are configured correctly from the outset. This is achieved through the Azure portal, PowerShell, or Azure CLI, minimizing the need for manual intervention.

However, there are limitations to consider. Policy evaluation can be triggered by various actions, and while real-time enforcement is a strength, the complexity of large-scale environments can lead to performance considerations. Additionally, managing multiple versions of built-in policy definitions requires careful versioning to ensure the correct policy is applied.

In terms of specific technical details, Azure Policy supports multiple policy effects, including audit, deny, and modify, with versioning formatted as {Major}.{Minor}.{Patch}. The service also ensures that all data and objects are encrypted at rest, aligning with Azure's broader security and compliance principles.