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Security Architecture & Engineering – AWS vs. Azure – the differences.
AWS and Azure both want the same things — strong defenses and tight controls — but they go about it like two very different roommates. AWS is the one who builds everything from scratch, labels every shelf, and insists on a “my way or the highway” structure. Azure, on the other hand, is more like the roommate who loves central planning, keeps everything tied neatly to the Microsoft ecosystem, and makes sure governance feels like a group project.
Same goals (keep the house safe), but very different vibes in how they organize the locks, alarms, and rulebooks.
Here is a more detailed comparison of their differing approaches:
1. Architectural Foundation and Structure
The primary difference lies in how each platform structures the security boundary and physical reference model.
| Feature | AWS Security Reference Architecture (AWS SRA) | Azure Security Architecture |
|---|---|---|
| Core Organizational Model | Built explicitly around a mandatory multi-account strategy using AWS Organizations. | Structured around functional areas (Identity, Network, Data) and the pillars of the Azure Well-Architected Framework (Security, Reliability, etc.). |
| Reference Architecture Viewpoint | Uses a structural view of security, mapping services to six specific layers of the AWS environment: AWS organization, Organizational Unit (OU), AWS account, Network & content delivery, Principals, and Resources. | Focuses on security capabilities organized into functional areas (e.g., Identity and access management, Threat protection). |
| Dedicated Security Components | Mandates the use of specific dedicated accounts within the organization structure to enforce separation of duties and strong boundaries, such as the Security Tooling account (for monitoring, response, and delegated administration) and the Log Archive account (for immutable log ingestion). | Security controls are implemented centrally via governance tools (Azure Policy) and cloud-native components (Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Microsoft Sentinel) across subscriptions, rather than relying on a rigid set of dedicated security accounts. |
The AWS SRA relies on AWS Organizations as a foundational element, using OUs and dedicated accounts to provide robust boundaries and control between workloads, isolating production from development environments, or workloads handling different data classifications.
2. Centralized Governance and Service Deployment
Both architectures emphasize centralization, but they achieve it through different service mechanisms:
| Feature | AWS SRA Mechanisms | Azure Security Mechanisms |
|---|---|---|
| Centralizing Management | Heavily utilizes Delegated Administration functionality of AWS Organizations to register a specific member account (Security Tooling) as the administrator for many key security services (Security Hub, GuardDuty, Config, Macie, Inspector, Firewall Manager). | Employs Azure Policy and Azure Blueprints across the root management group to enforce policies, permissions, and standards across all subscriptions. |
| Architecture Bootstrap | Recommends using AWS Control Tower to set up and govern the multi-account environment, providing identity management, federated access, centralized logging, and pre-built guardrails (SCPs and Config rules). | Uses the Azure Well-Architected Framework's Security pillar, guiding organizations in designing workloads using defense-in-depth and Zero-Trust approaches. |
| Code Implementation | Provides an associated Infrastructure as Code (IaC) repository containing examples using AWS CloudFormation or Terraform to deploy the guidance and architecture patterns. | Encourages customers to embrace automation (DevOps, Observability, Automation) to streamline workflows and reduce human error. It specifically recommends adopting a secure DevOps approach (DevSecOps), integrating security into the software development lifecycle. |
3. Core Security Philosophy and Identity
While both champion the principle of least privilege, Azure explicitly guides its entire architecture using the Zero Trust model.
Azure's Identity-Centric Focus: Azure explicitly recommends changing the security focus from a network-centric approach to an identity-centric perimeter security approach. It is architecturally guided by the Zero-Trust Architecture (ZTA), which mandates continuous authentication and validation for every request, assuming no entity is inherently trusted. Microsoft Entra ID (formerly AAD) functions as the gatekeeper, managing SSO, MFA, and access control.
AWS's Multi-Layered Focus: AWS emphasizes layered defense or defense-in-depth by applying security controls at all six layers of the AWS technology stack (e.g., edge of network, VPC, instance, application, code). The concept of Zero Trust Access is categorized within the "Optimized" security maturity phase, indicating it as an advanced architectural goal, rather than a foundational guiding principle. Identity management is centralized using IAM Identity Center (often delegated to the Shared Services account).
How does all of the above add up?
Same goals, different rules.
AWS SRA is built to use the AWS account as the primary isolation and security boundary, around which all controls revolve, whereas Azure's architecture is built to use Identity (Microsoft Entra ID) as the primary control plane, enforced by the Zero Trust model.
In essence, the AWS SRA is like designing a skyscraper by first drawing the blueprint for its segregated, specialized floors (Org Management, Security Tooling, Application Accounts) and then bolting security services onto those predefined structural layers. In contrast, the Azure security architecture is like installing a rigorous, intelligent identity checkpoint system (Zero Trust/Entra ID) at every single door and gateway, using that system to govern a flexible structure of services and resources defined by compliant blueprints (Azure Policy/Blueprints).
back to more articlessecurity AWS AWS Account as Primary Boundary AWS Organizations Architecture Bootstrap Azure Azure Policy Centralized Governance Core Philosophy Dedicated Security Accounts Defense-in-Depth DevSecOps Gatekeeper Identity-Centric Perimeter Security Layered Security Least Privilege Log Archive Microsoft Entra ID Multi-Account Strategy SecDevOps SecOps Security Tooling ZTA Zero Trust Zero Trust Architecture guardrails. AWS Control Tower immutable ingestion Network Security secure engineering security architecture 2023
