Windows AZURE

The Azure is the Windows operative system designed for “Cloud”.  It is a scalable platform
which provide support for: Live Services, .NET services, SQL Services, SharePoint Services and  Dynamics CRM Services.

If provides a life cycle management of services and applications in the cloud. It is important that Azure does not only manage server. Moreover it also manages services.

NET Services are a set of Microsoft-hosted, highly scalable, developer-oriented services that provide key building blocks required by many cloud-based and cloud-aware applications. Much like the .NET Framework provides higher-level class libraries that make developers more productive, .NET Services allows a developer to focus on their application logic as opposed to building and deploying their own cloud-based infrastructure services. Learn more about Microsoft .NET Services.

.NET Services = Service Bus + Access Control + Workflo Services

Microsoft SQL Services delivers on Microsoft’s Data Platform vision of extending the SQL Server capabilities in cloud as web-based services. It enables you to store data from structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data. SQL Services will deliver a rich set of integrated services that enable you to perform relational queries, search, reporting, analytics, integration and synchronize data with mobile users, remote offices and business partners. Currently, SQL Services offers relational database service called Microsoft® SQL Data Services. Other services will be available in future. Learn more about Microsoft SQL Services.

SQL Services = Database + DataSync + Reporting + DataMining + ETL + Reference Data

http://portal.ex.azure.microsoft.com/

Andreas has posted few intersting slides.