OCI and Azure Interconnect Explained

Plenty of organisations run their applications on Azure but keep their data on Oracle Database, and for years that split meant either accepting Oracle on a less suitable platform or wiring the two clouds together over the public internet. The Oracle Interconnect for Microsoft Azure removes that compromise. It is a private, low latency link between OCI and Azure regions that lets you run the application tier on Azure and the database tier on OCI as if they sat in one network. This article explains how it works, what it costs, and when it is the right call.

It is part of our OCI vs hyperscalers series and builds on OCI vs Azure: full comparison and multicloud strategy with OCI.

What the interconnect actually is

The interconnect is a direct network connection established between an OCI region and a paired Azure region through both providers' dedicated connectivity services. On the OCI side it uses FastConnect, on the Azure side it uses ExpressRoute, and Oracle and Microsoft pre provision the cross connect between them in supported region pairs. The result is private routing between a virtual cloud network in OCI and a virtual network in Azure, with single digit millisecond latency and no traffic crossing the public internet.

How traffic flows

Once the link is in place, a workload running in an Azure virtual network can reach an Oracle Database, an Exadata service, or an Autonomous Database in OCI over private addresses. You configure routing and security on both ends, set up identity federation so the same users authenticate across both clouds, and from the application's point of view the database simply responds quickly over a private path. Microsoft and Oracle support the configuration jointly, which removes a common source of finger pointing when something between two vendors breaks.

Where the interconnect wins

The strongest case is an Oracle Database heavy estate where the application layer already lives on Azure or needs to for organisational reasons. Rather than running Oracle on Azure infrastructure, which carries licensing and performance tradeoffs, you place the database on OCI where it runs best and keep the app where the team wants it. It also suits phased migrations, where you move one tier at a time, and disaster recovery designs that span two providers.

What it costs

There is no charge for the interconnect link itself from Oracle in supported region pairs, though you pay for the FastConnect and ExpressRoute circuits that terminate it, and you pay each provider's egress where it applies. Because OCI egress pricing is low and generously allowanced, data flowing out of OCI toward Azure is rarely the bill driver. The economics usually compare very favourably against running Oracle on Azure infrastructure once licensing is included, which is the comparison that matters most.

Designing a healthy cross cloud estate

Bringing it together

The Oracle Interconnect for Microsoft Azure is the clean answer to a common problem: Azure for applications, OCI for Oracle data, joined by a private fast link with joint support. Design the region pairing and identity carefully and the two clouds behave as one. Continue with OCI vs Azure: full comparison, multicloud strategy with OCI and OCI networking vs AWS VPC. Our multicloud and hybrid practice designs and runs cross cloud estates.