Description:

Azure Private Endpoints provide secure, private connectivity to Azure services over the Microsoft backbone network. They eliminate exposure to the public internet by assigning a private IP address from your Virtual Network (VNet) to the service, improving security posture.


Rationale:

Using Private Endpoints reduces the attack surface by preventing public access to critical services such as Storage Accounts, SQL Databases, and Azure Key Vault. Traffic remains within the virtual network, supporting zero-trust principles and reducing the risk of data exfiltration and network-based attacks.


Impact:

Private Endpoints may increase cost slightly, require DNS configuration, and could impact applications if networking is not planned correctly.


Pre-requisites:

  • Contributor or Owner access to the subscription.

  • Existing Virtual Network and subnet.

  • Target service supports Private Endpoint (e.g., SQL, Storage, Web Apps, Key Vault).

  • DNS configuration via Private DNS Zones or custom DNS.

Test plan:

  1. Sign in to the Azure Portal at https://portal.azure.com

  2. Search for and open the target Azure resource (for example: Storage Account, SQL Server, PostgreSQL Server, or other supported services)

  3. From the left-hand menu, under settings, select Networking

  4. Under the private access section

  5. Verify that at least one Private Endpoint is configured and associated with the resource

  6. If no Private Endpoint is configured and the service supports it, follow the implementation steps

Implementation Steps:

  1. Sign in to the Azure Portal

  2. Search for and open Azure SQL Server

  3. Select the target SQL Server

  4. Under the settings, Open Networking

                                  

  1. Under the private access, Click + Private endpoint

  1. Enter a Private endpoint name

  2. Select the Subscription and Resource group

  3. For Resource type, confirm Microsoft. SQL/servers is selected

  4. Select the target SQL Server as the resource

  5. Choose the Virtual network and Subnet

  6. Configure Private DNS integration (recommended to enable)

  7. Review the configuration and click Create

Backout Plan:

  1. Sign in to the Azure Portal at https://portal.azure.com

  2. Search for and open the target Azure SQL Server

  3. From the left menu, select Networking

  4. Open Private endpoint connections

  5. Select the private endpoint associated with the SQL Server

  6. Delete the private endpoint connection

  7. Confirm the deletion


References: