Overcoming Cloud Outages Like the Microsoft Outage with Machine Learning and Cloud Technologies

Abstract

Cloud platforms play a pivotal role in modern businesses because they enable flexible allocation of resources, instant scalability, seamless access to services and software, and provide a conducive environment for a business to flourish. However, recent outages such as the one that affected Microsoft services in September 2024 brought about a sense of vulnerability, especially when these outages are precipitated by third-party network failures, resulting in extensive downtime, revenue loss, and operational disruptions to businesses using cloud services to support their operations. This paper addresses the need for employing machine learning and advanced cloud technologies to predict, detect, and mitigate third-party outages, thereby preserving the continuity and resilience of the cloud infrastructure. Predictive analytics, anomaly detection, automated response systems and self-healing mechanisms can be used by cloud vendors to proactively avoid outages and minimize the occurrence of inevitable perturbations.