On October 29, 2025, Microsoft Azure experienced a major global outage that disrupted several of its core services, including Microsoft 365, Xbox Live, and Minecraft. The disruption also affected numerous businesses and public services relying on Azure’s infrastructure for their cloud operations.
The outage began around 16:00 UTC and quickly spread across multiple regions, interrupting cloud-based operations, login services, and traffic routing. Microsoft confirmed the issue originated from a configuration error in the Azure Front Door (AFD) network — the platform responsible for global content delivery and traffic management.
What Caused the Outage
According to Microsoft’s engineering team, a routine configuration update led to routing errors within Azure Front Door, causing global service degradation. The issue resulted in timeouts and connection failures for many web applications and enterprise services built on Azure’s network.
Azure’s App Service, SQL Database, Virtual Desktop, and Container Registry were among the most affected components. Microsoft’s internal services, such as Outlook, Teams, and the Microsoft Store, also faced partial downtime during the event.
Global Businesses Affected
The ripple effects extended far beyond Microsoft’s ecosystem. Major companies including Starbucks, Costco, Vodafone UK, and Alaska Airlines reported operational slowdowns or temporary outages. The disruption highlighted how dependent global organizations have become on cloud platforms like Azure for daily operations.
Users across social platforms and outage trackers reported difficulty accessing online portals, payment systems, and entertainment services. At the height of the incident, tens of thousands of outage reports were logged worldwide.
Microsoft’s Response and Recovery
Microsoft quickly rolled back the faulty configuration and began rerouting traffic through stable endpoints. By 00:40 UTC on October 30, Azure’s availability had returned to over 98%, with ongoing monitoring ensuring full stabilization.
While most services have since recovered, Microsoft acknowledged that some users might still experience slower response times or degraded functionality in select regions as recovery efforts continue.
The Broader Implications
The Azure outage serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of large-scale cloud infrastructures. A single misconfiguration can trigger cascading effects across thousands of dependent systems, affecting not only Microsoft’s services but also those of companies worldwide.
As reliance on cloud computing continues to grow, industry experts emphasize the need for redundant systems, regional backups, and multi-cloud resilience strategies to prevent widespread disruption from similar incidents in the future.
