Microsoft Reports Outage of Some Office and Cloud Services

July 30, 2024 by and

Updated: July 30, 3 p.m. EDT

Microsoft Corp. said it has started to resolve an outage affecting its Azure cloud service.

The issue resulted from an unexpected usage surge, according to a status page with live updates on the incident. An outage that disabled mobile ordering at Starbucks Corp. for hours on Tuesday was also connected to the issues affecting Azure, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Microsoft said it will continue monitoring the situation until the outage has been resolved and will provide more updates throughout the afternoon.

Reports of outages on Azure and Microsoft 365 began to spike shortly after 7 a.m. Tuesday New York time and comprised hundreds of complaints at the incident’s peak, according to user reports compiled by Downdetector.

The issue affected multiple Microsoft 365 services and features, Microsoft said in a post on social network X. Microsoft 365 includes common productivity applications like Outlook, Word and Excel.

Mobile ordering for Starbucks has largely been restored, according to a statement issued about 1 p.m. New York time. The company is working to address limited interruptions that continue, a spokesperson said.

Earlier this month, some 8 million computers running on the Windows operating system crashed after the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. released a flawed software update. In addition, Microsoft has also been grappling with the fallout from a series of cyberattacks that prompted the US government to issue a scathing report calling for company-wide changes.

Microsoft is scheduled to report earnings Tuesday afternoon, with investors looking for signs that the company is starting to monetize its investments in artificial intelligence.

Posted July 30, 10:10 a.m. EDT

Microsoft Corp. said it’s investigating outages of some Office applications and cloud services.

“We are investigating reports of issues connecting to Microsoft services globally,” the company wrote in an update on a site to monitor accessibility of its Azure cloud services Tuesday. The issue is also impacting multiple Microsoft 365 services and features, Microsoft said in a post on social network X Tuesday morning. Microsoft 365 includes common productivity applications like Outlook, Word and Excel.

Users may be either unable to access the apps, or experience worsened connection or performance, the company said in a message to customers seen by Bloomberg. Reports of outages on Azure and Microsoft 365 began to spike shortly after 7 a.m. New York time and comprised hundreds of complaints as of 9:40 a.m., according to user reports compiled by Downdetector.

Earlier this month, some 8 million computers running on the Windows operating system crashed after the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. released a flawed software update. In addition, Microsoft has also been grappling with the fallout from a series of cyberattacks that prompted the US government to issue a scathing report calling for company-wide changes.

Microsoft is scheduled to report earnings Tuesday afternoon, with investors looking for signs that the company is starting to monetize its investments in artificial intelligence.

Photo: Mark Kauzlarich/Bloomberg