There are a number of options for using Azure for free.  This is very useful for those of you who are not familiar with Azure and want to “play” with it:

• Create a free Azure account and get $200 in free credit: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/free/
• Eligible startups can join BizSpark and get $750/month free Azure or join BizSpark Plus and get $120k/year free Azure: https://www.microsoft.com/bizspark/
• If you have a Visual Studio Enterprise subscription (MSDN) you get $150/month free Azure (other subscriptions available with less per month): https://www.visualstudio.com/subscriptions/
• You can apply for a Microsoft Azure for Research Grant, which awards large allocations of cloud computing for your research project: http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/projects/azure/default.aspx
• Microsoft Imagine (formerly known as DreamSpark and MSDN-AA) has an option called “Microsoft Azure for Students” that gives you free access to a number of products: https://imagine.microsoft.com/en-us/Catalog/Product/99