May 20, 2011 11:08 GMT  ·  By

Customers that want to give Microsoft’s Cloud platform a try can do so without paying a single cent. The Redmond company has launched the “Try Windows Azure Platform 30 Day Pass” special deal, stressing that the offer is designed especially to let developers, partners, IT professionals, etc. test its Cloud offerings free of charge.

The promise from Microsoft is that testers will get to play around with technologies including Windows Azure and SQL Azure, but also additional services.

“For those IT Professionals who would like to get more familiar with what Windows Azure is, but don’t know how to get a free test account, I have some good news for you. We are offering a Free 30 Day Windows Azure Pass so you can play around with the environment,” revealed Microsoft’s Harold Wong.

“Once you get your account, I encourage you to sign up for the beta of VM Role and Admin Mode so you can test these two features that will be releasing later this year. You sign up for these betas via the Windows Azure Platform Management Portal once your free account is active.”

The promo code that customers need to leverage is DPEWR02, which they can enter as soon as they select their country of residence. Testers needn’t worry, Windows Azure is available internationally in a range of markets.

As far as special Windows Azure deals go, customers might have heard of the Windows Azure Platform Introductory Special, also available free of charge.

The difference is that for the free 30 Day Windows Azure Pass no credit card is required, whereas for the Windows Azure Platform Introductory Special, customers need to provide their credit card data, and can even be charged unless they keep usage under specific limits imposed by Microsoft.

In addition to the DPEWR02 promo code, customers will also be required to have a valid Windows Live ID in order to take advantage of the free 30 Day Windows Azure Pass.