Solutions // Gov Cloud
Gov Cloud
A government cloud built for work that cannot afford to get it wrong.
Working with the federal government or the Defense Industrial Base means your IT environment has to meet requirements that commercial cloud tools were never built for. Microsoft's government cloud products, including Azure Government, GCC, GCC High, and Microsoft Sentinel, give your organization infrastructure built to carry CUI, ITAR data, and other sensitive government workloads.
Picking the right environment and setting it up correctly is where most organizations get stuck. Sentinel Blue helps you figure out which Gov Cloud tier fits your organization, license it the right way, and keep it configured and defensible long after the migration is finished.
Top 300
Among the first contractors certified under CMMC Level 2
1st Try
CMMC Level 2 certification passed on the first assessment
3 Months
Fastest time to CMMC Level 2 certification achieved
What Is Gov Cloud?
Gov Cloud is the term Sentinel Blue uses for Microsoft's family of government cloud products. It includes Azure Government, the infrastructure layer built for federal, state, and defense workloads. It includes GCC and GCC High, the Microsoft 365 productivity environments licensed for government use. It includes Microsoft Sentinel, the cloud native SIEM that ties monitoring across the environment together.
These products are related, but they are not interchangeable, and none of them make your organization compliant on their own. Each one solves a different piece of the problem. Getting the combination right depends on the data you handle, the contracts you hold, and the people who need access.
A naming note: Gov Cloud is our term, not a Microsoft or Amazon product name. Amazon uses "GovCloud," written as one word, as the brand name for its own AWS GovCloud (US) regions. When you see it written that way elsewhere, that is usually a reference to Amazon's product, not the general category this page describes.
The Four Gov Cloud Solutions
Sentinel Blue supports the full Microsoft government cloud stack. Here is where each piece fits.
Gov Cloud
Microsoft 365
The productivity and collaboration tools your team already uses, licensed and managed for GCC or GCC High.
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Gov Cloud
Azure Government
Dedicated, FedRAMP High authorized cloud infrastructure for federal, state, and defense workloads.
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Gov Cloud
GCC High
The Microsoft 365 environment built for CUI, ITAR, and other export-controlled data.
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Gov Cloud
Microsoft Sentinel
Cloud native SIEM and security monitoring built into your Gov Cloud environment.
Learn More →
Why Sentinel Blue for Gov Cloud
Most providers can sell you a license. Few can tell you whether you need it, configure the environment correctly, and manage it once it is live. Sentinel Blue is a CMMC Third Party Assessment Organization, so the same standard our assessors hold other organizations to is the standard we build your Gov Cloud environment against.
Our Gov Cloud work covers the full lifecycle.
Licensing guidance across GCC, GCC High, and Azure Government
Migration from commercial Microsoft 365, on-premises systems, or another cloud provider
Tenant configuration, identity, and access management
Security hardening aligned to CMMC and NIST 800-171
Ongoing managed operations, monitoring, and support
Compliance documentation tied to your environment, not a template
FedRAMP Has Changed. Here Is Where It Stands.
You will still see Azure Government's own compliance pages describe a FedRAMP High Provisional Authorization to Operate issued by the FedRAMP Joint Authorization Board. That description has not caught up with the program.
The JAB was dissolved in 2024, and FedRAMP has since moved toward a single authorization model that no longer runs through a joint board or the old tiered P-ATO process. Microsoft's own materials still reference the legacy JAB language, and they are not the only vendor whose documentation has not been updated.
Azure Government's underlying FedRAMP High authorization has not gone away. The board and process that used to issue it have.
What This Means for You
When you are evaluating a cloud provider's compliance claims, focus on the current authorization status rather than the specific board or process name attached to it. Vendor marketing tends to lag behind program changes like this one, and FedRAMP's terminology has continued shifting since the JAB was dissolved.
Commercial, Government, or Secret?
Which Azure environment you need depends on the data you handle and who needs access to it.
| Environment | Best Fit | Compliance Ceiling |
|---|---|---|
| Azure Commercial | General business workloads and regulated workloads when commercial Azure services and customer requirements are appropriate | FedRAMP High is available for in-scope services in U.S. Azure public regions, along with a DoD Impact Level 2 authorization. Commercial Azure does not provide the same U.S.-person access commitments as Azure Government. |
| Azure Government | Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies and eligible partners handling CUI, export-controlled data, and other regulated workloads | FedRAMP High; DoD IL2, IL4, and IL5. Authorization scope varies by service, and additional isolation or access requirements may apply. |
| Azure Government Secret | DoD and federal classified workloads requiring Secret-level cloud services | DoD IL6, plus a JSIG Protection Level 3 (PL3) Authorization to Operate for classified Special Access Program environments. Access and tenancy are subject to sponsoring-agency and classified-environment requirements. |
Case Studies
Three defense contractors moved to GCC High with Sentinel Blue and passed their CMMC Level 2 assessment.
Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing
Win-Tech
Win-Tech is an AS9100-certified aerospace machine shop and defense manufacturer in Kennesaw, Georgia. Sentinel Blue migrated Win-Tech to GCC High, addressed manufacturing-specific security risks, and guided the team to CMMC Level 2 certification on the first try.
"I was confident that since SB had experience in the CMMC realm, we'd be fine, and I was right."
Allison Giddens, Co-Owner, Win-Tech
Read the Case Study →
Specialty Manufacturing, Navy Contractor
Level 1 Fasteners
Level 1 Fasteners has served military, aerospace, and medical customers for more than 60 years. Sentinel Blue moved the team to a GCC High hybrid environment, deployed a fully managed SOC, and helped them pass their CMMC Level 2 assessment in three months.
"Having Sentinel Blue explain all the technical details and how they apply to our environment was the support we needed when we were drowning."
Amanda Webb, Information Systems Security Officer, Level 1 Fasteners
Read the Case Study →
IT & Financial Services, DoD Contractor
PSI Pax
PSI Pax spent years preparing for CMMC before failing a gap assessment in late 2024. Sentinel Blue rebuilt the environment in a clean GCC High enclave, handled documentation and evidence, and got PSI Pax through their CMMC Level 2 assessment in a single day.
"This was something I'd been sweating about for three years. We were done on the first day."
Debra Hill-Cherry, CIO, PSI Pax
Read the Case Study →
What Our Clients Say
A few more words from the people who lived through it.
"We have always been impressed with Sentinel Blue, from the help desk to special projects to the SOC team and everyone in between."
Allison Giddens
Co-Owner, Win-Tech
"It's been a huge weight lifted to feel like I'm not by myself, I'm not in this alone. When I have questions about whether something new will comply with CMMC, the team is right there."
Debra Hill-Cherry
CIO, PSI Pax
"Andy will tell me things I didn't think to ask. He is a translator between business risk and security risk that is invaluable to a small business in the DIB."
Allison Giddens
Co-Owner, Win-Tech
Field Guides
Free, practical guidance for teams working through Gov Cloud and CMMC decisions.
Field Guide
Why You're Procrastinating Your CMMC Preparation (and What to Do About It Today)
Read the Guide →
Solution Briefs
Documents built to share with your leadership or your contracting officer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Gov Cloud?
Gov Cloud is Sentinel Blue's term for Microsoft's family of government cloud products, including Azure Government, GCC, GCC High, and Microsoft Sentinel. Each one is built for organizations that handle sensitive government data and cannot rely on commercial cloud tools alone.
What is the difference between GCC and GCC High?
GCC supports U.S. federal, state, local, and tribal government workloads with moderate compliance needs. GCC High adds the U.S. data residency, screened personnel, and controls needed for CUI, ITAR, and other export-controlled data.
Do I need Azure Government if I already have GCC High?
Not necessarily. GCC High runs on top of Azure Government infrastructure, so many organizations never manage Azure Government directly. You only need your own Azure Government environment if your workloads require Azure services beyond Microsoft 365.
Does Azure Government still get its FedRAMP authorization from the JAB?
No. The Joint Authorization Board (JAB) was dissolved in 2024, and FedRAMP has since moved to a single authorization model. Azure Government's FedRAMP High authorization is still valid, but the tiered P-ATO and JAB process that originally issued it no longer exists in its old form.
Does moving to Gov Cloud make my organization compliant?
No. Gov Cloud gives you an authorized foundation, but compliance depends on how the environment is configured, documented, and monitored. Licensing alone does not satisfy CMMC or NIST 800-171 requirements.
How long does a Gov Cloud migration take?
It depends on your current environment and the scope of your CUI, but Sentinel Blue clients have passed their CMMC Level 2 assessment in as little as three months after starting their program.
Get Started
Ready to Build the Right Gov Cloud Environment?
Whether you are licensing GCC High for the first time, migrating out of a commercial tenant, or inheriting an environment nobody configured correctly, Sentinel Blue can help you build it right and keep it that way.