• Installation of the Azure CLI (Please refer to the first series for further guidance).

• To finish the tasks in this tutorial, you may alternatively use Azure Cloud Shell if you'd like. Through your browser, you may interact with the Azure Cloud Shell environment. This is with the assumption that there is an existing Azure account.

  Use one of these techniques to launch Cloud Shell:

  1. Go to CloudShell web to launch Cloud Shell.

     

  2. You can also access the CloudShell from the Azure Portal.

In the top right corner of the Azure portal, click the Cloud Shell icon.

1. Follow these steps if you are using a local installation of the Azure CLI on your system:

• Open the Window PowerShell on your local computer.

• Use the az login command to log in, then follow the instructions in your terminal to finish the authentication procedure.

  

  This shows that you have access to your Azure subscription from your local computer.

  AZURE RESOURCE CREATION USING CLI.

  When creating a new Azure resource, typically, there are three high-level steps:

  1. Connect to your Azure subscription.

  2. Create the resource.

  3. Verify that creation was successful.

Source: Microsoft Learn.

1. Connect

Because you're working with a local Azure CLI installation, you'll need to authenticate before you can execute Azure commands.

You do it by using the Azure CLI login command:

Azure CLICopy

az login

Azure CLI will typically launch your default browser to open the Azure sign-in page.

If it doesn't work, follow the command-line instructions, and enter an authorization code in the Enter Code dialog box.

After a successful sign-in, you'll be connected to your Azure subscription. This step has been taken in the prerequisite guideline earlier.

2. Create

You'll often need to create a new resource group before you create a new Azure service. So we'll use resource groups as an example to show how to create Azure resources from the Azure CLI. The Azure CLI "group create" command creates a resource group.

Take note of the following:

• You need to specify a name and location in the command you are to run.

• The name parameter must be unique within your subscription.

• The location parameter determines where the metadata for your resource group will be stored.

• You use strings like "West US," "North Europe," or "West India" to specify the location.

• Instead, you can use single-word equivalents, such as "westus," "northeurope," or "westindia."

The core syntax to create a resource group is:

az group create --name <name> --location <location>

Modify this command syntax and run it on the CLI in your local system through the Powershell tool.

Example: To create a resource group, take the name of the resource group to be "AzureCLIDemo" and the location to be "uksouth".

az group create --name AzureCLIDemo --location uksouth

Copy and run the command.

Check out these resources from the Azure portal for confirmation

3. Verify installation

For many Azure resources, Azure CLI provides a list subcommand to get resource details. For example, the Azure CLI group list command lists your Azure resource groups. It's helpful to verify whether resource group creation was successful not necessarily by confirmation from the Azure Portal but with CLI. Run the below command to verify your installation.

az group list

You will be able to see the list of the resource groups in your Azure environment.

To get more concise information, you can format the output as a simple table:

az group list --output table

If you have several items in the group list, you can filter the return values by adding a query option using, for example, the following command:

az group list --query "[?name == '<rg name>']"

Take "DefaultResourceGroup-EUS" for example from the list resource group listed above. modify the above command and run to verify the item in the resource group.

az group list --query "[?name == 'DefaultResourceGroup-EUS']"

There are no resources in the resources group. Otherwise, It would have been specified.

Using Azure CLI in scripts

To use Azure CLI commands in scripts, you'll need to be aware of any issues around the shell or environment you use to run the script. For example, in a bash shell, you can use the following syntax when setting variables:

Azure CLI

variable="value"
variable=integer

If you use a PowerShell environment for running Azure CLI scripts, you'll need to use the following syntax for variables:

PowerShell.

$variable="value"
$variable=integer

Exercise 2: Creating Virtual Machines(VM) with Azure CLI.

In Creating Azure VM, the first step is to create the resource group the VM will reside in. As established in the first exercise, we created a resource group with the command below.

az group create --name AzureCLIDemo --location uksouth

Now, let's deploy a virtual machine. We'll use a simple Ubuntu Server image for this example with running the below command.

We must take note of every component of the command to be used to create the VM with the CLI. The components of the command script are:

• az vm create: This is an indication of what we want to our intention which is to create VM.

• --resource-group AzureCLIDemo: This is an indication that we intend to have the VM located in the specified resource named "AzureCLIDemo".

• --name CLIVM: This is indicative of the name given to the VM to be created which is "CLIVM".
  --image ubuntu2204: This is the specified operating system of the VM to be created which Linux VM.
  --admin-username azureuser: This is to specify the Username of the VM user.
  --admin-password Password12345: This is to specify the password that would be used to access the VM by the user.

  Putting everything together will give you the below command script. Copy this command line and run it on Azure Powershell.

az vm create --resource-group AzureCLIDemo --name CLIVM --image ubuntu2204 --admin-username azureuser --admin-password Password123#

Running the above Command on Powershell will give you the below result

Now you have created the VM. How do you access the VM Created?

Accessing Azure VM Through the CLI Interface.

To access the VM you have created, Let us assume that you do not know vital information about the created VM except for the name of the VM and the resource group. You need to follow the following steps.

1. Access the Public IP address of the VM from the Azure portal.

   

2. Use SSH to connect to the Linux VM:

   Run the following command, with the VM Public IP address obtained from the Azure portal: ssh azureuser@172.167.66.55

   Type "yes" in response to the question of authentication and input your password.

You will get access to the Linux VM you have created in your Azure Environment.

You will agree with me that this has been an intresting practical learning on the Usage of Azure CLI for resource deployment. In subsequent series, we would delve more into hands on practical learning of this topic. Looking forward to learning with you in the next series of the Topic.

Azure CLI Vs Azure PowerShell.

Azure CLI (Command-Line Interface) and Azure PowerShell are both tools provided by Microsoft for interacting with Azure services and resources, but they have different approaches and are suited for different preferences and use cases. It has been discovered that new users of the command scripting tools take one for the other and there is a need to have a comparative analysis of the two to get an understanding of what each of them represents.

In practice, many users use a combination of both Azure CLI and Azure PowerShell based on their specific needs and preferences. They are complementary tools rather than mutually exclusive, and the choice often depends on the task at hand.

When choosing which command-line tool is right for you, consider your experience and what type of environment you work in. If you are primarily a Linux administrator, the Azure CLI syntax is similar to Bash scripting. Learning Azure CLI may feel more natural than learning Azure PowerShell.

The Azure CLI follows a syntax where each command begins with the reference name "az" followed by the name of a resource. After the reference name is the command name, which designates which resource you are working with. Finally, many commands also have parameters for passing values, such as a resource group name.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS.

Choosing Between Azure CLI and Azure PowerShell:

• Preference and Familiarity:

  Choose the tool that aligns with your personal preference and existing skills. If you are more comfortable with Bash and a cross-platform experience, Azure CLI might be preferable. If you are familiar with PowerShell and work primarily in a Windows environment, Azure PowerShell might be a better fit.

• Scripting Needs:

  Consider the scripting needs of your workflow. Both Azure CLI and Azure PowerShell are powerful scripting tools, but if you are already invested in PowerShell scripting, Azure PowerShell might offer a more natural fit.

• Cross-Platform Requirements:

  If you need to work in a cross-platform environment, Azure CLI is a strong choice. It works consistently across different operating systems.

• Integration with Existing Tools:

  Consider the integration requirements with other tools and processes. If you are already using PowerShell extensively, Azure PowerShell might seamlessly fit into your existing workflows.

This is the end of this series on the Azure CLI Topic. Watch out for the final series of the Topic on the next publication of The Tech Merchant Blog.

All along, we have done so much concerning Azure resource management and deployment using the "Azure Portal" otherwise known as the GUI which means "Graphical User Interface". The Azure portal or the GUI is used at the elementary level when you are newly introduced to resource management and deployment on Azure.

However, In the real-world scenario when there is a need to have massive resource management as a professional Azure cloud solution architect or as a power user of the Azure cloud, the GUI becomes tedious and cumbersome as a result of having to click through all the menu on the portal. This is when it becomes necessary to have a more efficient tool that can bring about automation to your activities and make you more effective and efficient in your activities on Azure. This tool is what is known as the Azure Command Line Interface or simply Azure CLI. This learning will be in series as we have a lot to learn on this topic. Highlighted below are the sub-topics we would be looking at.

• Overview of Azure CLI: What is Azure CLI?

• Features of Azure CLI

• Using Azure CLI without Installation

• How to Install Azure CLI: Emphasis on Windows OS.

• Azure CLI Vs Azure PowerShell

• Managing Resources with Azure CLI.

 Interactive Mode in Azure CLI

 Signing/Logging into Azure

 Selecting an Azure Subscription

 Creating Resources Using Azure CLI

 Role Assignment

 Querying

 Debugging.

Overview of Azure CLI: What is Azure CLI?

According to the Microsoft Learn document, the Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI) is a cross-platform command-line tool to connect to Azure and execute administrative commands on Azure resources. It allows the execution of commands and task automation through a terminal using interactive command-line prompts or a script. Azure CLI interacts with the Azure Resource Manager (ARM) service, which is the management layer to interact with resources in your account.

Azure CLI could be installed locally on Linux, Mac, or Windows computers. It can also be used from a browser through the Azure Cloud Shell or run from inside a Docker container.

Features of Azure Command Line Interface.

Azure CLI comes with a variety of features that make it efficient and flexible for interacting with Azure. Here are some key features of Azure CLI:

1. Cross-Platform Compatibility:

   Azure CLI is designed to work seamlessly across different operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. This cross-platform compatibility ensures a consistent experience for users regardless of their preferred development environment.

2. Interactive Mode:

   Azure CLI provides an interactive mode (az interactive) that allows users to explore and manage Azure resources in a more user-friendly and guided manner. This mode simplifies the process of executing commands and managing resources interactively.

3. Scripting and Automation:

   Azure CLI is scriptable and supports various scripting languages, including Bash and PowerShell. This enables users to automate repetitive tasks, create scripts for resource provisioning, and integrate Azure CLI into their automation workflows.

4. Rich Command Set:

   Azure CLI offers a comprehensive set of commands that cover a wide range of Azure services and functionalities. Users can manage resources related to computing, storage, networking, databases, security, identity, and more, all through the command-line interface.

5. Output Formats:

   Azure CLI provides multiple output formats for command results, including table, JSON, YAML, and others. Users can customize the output format based on their preferences or integrate Azure CLI into other tools and processes.

6. Built-in Help and Documentation:

   Azure CLI includes built-in help features that provide detailed information about commands, parameters, and usage. Users can use the --help option with any command to access quick help, and they can refer to the comprehensive Azure CLI documentation for more in-depth information.

7. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC):

   Azure CLI integrates with Azure's RBAC system, allowing users to manage access permissions to Azure resources. Users can assign roles and permissions to individuals or groups, controlling who can perform specific actions on Azure resources.

8. Azure Resource Manager (ARM) Integration:

   Azure CLI is closely integrated with Azure Resource Manager, enabling users to deploy and manage resources using ARM templates. This integration supports the declarative deployment of infrastructure as code.

9. Azure Cloud Shell Integration:

   Azure CLI is available in the Azure Cloud Shell, a browser-based shell environment provided by Azure. Users can access Azure CLI directly from the Azure portal without installing any software locally.

10. Extensibility:

    Azure CLI is extensible, allowing users to install and use additional command modules and extensions. This extensibility enhances the capabilities of Azure CLI, providing support for new Azure services and features.

11. Global and Resource-Specific Commands:

    Azure CLI commands are organized into global commands and resource-specific commands. Global commands are used for tasks that are not tied to a specific resource, while resource-specific commands are used for managing specific Azure resources.

12. Azure DevOps Integration:

    Azure CLI can be easily integrated into Azure DevOps pipelines, enabling users to automate the deployment and management of Azure resources as part of their continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) processes.

These features collectively make Azure CLI a versatile and powerful tool for managing Azure resources efficiently and automating various aspects of the cloud workflow.

Azure CLI Usage without Installation

One of the best features of this cross-platform is its ability to run on a web browser. So users don’t need to install it on their devices. Just opening the browser and typing in AzureCLI web link will land you right into Azure CLI.

It can also be accessed from the Microsoft Azure mobile app. After logging in using the Azure account in the app, users can click on Cloud Shell to launch the CLI where the Power shell and bash interface could be assessed.

How to Install Azure CLI: Emphasis on Windows OS.

This CLI is available on a variety of platforms, including macOS, Linux, and Docker containers. Azure CLI being cross-platform has the huge advantage of collaboration with users who are accustomed to different platforms. The user can install CLI on the OS of his/her own choice. For this learning, our focus will be on InstallinG Azure CLI on Windows OS.

You can download Azure CLI on Windows in two ways – using a standard Windows MSI installer or through Windows PowerShell.

1. Installing Azure CLI With MSI Installer:

Download the MSI installer and save it to your preferred folder.

• Then, click on the downloaded file and accept all of the settings in the MSI installation wizard.

  

  

  Wait for the installation process to be complete.

  

• Make sure that the Azure CLI is operational after you’ve installed it. To do so, run Windows PowerShell and use the "az --version" parameter to check the version.

  2 Installing Azure CLI Using The window PowerShell.

  Windows PowerShell can be used to download and install the Azure CLI MSi.

  • Run the Windows PowerShell as Administrator.

  • Copy and paste the following commands into the PowerShell terminal.

First Download the MSI by running the command below on PowerShell.

• 
       Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://aka.ms/installazurecliwindows -OutFile .\AzureCLI.msiInvoke the MSI installer suppressing all outpu
  

Invoke the MSI installer to suppress all output

     Start-Process msiexec.exe -Wait -ArgumentList '/I AzureCLI.msi /quiet'

Running this command downloads the CLI installer and installs it. If you have it already installed, this command updates it.

After installation make sure it is operational. To do so, in the Windows Power

Shell terminal, use the "az --version" parameter to check the version.

• With the steps taken so far, Azure CLI has been installed on your local system and It could be assessed through the Powershell windows on your system.

  This will mark the end of this series of learning on Azure CLI. In the next series, we will be looking at other features and capabilities of Azure CLI and how it is being used to efficiently manage and deploy Azure resources.

In Today's learning, we are looking at the Virtual Machine Scale Set (VMSS) which is a complementary Azure service or resource to Azure Compute Gallery.

What is a Virtual Machine Scale Set (VMSS)

It is a high-availability service provided by Microsoft Azure that enables you to deploy and manage a group of identical virtual machines (VMs) as a single unit. VMSS is designed to simplify the deployment and management of applications that require scalability, high availability, and load balancing.

Why use Virtual Machine Scale Sets?

To provide redundancy and improved performance, applications are typically distributed across multiple instances. Customers may access your application through a load balancer that distributes requests to one of the application instances. If you need to perform maintenance or update an application instance, your customers must be distributed to another available application instance. To keep up with extra customer demand, you may need to increase the number of application instances that run your application.

Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets provide management capabilities for applications that run across many VMs, automatic scaling of resources, and load balancing of traffic. Scale sets provide the following key benefits:

1. Scalability: VMSS allows you to automatically adjust the number of VM instances in the scale set based on metrics like CPU utilization, memory usage, or custom-defined application metrics. This automatic scaling ensures that your application can handle varying workloads efficiently.

2. Load Balancing: VMSS instances are automatically load-balanced, distributing incoming network traffic across all VM instances in the scale set. This helps improve the availability and performance of your application.

3. High Availability: VMSS distributes VM instances across multiple fault domains and updates domains to ensure high availability. In the event of hardware failures or planned maintenance, your application remains accessible.

4. Rolling Updates: You can perform rolling updates on VMSS instances to apply OS updates, security patches, or application changes without causing downtime. VM instances are updated in small batches to maintain application availability.

5. Custom Images: You can create custom VM images with the desired configuration and software stack, which can be used to deploy VM instances within the scale set. This allows you to maintain consistency across VM instances.

6. Automatic Instance Replacement: VMSS monitors the health of individual VM instances. If an instance becomes unhealthy due to application issues, it can be automatically replaced to maintain the desired level of availability.

7. Integration with Azure Services: VMSS integrates seamlessly with other Azure services like Azure Load Balancer, Azure Monitor, Azure Auto-Scaling, and Azure Virtual Network, allowing you to build comprehensive and resilient cloud applications.

8. Stateless Workloads: VMSS is particularly well-suited for stateless workloads like web applications, microservices, and batch processing, where multiple identical instances can serve requests independently.

9. Global Deployment: You can deploy VMSS instances in multiple Azure regions to build globally distributed applications, ensuring low latency access for users worldwide.

10. Cost Optimization: VMSS helps optimize costs by automatically scaling down during periods of low demand and scaling up when demand increases, ensuring that you only pay for the resources you need.

Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets provide a powerful tool for achieving scalability and high availability for your applications in the Azure cloud. They simplify infrastructure management and allow you to focus on delivering a reliable and performant application to your users.

Steps By Steps Guidelines on How To Create Azure VMSS.

In creating a VMSS in the Azure environment, you need to have the following prerequisites.

1. A parent Virtual Machine

2. A compute gallery with the captured image of the Virtual Machine.

Click on Gallery on the Azure portal.

Look out for the image definition of the parent VM that was created in the gallery and click.

Look out for "Create VMSS" and click.

On the Project detail part, Look out for the subscription and resource group in which you have your Virtual Machine and select.

Move to the Scale set details part and give a name to the VMSS, Select the region and availability zone(s) you want the VMSS located.

Move to the Orchestration session and select the flexible orchestration option. It is important to understand the differences and implications of each of the orchestration options.

Scale sets with Uniform orchestration

In this mode, Virtual Machine Scale Sets use a VM profile or a template to scale up to the desired capacity. While there is some ability to manage or customize individual VM instances, Uniform uses identical VM instances. These instances are exposed through the Virtual Machine Scale Sets VM APIs and are not compatible with the standard Azure IaaS VM API commands. Since the scale set performs all the actual VM operations, reservations are associated with the Virtual Machine Scale Set directly. Once the scale set is associated with the reservation, all the subsequent VM allocations are done against the reservation.

Scale sets with Flexible orchestration

This scale set option helps achieve high availability at scale with identical or multiple virtual machine types. With Flexible orchestration, Azure provides a unified experience across the Azure VM ecosystem. Flexible orchestration offers high availability guarantees (up to 1000 VMs) by spreading VMs across fault domains in a region or within an Availability Zone. This enables you to scale out your application while maintaining fault domain isolation that is essential to run quorum-based or stateful workloads, including:

• Quorum-based workloads

• Open-Source databases

• Stateful applications

• Services that require High Availability and large-scale

• Services that want to mix virtual machine types or Spot and on-demand VMs

• Existing Availability Set applications.

It is also important to note that the orchestration mode is defined when you create the scale set and cannot be changed or updated later.

Scroll down to the "Instance Details" part and take note that the image definition of the VM captured in the gallery has been included in the drop-down of the Image. Ensure you select the option of the excelGallery image.

On the part of the size, choose to ensure that the option selected is suitable for business needs.

In the Administrator Account session, you will notice that Administrator profiling was blank out. This is because we chose a specialised operating system when we were creating the compute gallery.

On the Spot page, Leave everything to default.

Leave every configuration here to default.

Leave the virtual network configuration to default and scroll down to create a load balancer for the VMSS.

What is a Load Balancer in VMSS Creation:

Azure Load Balancer is a highly available and scalable network load-balancing service provided by Microsoft Azure. It plays a crucial role in distributing incoming network traffic across multiple virtual machines (VMs) or instances to ensure the high availability, reliability, and scalability of applications hosted on Azure. Azure Load Balancer is a critical component for ensuring the availability and scalability of applications and services hosted on the Azure cloud platform. It can be used for a wide range of scenarios, from web applications to multi-tiered architectures, and helps maintain a high level of service availability for your applications. Scroll down to create a load balancer.

Depending on the source of traffic to your Azure resources, Select Public if the traffic would be from an external source and Internal if the traffic is within a private LAN environment.

Leave other configurations to default.

Select Create and move to the scaling page. On the Scaling policy option, select custom scaling policy to enable auto-scaling of instances based on metrics that will be predetermined. Otherwise, choose the Manual scaling policy option.

Select the determinant metric in situations that would warrant either scaling in or out accordingly.

Make other configurations based on your unique scenario and click on next to access the management page.

Leave every configuration to default and click next to the health page.

On the Health page, allow for application health monitoring and automatic repairs accordingly and click on next to access the advanced page.

Leave everything here to default and click on review and create.

Upon successful review, click on Create.

Click on Go to Resources to access the VMSS.

You have your VMSS created.

Compare the configuration of your VMSS with that of the Parent Virtual machine to ensure that they have similar configuration. You can do this by checking if the data disk in the parent VM is also available in the VMSS.

All thing being equal, you should have the same configuration on both the Parent VM and each of the Instances in the VMSS.

This is the end of the Virtal Machine Scale Set learning. I hope you found this learning informative. Stay tune for other Intersting and informative topic on Azure cloud infrastructure.

What is Azure Compute Gallery:

According to Microsoft, Azure Compute Gallery is a service that helps you build structure and organization around your Azure resources, like pre-configured images; and applications. It provides global replication, versioning and grouping of resources for easier management. You can share your resources with everyone or limit sharing to different users, service principals, or AD groups within your organization. Resources can be replicated to multiple regions for quicker scaling of your deployments.

Functions and Benefits Of Azure Compute Gallery.

Scaling:

Azure Compute Gallery allows you to specify the number of replicas you want to keep. This helps in multi-VM deployment scenarios as the VM deployments can be spread to different replicas reducing the chance of instance creation processing being throttled due to overloading of a single replica. You can set a different replica count in each target region, based on the scale needs for the region. Since each replica is a copy of your resource, this helps scale your deployments linearly with each extra replica.

Global Replication:

Azure Compute Gallery also allows you to replicate your resources to other Azure regions automatically. Each image version can be replicated in different regions depending on what makes sense for your organization.

Highly availability of resources with Zone Redundant Storage (ZRS):

Azure Zone Redundant Storage (ZRS) provides resilience against an Availability Zone failure in the region. With the general availability of Azure Compute Gallery, you can choose to store your images in ZRS accounts in regions with Availability Zones. You can also choose the account type for each of the target regions. The default storage account type is Standard_LRS, but you can choose Standard_ZRS for regions with Availability Zones.

Other Functions and Benefits:

• It allows for Versioning and grouping of resources for easier management.

• Possibility of Premium storage support (Premium_LRS).

• Sharing to the community, across subscriptions, and between Active Directory (AD) tenants.

• With a gallery, you can share your resources with everyone, or limit sharing to different users, service principals, or AD groups within your organization. Resources can be replicated to multiple regions, for quicker scaling of your deployments.

  Guidelines On How Azure Compute Gallery is Created.

• Prerequisite:

• 1: Azure Subscription from Azure Portal.

• 2: Resource Group to house your compute gallery resources.

• 3: Virtual Machine that you intend to create images from.

Once you have all the pre-requisite in place, follow the following guidelines to create your Compute Gallery:

Click on the Big + sign on the Azure portal.

Type Azure Compute Gallery on the search bar.

Click on Create on the Azure Compute Gallery.

Select the resource group to which the gallery will reside. Give a name and description to the gallery and click next.

Click on the next button to access the Sharing method.

Step 5: Choose the sharing method based on the level of access required on the gallery from external stakeholders.

Sharing Methods:

There are 3 types of Sharing Methods on this page which are:

1: Role Based Access Control (RBAC):

is a security model used to manage access to resources within a computer system or application. It's a method of ensuring that only authorized users have access to specific resources, data, or functionalities based on their roles and responsibilities within an organization. In an RBAC system, users are assigned specific roles, and each role is associated with certain permissions or access rights.

2: RBAC + Share directly:

In some systems, you might need to extend RBAC to accommodate the concept of sharing resources with specific users who might not belong to the predefined roles. The integration of RBAC and sharing can provide a flexible access control mechanism that combines the benefits of both role-based permissions and individual resource sharing. However, this can also introduce complexities in terms of design, implementation, and maintenance. Careful planning and thorough testing are crucial to ensure that the combined system works as intended and maintains the desired security levels.

3: RBAC + share to public community gallery:

Combining Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) with a public community gallery involves integrating controlled access for users with predefined roles while allowing certain resources to be shared with the public or a broader community. By integrating RBAC with a public community gallery, you can provide a flexible and controlled environment where users can share content while maintaining the security and access control of your platform.

For this learning, we are going with the first option which is the RBAC option. Click on the RBAC option.

Click on next to tag the gallery accordingly and click on Review & Create.

The Configuration of the compute is valid.

Your Compute Gallery is ready. It is important to note that you can choose to create your compute gallery separately as a service just as we have done here. You can also create the Compute gallery during the process of capturing your VM. Either way, you will arrive at the Azure compute gallery.

The next thing is to capture the image of the VM with the created gallery. To do this, you need to go back to the home page and look out for the VM you intend to capture.

On the "Overview" page of the VM, look out for the "Capture" button and click.

The process of capturing the VM has started.

Scroll down a bit and provide all the required information accordingly.

Operating System in VM Image Capturing:

Now we must know the implications and uniqueness of using a Generalized or Specialized operating system when capturing the image of a VM in a compute gallery.

Generalized Operating System:

A "generalized operating system image" refers to an image of a virtual machine that has been prepared and stripped of specific machine-specific information so that it can be used as a template for creating multiple instances of VMs. This process is often called "generalization" or "sys prepping" the VM image. By creating and using generalized operating system images, you can streamline the process of provisioning new VMs with consistent configurations and software setups. This is particularly useful when you need to deploy multiple VMs with the same specifications, such as in a scale-out scenario or for maintaining consistent development or testing environments.

Specialised Operating System:

A "specialized operating system image" in the context of Azure Virtual Machines (VMs) refers to an image of a VM that has been customized and configured with specific applications, settings, and configurations to serve a particular purpose. Unlike a "generalized" image, which is prepared for creating multiple instances with varying configurations, a specialized image is tailored for a specific use case or application. Specialized images are useful when you have a specific workload or application that requires a consistent and predefined environment. They allow you to quickly deploy instances with the same configuration, reducing the time and effort required to set up each VM manually.

Create VM Image Divination:

In Azure Virtual Machines (VMs), an "Image Definition" refers to a description or configuration that defines how a VM image should be created. It specifies various settings and properties that determine how the virtual machine image is constructed, including the source image, OS settings, application configurations, and more.

Versioning Of The Image:

In the context of capturing VM images on Azure, "versioning" refers to the practice of creating and managing different iterations or versions of an image. When you capture an image of a virtual machine (VM) in Azure, you can choose to create multiple versions of that image over time. Each version represents a snapshot of the VM's state, including the operating system, applications, configurations, and any customizations you've made. When capturing VM images on Azure, it's a good practice to include a version number or identifier in the image's name to help you keep track of different versions. Regularly updating your images with new versions can contribute to better management, maintainability, and reliability of your virtual infrastructure.

Replication:

In the context of capturing VM images on Azure, "replication" typically refers to the process of creating duplicate or copied images of virtual machines (VMs) in different Azure regions or storage accounts. Replication is often used for backup, disaster recovery, and redundancy purposes. It's important to note that replication is not the same as versioning. While versioning involves creating different iterations of the same image with changes over time, replication involves creating copies of the same image in different locations.

Once you click create, the system while creating the VM image will automatically shut down the VM and you will receive a notification to this effect.

The Compute gallery is successfully created.

Conclusion:

I hope that you enjoyed every bit of this learning. I am also delighted to be your partner in this learning. Let us do it together again in the next edition of the Tech Merchant blog. Until then, be great.

We learned in the last edition the functions of Data disk in Azure VM. We also learned the two broad classifications of Azure VM disc which are Managed Disk and Unmanaged Disk.

In this edition of the Tech Merchant Blog, we will be looking at another classification of Azure storage disk before we look at the step-by-step guidelines on how to add data disk and initialise it to make it usable on Azure VM.

Functional Classification of Azure Virtual Machine Disk.

Azure virtual machine disks can be functionally classified based on their roles and purposes within the virtual machine (VM) environment. Here's a functional classification of Azure VM disks:

1. Operating System Disk (OS Disk):

   • Function: Contains the operating system files, boot files, and system files required for the VM to start and run.

   • Role: Facilitates the installation, booting, and initial setup of the VM's operating system.

2. Data Disks:

   • Function: Provide additional storage space for data, applications, databases, and user files used by the VM.

   • Role: Separates data from the OS disk, enabling efficient management, scaling, and backup of application-specific data.

3. Temporary Disk:

   • Function: Offers fast, temporary storage for caching, scratch space, and other transient data.

   • Role: Supports temporary data processing needs and should not be relied upon for persistent storage.

4. Read-Only OS Disk:

   • Function: Enables creating a read-only copy of the OS disk to ensure the integrity of the OS image.

   • Role: Useful for scenarios where you want to prevent accidental modifications to the OS image.

5. Snapshot Disks:

   • Function: Captures a point-in-time image of a disk, including OS and data disks.

   • Role: Used for creating backups, data recovery, testing, and creating new VM instances from a known state.

6. Ultra Disks:

   • Function: High-performance SSD option designed for I/O-intensive workloads.

   • Role: Provides extremely low latency and high throughput for applications demanding top-tier storage performance.

7. Caching:

   • Function: Temporarily stores frequently accessed data for faster retrieval.

   • Role: Improves read performance and reduces latency by serving data from cache instead of slower storage.

8. Data Migration:

   • Function: Facilitates moving data between on-premises environments and Azure.

   • Role: Supports hybrid scenarios where data needs to be migrated to or from the cloud.

9. Custom Image Disks:

   • Function: Captures a VM disk as an image for creating new VM instances with the same configuration.

   • Role: Simplifies deployment and ensures consistency across VM instances.

10. Load Balancing and Scaling:

    • Function: Distributes workloads across multiple VM instances for improved performance and availability.

    • Role: Combined with shared data disks, supports scaling out applications and load balancing.

By understanding the functional roles of each type of Azure VM disk, you can make informed decisions when provisioning and configuring storage for your virtual machines. This allows you to optimize the performance, availability, and management of your cloud-based infrastructure.

Guidelines on How Data Disk Could be Added and Initialized on Azure Virtual Machine.

The step-by-step guideline below should be followed in adding a data disk to an Azure Virtual Machine and initialising the disk to make it functional.

Step 1:

Create a Windows Virtual Machine and connect to it through RDP. The picture below is what your window VM look like after the right configuration has been put in place. You can refer to the third edition of The Tech Merchant blog for guidelines on how to create a Windows virtual machine. Click on the "go to resource" button.

Step 2:

Please take note of this second step and make it a standard practice whenever you are to create your VM. This step has to do with increasing the time of your idle time out from 4 minutes to 30 minutes. Not doing this can lead to your VM timing out every 4 minutes and you need to keep refreshing it which can give you a frustrating experience when working on the VM.

Step 3:

Click the "overview" to go back to the previous page and click on connect.

Step 4:

Scroll down to click on the select button in the native RDP box.

Step 5:

Look out for the local RDP page pop-up on the right. scroll down and to click the "Download RDP File"

Step 6:

Look out for another pop-up and click on "keep".

Step 7:

Click on "Connect" on the Remote Desktop Connection

Step 8:

Input the user name and password and press ok.

Click on "Ok" on the new pop-up.

You have successfully accessed the VM via the RDP path.

Step 9:

Go back to the overview page of the VM in the Azure portal; look out for "disks" and click.

Step 10:

You are now on the disk page. Look out for the Operating system disk (OS Disk) that was earlier configured when we were deploying the VM. We learnt this OS disk in our functional classification of the disk. Check the Data Disk section and click on "Create and attach a new disk" to create a new data disk.

Step 11.

Identify the disk with a number. Name the disk accordingly, and increase the disk size based on the desired capacity. Click on "Save" to create the data disk.

Step 12:

It is time for the created disk to be initialised to make it functional. To do this, you need to go to the Virtual Machine created. On the search bar in the VM, Search for "disk management" and click on "create and format hard disk partition".

Click "ok" on the pop-up box.

On the right-hand side of the Pop-up box scroll down gently till you locate the created disk that needs to be initialised. You can identify the disk by looking out for the disk that is "unallocated".

Right-click on the unallocated disk box

On the pop-up, click on "new simple volume"

Continue to click on "Next" on all the pop-ups and leave everything in the pop-ups to default.

This is the last Pop-up and signifies the last stage in the disk initialisation project. Click on "finish" to end the process.

The created data disk has been initialised and ready for usage.

This will be the end of our learning on Understanding Azure VM Disk. I hope you had an informative learning journey on the topic. Stay tuned for more editions of new informative learning on The Tech Merchant Blog.

The Functions of Azure VM Disk Storage.

Below are the critical functions of Azure Disk Storage.

1. Operating System Installation and Booting: The OS disk is used to install the operating system and contains the necessary boot files for the VM. It's critical for the initial setup and booting process of the virtual machine.

2. Data Storage: Data disks provide additional storage space for applications, files, databases, and other data used by your VM. By separating data from the OS disk, you can better manage and scale your storage independently.

3. Application Hosting: Disks store the applications and software that run on your virtual machine. This includes all the files and resources required to operate your applications effectively.

4. Performance Optimization: Choosing between HDDs and SSDs allows you to optimize the performance of your VM. SSDs generally offer faster read and write speeds, making them suitable for I/O-intensive workloads and applications that demand low latency.

5. Scaling and Performance Improvement: By attaching multiple data disks to a VM, you can distribute I/O operations and improve overall performance. This is particularly useful for applications that require high disk I/O.

6. High Availability and Redundancy: Azure Managed Disks provide built-in redundancy within an availability zone or across zones, improving the availability and reliability of your VM's data.

7. Snapshots and Backups: You can take snapshots of managed disks to create point-in-time backups. These snapshots can be used for data recovery, testing, or creating new VM instances.

8. Cloning and Replication: Managed disks can be cloned to create new VMs with similar configurations. This is useful for quickly deploying multiple instances of the same VM or for creating development and testing environments.

9. Scaling Out and Load Balancing: In scenarios where you need to scale out your application horizontally, you can attach additional VMs with load balancers and shared data disks to distribute the workload.

10. Temporary Storage: The temporary disk provides a local, high-speed storage option for temporary files, caching, and intermediate data storage. It's especially useful for applications that require fast access to scratch space or working files.

11. Custom Image Creation: You can capture a VM's disk as an image, which can then be used to create new VM instances. This is beneficial for creating standardized environments and deploying them quickly.

12. Security and Isolation: Separating data onto different disks or using read-only OS disks can enhance security and isolation. It helps prevent accidental data loss and unauthorized modifications to the OS.

13. Data Migration and Hybrid Scenarios: Azure Disks facilitate data migration between on-premises environments and the cloud, supporting hybrid scenarios where data needs to be moved seamlessly.

Each function of disks in Azure VMs contributes to the overall performance, resilience, and flexibility of your cloud-based infrastructure. Properly configuring and utilizing these disks based on your workload requirements is essential for achieving optimal performance and reliability.

Classification of Azure Virtual Machine Data Disk.

The disks on Azure virtual machines can be broadly classified into two categories: Managed disks and Unmanaged disks.

Managed Disk:

Managed disks are the recommended disk storage option for Azure VMs. They are an abstraction layer over the physical disks that provide high availability, reliability, scalability, and security. They also simplify disk management by handling the storage account creation, encryption, replication, and performance optimization. Listed below are the features of Managed Disk.

1. Abstraction and Simplification:

   • Managed disks abstract the underlying storage infrastructure and simplify disk management by automating certain tasks, such as disk provisioning, scaling, and availability.

   • They handle storage account management internally, reducing administrative overhead.

2. Scalability:

   • Managed disks can be easily scaled up or down in terms of size and performance without the need to move VMs or detach disks.

3. Availability:

   • Managed disks provide built-in high availability. They are stored as page blobs in Azure Storage, and Azure manages replication for redundancy.

4. Snapshots and Backups:

   • Managed disk support point-in-time snapshots and managed disk backups, simplifying the process of creating and managing backups for disaster recovery.

5. Disk Types:

   • Managed disks offer various disk types, including Standard HDD, Standard SSD, Premium SSD, and Ultra Disk, allowing you to choose the appropriate performance level for your needs.

6. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC):

   • Managed disks leverage Azure RBAC for access control, providing fine-grained permissions management.

Types of Managed Disk on Azure.

Premium SSD

Premium SSDs are high-performance Solid-state Drive (SSD) based storage designed to support I/O intensive workloads with significantly high throughput and low latency. With Premium SSDs, you can provision a persistent disk and configure its size and performance characteristics.

Premium SSD v2

Premium SSD v2 is the next-generation Premium SSD offering for Azure Disks Storage. Premium SSD v2 Disk Storage is designed for performance-sensitive workloads that consistently require low average read and write latency combined with high IOPS and throughput. This offering is well suited to support data-intensive workloads such as SQL Server, Oracle Database, Cassandra, and Mongo DB. With Premium SSD v2, you can provision the IOPS and throughput you need without necessarily purchasing additional storage capacity. As a result, you can cost-effectively scale performance when deploying transaction-intensive workloads. Premium SSD v2 provides a baseline performance of 3,000 IOPS and 125 MB/s for any disk size that is offered at no additional cost. Disk storage capacity can range from a minimum of 1 GiB to a maximum of 64 TiBs.

Standard SSD

Standard SSDs, a low-cost SSD offering, are optimised for test and entry-level production workloads requiring consistent latency. Standard SSDs can also be used for big data workloads that require high throughput. Standard SSDs deliver lower latency compared to Standard HDDs, while improving reliability and scalability for your applications, and are available with all Azure VM sizes. Standard SSDs can be easily upgraded to Premium SSDs for more demanding and latency-sensitive enterprise workloads. Standard SSDs come with the same industry-leading durability and availability that you expect from Premium SSDs.

Standard HDD

Standard HDDs use Hard Disk Drive (HDD)-based storage media. They are best suited for dev/test and other infrequent access workloads that are less sensitive to performance variability.

The total cost of Standard HDDs depends on the size and number of disks, the number of transactions and the number of outbound data transfers. Standard HDDs only support locally redundant storage (LRS).

Ultra Disk

Ultra Disk is our next-generation high-performance Solid State Drive (SSD) with configurable performance attributes that provide the lowest latency and consistently high IOPS/throughput. Ultra Disk offers unprecedented and extremely scalable performance with sub-millisecond latency. As a customer, you can start small on IOPS and throughput and adjust your performance as your workload becomes more IO intensive. Ultra Disk is available in different sizes that provide a configurable range of input/output operations per sec (IOPS), and a configurable range of throughput (MB/s), and is billed at an hourly rate. You choose the option that best meets your required storage size, IOPS and throughput. Ultra Disk only supports locally redundant storage (LRS).

Unmanaged Disks:

Unmanaged disks in Azure virtual machines refer to storage devices that are manually managed by the user. Unlike managed disks, which are created and managed by Azure, unmanaged disks require the user to manage the underlying storage account that hosts the disks. When using unmanaged disks, users can choose to store the disks in an existing storage account or create a new one specifically for the virtual machine. They also have the option to choose the type of storage account to use, whether it's a standard or premium account. Unmanaged disks allow more flexibility in terms of creating, managing, and accessing disks. However, they also require more effort from the user to manage and maintain the underlying storage accounts. Below are the basic features of unmanaged disk.

1. Storage Account Dependency:

   • Unmanaged disks require you to manage the associated Azure Storage accounts manually. You need to create and manage storage accounts for VM disks.

2. Flexibility and Control:

   • Unmanaged disks provide more control over storage configurations, such as specifying the storage account type and location for each disk.

3. Availability Sets and Fault Domains:

   • To achieve high availability with unmanaged disks, you need to manually distribute VMs across availability sets and fault domains.

4. Disk Snapshots and Backups:

   • You can take snapshots of unmanaged disks for backups, but the process is more manual and involves creating blob snapshots.

5. Performance Scalability:

   • Unmanaged disks might require additional configuration, such as striping multiple disks together, to achieve higher I/O performance.

6. RBAC and Access Control:

   • Access to unmanaged disks is managed through Azure RBAC and shared access signatures.

Choosing between managed and unmanaged disks depends on your workload requirements and the level of management overhead you are comfortable with. Managed disks simplify many aspects of disk management and are generally recommended for most scenarios due to their ease of use, high availability, and scalability benefits. However, unmanaged disks offer more granular control over storage accounts and can be useful in specific situations where fine-tuning storage configurations is essential.

I hope you enjoyed learning about the classification and usage of Azure virtual machine disk. In the second part of this blog, we will be looking at further classification of Azure virtual machine disk based on functionality and also have a practical learning on how data disk could be mounted on Azure virtual machine.

What is Azure Mobile App?

The Azure mobile app is a free app that helps you keep track of your resources while on the go. It enables developers to build and deploy mobile applications quickly and easily. The app could be used to monitor your Azure resources, such as virtual machines, even when you are away from your computer. With the Azure mobile app, you can:

1. Stay connected to your Azure resources—anytime, anywhere.

2. Monitor resources and get Azure Service Health alerts.

3. Keep track of the status of your Azure resources, such as virtual machines (VMs) and web apps, from your mobile device. And get alerts on your environment.

4. Quickly diagnose and fix issues. Respond quickly to alerts, view metrics, and take corrective actions. Restart services like App Service web apps or connect to a VM directly.

5. Manage your resources through Azure Cloud Shell. Use Azure CLI or PowerShell commands to manage your Azure environment. Work in Bash or PowerShell through Cloud Shell and persist files across interfaces.

6. Azure Mobile Apps (also known as the Microsoft Data Sync Framework) gives enterprise developers and system integrators a mobile-application development platform that’s highly scalable and globally available. The framework provides your mobile app with Authentication, Data query, and Offline data synchronization

To get the Azure mobile app you can download it from IoS or the Google Play Store. Alternatively, you can scan and download from the Azure resource interface.

The focus of this blog is to give a guideline on the usage of the app and how could be downloaded from the Azure resource interface.

On the resource page on Azure, look out for "open in mobile" ande click.

I used an Android device to scan the QR code.

You will be launched into the mobile application version of your Azure account where you can view the status of the resources you have in your Azure account.

You can also monitor your SubscripCosting on the Mobile app.

Azure mobile app is your sure plug to access your azure environment and perform simple and quick task on the go.

Download the app now and follow the guidelines to in this blog to experience the simplicity of of managing your azure environment on the go.

Thank you for being part of todays learning. I look forward to sharing another intresting topic with you in the next blog.

Today, we will be looking at the deployment of a Linux operating system VM in the Azure environment. This will necessitate a login into the Azure portal.

Step 1

Step 2:

Upon login, look out for the Big + Sign and click.

Step 3:

On the next interface, look out for the virtual machine logo and click on Create.

Step 4:

You will land on the "Create a virtual Machine page" where you have "Project detail" under which you would choose the Azure subscription you are creating the VM on and also create a new resource group where the VM would reside.

Check out for a name box that would pop out and give a name to the new resource group. For this learning, the name of the new resource group created is "ManifoldGRP".

Step 5:

Scroll down and check out the "Instance detail" section on the page where you can give a name to the VM, Select a region where the VM would reside; select the availability option depending on the level of service availability and resilience desired for the VM and choose the number of zones (s) to determine how you want the VM to be replicated based on the level of desired application redundancy on business need. For the sake of this learning, we would be adopting "ManifoldlinuxVM" as our VM name, "(Europe) UK South" as the region for the VM, the Availabilty option will be "Availabilty Zone" and the VM will be in Zone 1.

Step 6:

Scroll down to the next section to select the type of security you desired for the VM. For the sake of this learning, we will choose the lowest level of security which is "Standard".

Step 7:

Click on the image box to select the type of operating system you desired to work in the VM. In this case, we are deploying Linux VM. The reason why Ubuntu server 20.04 LTS-x64 Gen2 is selected. Leave the VM architecture and the size to default and scroll down to "Administrative Account".

Step 8:

Under the "Administrative account" part, there are two types of Authentication type or methods to access the VM which are SSH public key and Password. This learning part will focus on how to access a VM with SSH public key. The second part will focus on using "a password as a means of access into the VM.

Step 9:

Scroll down to Username and create a unique username for the VM that you could always remember. Ensure that the SSH Public key source is "Generate new key". Give a unique key pair name you could always remember. For this learning, the VM username is "Linuxuser123" and the key pair name is "money123"

Step 10:

At this stage of learning, we should have every other thing to default. Click on "Review and Create"

After clicking on "Review + Create", you will wait for a few seconds till you see the caption "Validation passed" on the page. this shows that the configuration all along is valid and you can go ahead and create.

Also, take note of the configuration cost advice on this page to know how much you are being charged for the VM resource on Azure.

Step 11:

Continue by clicking on the tag button. It is important to always tag accordingly for resource identification purposes.

Step 12:

Upon clicking on "Review+create", the deployment of the virtual machine will start. while the deployment is ongoing, a "generate new key pair" box would pop up. This is a result of the option taken in step 9 where who choose "Generate new pair" for SSH public key source.

Click on "download private key and create resource"

After clicking the download from the first pop-up, the VM deployment is still ongoing. you will notice another pop-up by the top right. This pop-up is to notify you that the private key with which to access your VM is being downloaded in the download folder of your computer.

Step 13:

Upon clicking on the blue download box, you wait for some seconds until you receive a notification that your deployment is complete. Then click on "go to resource"

Step 14:

When you get to this page, it means your virtual machine is ready and you need to connect to it.

Step 15:

At this point, you have connected with your Linux Virtual Machine and it is already running. Now you need to "SSH" into the Virtual Machine and at this point, we need a whole lot of attention on the next few steps we will be taking.

Scroll down a bit to steps 1,2,3 and 4. For Mac and Linux system users, the second step is to be followed. If you are a window system user, steps 3 and 4 are to be followed

Step 16:

Now open the window power shell on your window system and perform az login for you to get into the CLI environment on Azure.

Step 17:

Select the appropriate email address for your Azure portal on the new tab on your browser.

Step 18:

After getting to this page in step 17, close the tab and go back to your window PowerShell. The screenshot below is what you will see. Signifying that you have successfully accessed the CLI environment on your system.

Step 19

The next step is to go to the download folder on your system and check out the downloaded private key that ends in ".pem"

Step 20:

Right-click on the private key file and copy it as a path.

Step 21:

Paste the copied private key path into the box in the 3rd step

Step 22:

After pasting the copied key part in the private key path box, Check the box in the 4th step and confirm that the command path has been adjusted accordingly. Copy the command path and run it on your Azure power shell

Step 23:

Click on "enter" and answer yes to continue.

You have successfully SSH into the Linux Virtual Machine.

HOW TO SSH INTO LINUX VIRTUAL MACHINE BY PASSWORD.

In the first part of learning we just concluded, we learnt how to ssh into a VM using the SSH Public Key.

We are going to learn the second part which has to do with how to ssh into a Linux VM using a password.

To be able to do this, repeat the whole process of creating a Linux VM from Step 1 to Step 8.

Leave everything to default and click on "review+create".

Click on the tag button to tag the resource accordingly.

Click on Review+Create

At this point, The password you created when you created your user name will be imputed into the private key path box.

Confirm that the command part in step 4 has been adjusted as a result of the changes implemented on the private key path.

Open Powershell and perform az login accordingly. Run the copied command line part on the CLI environment in your power shell.

Type "yes" accordingly.

Now the Command line is asking for the password again. carefully type it in and click enter.

You have successfully ssh into your Linux VM through the password you created.

I hope this learning has added to you a great deal. I look forward to learning with you in the next edition of The Tech Merchant Blog.

Azure Resource Management.

This is the deployment and management service provided by Microsoft Azure for organizing and managing resources in an Azure environment. It acts as a control plane that allows users to create, update, and delete resources in a consistent and unified manner and as a single logical unit.

ARM provides a declarative approach to resource management, enabling users to define the desired state of their infrastructure and applications and handles the underlying complexities to achieve that state. It helps with resource grouping, versioning, access control, and tagging. Highlighted below are the major features of ARM.

Features of Azure Resource Manager (ARM).

●Resource Group: ARM organizes resources into logical containers called "Resource Groups." Resource Groups are used to manage related resources as a single unit and to apply common lifecycle operations, such as deployment, monitoring, and access control, to all resources within the group.

●Template-based Deployment: ARM supports deployment templates, which are JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) files defining the resources and their configurations. Templates enable users to specify the infrastructure and configurations required for their applications and services, facilitating consistent and repeatable deployments.

●Declarative Model: ARM uses a declarative model, where users define the desired state of the resources they want to deploy, and ARM handles the process of achieving that state. This approach allows for operations, where multiple deployments of the same template result in the same end state.

●Resource Providers: ARM uses resource providers to interact with different types of Azure resources. Each resource type has an associated resource provider responsible for handling resource operations specific to that type.

●Access Control (RBAC): ARM integrates with Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) to provide Role-Based Access Control (RBAC). This allows administrators to grant appropriate permissions to users and groups for managing specific resources or resource groups.

●Tagging: ARM allows users to assign metadata tags to resources, enabling easy categorization, tracking, and management of resources based on custom-defined attributes.

●Managed Applications: ARM supports Managed Applications, which allow third-party developers to build and offer applications on top of Azure, making them available in the Azure Marketplace and allowing customers to deploy them directly through the Azure portal.

●Extensibility: ARM is extensible and integrates with various Azure services, tools, and third-party solutions to provide a comprehensive resource management experience.

Azure Resource Management Template.

An Azure Resource Manager template is a JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) file that defines the infrastructure and configuration of resources that you want to deploy in Azure. It's a declarative template that describes the desired state of the resources, rather than prescribing a series of steps to achieve that state. The template contains the definitions of resources, their properties, dependencies, and other settings necessary for the deployment.

Resource Manager templates are used to automate the deployment and configuration of Azure resources in a consistent and repeatable manner. They enable Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) practices, where you define your infrastructure in code and version it using source control systems.

By using templates, you can create complex Azure environments, ensuring that all resources are deployed in the correct order and with the right configuration. Templates can be parameterized, allowing you to customize the deployment for different environments or scenarios.

Features of Azure Resource Manager Template.

●JSON Format: ARM templates are written in JSON format, which is a lightweight data-interchange format that is human-readable and easy to understand.

●Resource Definition: An ARM template consists of one or more resource definitions. Each resource definition specifies the details of an Azure resource to be deployed, including its type, name, location, properties, and any dependencies on other resources.

●Parameters: ARM templates can include parameters, allowing users to provide dynamic values during deployment. Parameters make templates reusable and customizable for different scenarios.

●Variables: Variables in ARM templates enable users to declare and use values that remain constant throughout the deployment. They can be used to store settings, configurations, or calculated values.

●Output: ARM templates can define outputs, which are values derived from the deployment that can be useful for post-deployment actions or for making information available to other resources.

●Functions: ARM templates support various built-in functions that can be used for expressions, calculations, and transformations of values within the template.

●Resource Group: Although not explicitly defined within the template, each deployment of an ARM template creates a resource group in which the resources specified in the template are grouped.

In summary, Azure Resource Manager (ARM) is the management framework, while Azure Resource Manager templates are JSON files used to define and automate the deployment of Azure resources in a declarative manner. ARM templates are an essential tool to implement Infrastructure-as-Code practices and maintain consistency and repeatability in your Azure deployments.

We have come to the end of the series on the topic of the Azure Resource Management and deployment tool. State tune for more interesting discoveries on the Azure cloud environment.

You are welcome to series 2(two) of the topic: Azure Resource Deployment; Management Tools and Features. In the first series, we looked at 2 Azure resource deployment and management tools which were the Azure Portal and Azure power shells and their features. In this series, we will continue by looking at more Azure Resources deployment and management tools. Azure Deployment tools we will be considering today are Azure Command Line Interface (CLI); The Cloud Shell and the Azure Arc. Let's embark on this interesting discovery.

Azure Command Line Interface (CLI) :

This is a cross-platform command-line tool provided by Microsoft to interact with and manage Microsoft Azure resources and services. It allows users to execute various commands to create, configure, and manage Azure resources without using the Azure portal or a graphical user interface. Like Azure PowerShell, the Azure CLI is a command-driven scripting environment that also uses the Azure REST API to execute management tasks in Azure. It is nearly identical to Azure PowerShell in capability and function, running on Windows, Linux, and Mac. It simply uses a different command syntax with which you might be more familiar as a Bash shell user in a Linux environment. Also, as with Azure PowerShell, you can run the Azure CLI in a web browser through the Azure Cloud Shell, giving you the capability to run the Azure CLI in scenarios where running it natively might not be possible or feasible.

Features of Azure CLI

●Cross-Platform: Azure CLI is designed to work on different operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and various Linux distributions, providing users with flexibility in their choice of development environment.

●Scripting and Automation: Azure CLI is commonly used for scripting and automation tasks, enabling users to automate the deployment and management of Azure resources.

●Azure Resource Manager (ARM) Integration: Azure CLI interacts with Azure Resource Manager (ARM), which is the deployment and management service for Azure resources. It allows users to manage resources using ARM templates and resource groups.

●Extensive Coverage: Azure CLI provides access to a broad range of Azure services, including virtual machines, storage accounts, networking resources, databases, web apps, AI and machine learning services, and more.

●Command Structure: Azure CLI uses a simple and consistent syntax with the following structure: az <group> <command> <subcommand>. Each command is designed to be self-descriptive, making it easier for users to discover and use different features.

●Interactive Mode: Azure CLI includes an interactive mode (az interactive) that offers a more user-friendly experience, allowing users to browse available commands and dynamically generate arguments.

●Integration with Azure Cloud Shell: Azure CLI is also available within Azure Cloud Shell, providing a browser-based command-line experience without requiring any local installation.

●Output Formats: Azure CLI supports multiple output formats, such as JSON, YAML, and table format, which can be helpful when scripting or parsing the command output.

●Authentication: Users can authenticate with Azure CLI using their Azure account credentials, service principals, or managed identities, depending on the scenario and requirements.

●Version Control Integration: Azure CLI commands can be integrated with version control systems like Git to manage scripts and configurations effectively.

Azure Cloud Shell

This is a browser-based command-line interface (CLI) provided by Microsoft Azure. It enables users to access a pre-configured shell environment directly from the Azure portal, without requiring any additional setup or installation on their local machines. Azure Cloud Shell supports both PowerShell and Bash command-line environments, providing a familiar and consistent experience for users. Below is what the Azure Cloud Shell environment looks like when is being accessed via the Azure Portal.

Features Of Azure Cloud Shell,

●Cross-Platform: Azure CLI is designed to work on different operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and various Linux distributions, providing users with flexibility in their choice of development environment.

●Scripting and Automation: Azure CLI is commonly used for scripting and automation tasks, enabling users to automate the deployment and management of Azure resources.

●Azure Resource Manager (ARM) Integration: Azure CLI interacts with Azure Resource Manager (ARM), which is the deployment and management service for Azure resources. It allows users to manage resources using ARM templates and resource groups.

●Extensive Coverage: Azure CLI provides access to a broad range of Azure services, including virtual machines, storage accounts, networking resources, databases, web apps, AI and machine learning services, and more.

●Command Structure: Azure CLI uses a simple and consistent syntax with the following structure: az <group> <command> <subcommand>. Each command is designed to be self-descriptive, making it easier for users to discover and use different features.

●Interactive Mode: Azure CLI includes an interactive mode (az interactive) that offers a more user-friendly experience, allowing users to browse available commands and dynamically generate arguments.

●Integration with Azure Cloud Shell: Azure CLI is also available within Azure Cloud Shell, providing a browser-based command-line experience without requiring any local installation.

●Output Formats: Azure CLI supports multiple output formats, such as JSON, YAML, and table format, which can be helpful when scripting or parsing the command output.

●Authentication: Users can authenticate with Azure CLI using their Azure account credentials, service principals, or managed identities, depending on the scenario and requirements.

●Version Control Integration: Azure CLI commands can be integrated with version control systems like Git to manage scripts and configurations effectively.

Azure Arc

This is a set of Azure services that extend Azure's capabilities beyond the Azure cloud to on-premises environments and multi-cloud environments. It enables customers to manage and govern resources that are not part of the Azure cloud, bringing Azure services and management tools to their own data centre, edge locations, and other cloud providers.

Features of Azure Arc.

●Azure Arc-enabled Services: Azure Arc allows customers to deploy and manage Azure services such as Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure App Service, Azure Data Services (e.g., Azure SQL Database), and more on their own infrastructure. This brings the benefits of Azure services to on-premises and multi-cloud environments, providing a consistent management experience.

●Hybrid Resource Management: With Azure Arc, organizations can use the Azure portal, Azure Policy, and other Azure management tools to manage resources across their hybrid cloud environments, including both Azure cloud resources and on-premises resources.

●Azure Arc-enabled Kubernetes: Azure Arc enables customers to connect and manage Kubernetes clusters running in various environments, such as on-premises or other cloud providers, using Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS). This provides centralized management, monitoring, and security for these clusters.

●Azure Policy and Governance: Azure Arc extends Azure Policy to on-premises and multi-cloud environments, allowing organizations to enforce compliance policies consistently across all their resources, regardless of their location.

●Data Services Everywhere: With Azure Arc, customers can deploy and manage Azure data services, like Azure SQL Managed Instance and Azure PostgreSQL Hyperscale, on their own infrastructure, enabling modern data platform capabilities anywhere.

●Inventory and Monitoring: Azure Arc provides a centralized inventory and monitoring solution, giving organizations a unified view of their resources, whether they are in the Azure cloud or spread across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

●Security and Compliance: By extending Azure security features to hybrid environments, Azure Arc helps organizations maintain security and compliance standards consistently across their entire infrastructure.

●Cost Management: Azure Arc also brings cost management capabilities to hybrid environments, enabling organizations to analyze, optimize, and govern costs for resources running outside of the Azure cloud.

This will be where we stop this second series of Azure Resource Management and Tools. In our next series which will be the last series on this topic, we would look at additional resource management tools in the Azure environment. I hope you have enjoyed the series of learning so far. I look forward to new learning snd discoveries with you in our next series.

Welcome to today's learning on the Tech Merchant Blog. Today, we are going to start a series of learning that bothers resource management and deployment on Microsoft Azure. Azure is a very rich, complex offering. As the number of services and resources rises, so does the complexity of deploying and managing resources. Fortunately, Azure offers multiple methods for managing the resources in your Azure environment. In most cases, you can use one of several management tools for the same task, enabling you to choose a tool that offers the appropriate balance between ease and functionality. This series explores the management tools available in Azure and helps you put them to use to gain some experience in creating and managing your own Azure resources.

In today's series, we would look at 2 (two) of the Azure resources and management tools that are commonly used in the Azure environment while the others would be examined in subsequent learning. The 2 Azure resources and management tools we would be considering today are :

1: Azure Portal

It is the web-based graphical user interface (GUI) provided by Microsoft for managing various services and resources on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform. It serves as a central hub where users can access and configure their Azure resources, monitor their applications, and interact with different services.

When choosing a management tool for Azure, the most important considerations for the Azure portal are ease of use and visualization. The Azure portal is easy to use because it offers a familiar web-based user experience. It also provides a wealth of visualization tools and reports for understanding your Azure environment and managing it. One benefit of the Azure portal is that, as a web-based tool, it is available on most devices with a browser. So, if you need to create a VM from an Android laptop or tablet, doing so is as easy as on a Windows device. Fig 1.1 below shows what a typical Azure portal looks like.

Features of Azure Portal:

Highlighted below are the features of Azure Portal.

●Dashboard: The Azure Portal offers a customizable dashboard where users can pin their frequently used resources, services, and metrics for quick access and monitoring.

●Resource Management: Users can create, configure, and manage various Azure resources such as virtual machines, databases, storage accounts, virtual networks, web apps, and more through the portal.

●Services and Solutions: Azure Portal provides access to a wide range of services and solutions offered by Azure, such as AI and machine learning, data and analytics, networking, security, and identity management, among others.

●Monitoring and Diagnostics: Users can monitor the performance and health of their applications and resources using various monitoring tools, charts, and metrics provided by Azure Monitor.

●Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Azure Portal supports RBAC, allowing administrators to assign specific roles and permissions to users and groups, controlling access to Azure resources and services.

●Notifications and Alerts: Users can configure notifications and alerts to receive important updates about the status of their resources, enabling them to respond promptly to any issues.

●Resource Groups: Resources can be logically organized using resource groups, making it easier to manage and apply consistent settings to related resources.

●Marketplace: Azure Marketplace can be accessed from the portal, where users can find and deploy a wide variety of applications and services provided by Microsoft and third-party vendors.

●Cost Management: Azure Cost Management features are accessible through the portal, helping users monitor and optimize their cloud spending.

2: Azure Power Shell:

Azure PowerShell is a scripting environment that you can use to execute commands (called cmdlets, pronounced command-lets) that perform management tasks in Azure through the Azure REST API (Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interface). You can perform essentially any task in Azure using Azure PowerShell. You can also combine cmdlets into scripts to execute multiple commands to orchestrate more complex tasks. These scripts can be quite simple or very complex, potentially deploying hundreds of resources and supporting services in a very short period.

With Azure PowerShell, users can perform a wide range of tasks, such as creating and managing virtual machines, storage accounts, networking resources, web apps, databases, and more. It provides a powerful and flexible way to manage Azure resources programmatically.

Azure PowerShell is available on Windows, Linux, Mac, and ARM. You can also access Azure PowerShell through the Azure Cloud Shell, which we will be considering in subsequent series. in this chapter in the section “Azure Cloud Shell.”

Features of Azure PowerShell

●Azure Resource Management: Azure PowerShell allows users to interact with Azure Resource Manager (ARM) and use it to create, update, and delete resources within Azure. ARM is the deployment and management service for Azure resources and provides a consistent management layer for all Azure services.

●Automation and Scripting: PowerShell scripts can be written to automate various Azure tasks, enabling users to streamline repetitive operations and deploy complex configurations consistently.

●Integration with Azure Cloud Shell: Azure PowerShell is also available in the Azure Cloud Shell, a browser-based shell environment that provides access to Azure CLI, PowerShell, and various other tools.

●Azure Module: Azure PowerShell comes with a dedicated Azure module that provides cmdlets (PowerShell commands) specifically designed for working with Azure resources. These cmdlets abstract the underlying REST APIs and provide a more user-friendly interface.

●Authentication and Security: Azure PowerShell supports various methods of authentication, including using service principals, managed identities, or user credentials, to securely interact with Azure resources.

●Integration with Azure DevOps: Azure PowerShell can be integrated with Azure DevOps pipelines to automate continuous deployment and configuration management processes.

This will be the end of our learning in this new series of Azure Resource Deployment and Management tools on the Tech Merchant Blog. Watch out for more learning on this interesting topic in our subsequent series

After Successful sign-in, the steps below should be followed to create a Virtual Machine.

1: Look out for the Plus sign by the top left side under Azure Services and click.

2: A click on the plus sign will lead you to a page where you will see different resources that could be created. Since we intend to create a virtual machine, we click on create under the virtual machine resource that is displayed.

3: A click on "create" under the virtual machine will take you to another page where you can create a resource group under your listed Azure subscription. It is advisable to create a resource group in which the virtual machine will be located. The resource group could be created first before creating the Virtual machine and you can also create the resource group in the process of creating the virtual machine. The second option is being adopted for this learning.

4: Click on "Create new" under the resource group box to have a pop-up where you can give a name to the new resource group you want to create. For this learning, our new resource group was named "TechMerchant".

5: Scroll down the page to give a name to the virtual machine you intend to create. Our Virtual machine name for this learning is "TechMerchant-VM".

6: Select the Azure region you would love the VM to reside. It is advisable you carefully choose a region that is in the shortest proximity to your location to avoid excessive charges. For our learning, we are choosing (Europe) UK South.

7: Select your Availability options based on your needs. For this learning, the least availability option was selected which is "no infrastructure redundancy required" because we only need it for just learning purposes.

8: Select the security type based on your unique scenario or business need. For learning, we select the "standard" option which is the least security option.

9: Select the operating system you would like to have on the Virtual Machine.

10: Select the suitable memory base on your need and unique requirement and scenario.

11: Scroll down to the Administration credentials i.e. the Username and unique password. For this learning, our user name credential is "TheTechMerchant".

12: Scroll down and ensure the inbound ports is RDP (3389). RDP simply means "Remote Desktop Protocol" It is a gateway that connects your local computer to the VM on the cloud and it is a prerequisite to hosting the Windows operating system on the cloud VM. Scroll down and tick the licensing box and click "next" to access the "Disk" page.

13: You can leave this page to default or modify the configuration based on unique requirements and scenarios. Click on Next to access the "networking" page.

14: The networking page could leave at default. Click on "next" to access the management page.

15: The management page should be left by default. Click on "next" to access the "monitoring page"

16: The "monitoring" page should be left by default. click on "next" to access the advanced setting page.

17: The Advance page should be left by default. Click on "next" to tag the resources accordingly. Click on Next to tag.

18: Tag the Virtual Machine with a name and value that is suitable for you. Click "next" to review and create your VM.

19: Watch out for the message "validation Passed" to signify that the configuration so far is right then click on "create".

20: Watch out for the message "Your deployment is complete" and click on "go to resource".

21: This is the stage where you connect with your Virtual Machine. Click on "Connect".

22: At this stage, ensure your local computer is RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) enabled as it is a prerequisite to connecting local computers to the VM with the Windows operating system. Click on "Download RDP File".

23: From your download pop-up, VM/RDP to have the remote desktop connector pop up and then click "connect".

24: Input the Administrators credentials i.e. the Username and password configured in step 11.

25: Click on "Yes" on the Remote Desktop Connector pop-up.

We have successfully hosted a Virtual Machine on Microsoft Azure.

I hope you enjoyed the learning journey of creating a virtual machine on Microsoft Azure. Stay tuned for more interesting learning and discovery on cloud computing. Until our next edition of the tech merchant blog, stay motivated.

In today's blog, we will delve further into how cloud computing works by looking into the different classifications and types of cloud computing models.

According to Jatinder Kumar and Ashutosh Kumar Singh of the Department of Computer Applications National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra, India; in their publication "Security and privacy-preservation of IOT data in cloud-fog computing environment" published on research gate in December 2022, There are two major classifications of Cloud Computing which are based on Service and Deployments.

A: Classification of cloud computing by Service model:

According to the diagram, the service model of cloud computing is in 3 (three) categories and they are:

1: Infrastrastructure as a Service (Iaas):

In this type of arrangement in cloud computing, the cloud service provider manages the infrastructure, actual servers, network, virtualization, and data storage through an internet connection. The user has access through an API or dashboard and essentially rents the infrastructure. The user manages things like the operating system, and apps, while the provider takes care of any hardware, networking, hard drives, data storage, and servers; and has the responsibility of taking care of outages, repairs, and hardware issues.

2: Platform as a Service (Paas):

Under this category, the hardware and an application-software platform are provided and managed by the cloud service provider, but the user handles the apps running on top of the platform and the data the app relies on. this type of scenario in cloud computing is majorly for developers and programmers, PaaS gives users a shared cloud platform for application development and management without having to build and maintain the infrastructure usually associated with the process.

3: Software as a Service (SaaS):

This is a category under the service model in cloud computing where the cloud service providers are responsible for the management and delivery of the software application for its users or subscribers. Typically, SaaS apps are web applications or mobile apps that users can access via a web browser. Software updates, bug fixes, and other general software maintenance are taken care by the cloud service provider for the user, and they connect to the cloud applications via a dashboard or API. SaaS also eliminates the need to have an app installed locally on each user’s computer, allowing greater methods of group or team access to the software.

B: Classification of Cloud Computing Model by deployment.

According to Jatinder Kumar and Ashutosh Kumar Singh; the cloud computing model by deployments is categorised into 4 (four):

1 Private Cloud:

This could be defined as cloud environments solely dedicated to a single end-user or group, All clouds become private clouds when the underlying IT infrastructure is dedicated to a single customer with completely isolated access. private clouds are those pools of computing resources that are offered via a private network of computers for the exclusive use of a single organization over a long period.

Under the private clouds, different scenarios could be adopted based on the peculiarity of the end user or subscriber's need. The different kinds of possible scenarios under the private cloud are:

Managed private clouds

This is a scenario where end-user organisations create and use a private cloud that's deployed, configured, and managed by a third-party vendor. Managed private clouds are a cloud delivery option that helps enterprises with understaffed or underskilled IT teams provide better private cloud services and infrastructure.

Dedicated clouds

this is a scenario where you have a cloud within another cloud. You can have a dedicated cloud on a private cloud. For example, an accounting department in an organisation could have its dedicated cloud within the organization's private cloud.

2: Public Cloud:

This refers to a set of computing services that are being provided over the Internet by third-party providers. In contrast to private clouds, public clouds offer a wide range of services that can be purchased or used by anyone interested in using or purchasing them. There are several cloud computing types with examples where these services are available free of charge or can be purchased on-demand, with users only paying per CPU cycle, storage, or bandwidth that is used.

3: Hybrid Cloud:

A hybrid cloud is just what it sounds like—a combination of public and private cloud environments. Specifically, and ideally, a hybrid cloud connects an organization's private cloud services and public clouds into a single, flexible infrastructure for running the organization’s applications and workloads.

The goal of a hybrid cloud is to establish a mix of public and private cloud resources with a level of orchestration between them that gives an organization the flexibility to choose the optimal cloud for each application or workload and to move workloads freely between the two clouds as circumstances change. This enables the organization to meet its technical and business objectives more effectively and cost-efficiently than it could with public or private cloud alone.

4: Community Cloud:

A community cloud is shared between/among organizations with a common goal or that fits into a specific community (professional community, geographic community, etc.). For example, a community cloud can belong to the government of a single country. Community clouds can be located both on and off the premises.

Below are other types of cloud deployment that are applicable based on unique scenarios and needs of business organisations.

Multi-Cloud:

Multicloud is the use of two or more clouds from two or more different cloud providers. Having a multi-cloud environment can be as simple as using email SaaS from one vendor and image editing SaaS from another. But when enterprises talk about multi-cloud, they're typically talking about using multiple cloud services—including SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services—from two or more of the leading public cloud providers.

Hybrid Multi-Cloud:

Hybrid multi-cloud is the use of two or more public clouds together with a private cloud environment.

Organizations choose multi-cloud to avoid vendor lock-in, to have more services to choose from and to access more innovation. However, it should be considered that the more clouds that an organisation subscribe to; each with its own set of management tools, data transmission rates, and security protocols; the more difficult it can be to manage the organisation's environment. Multi-cloud management platforms provide visibility across multiple provider cloud services through a central dashboard, where development teams can see their projects and deployments, operations teams can keep an eye on clusters and nodes, and the cybersecurity staff can monitor for threats.

I Hope the above-explained information is helpful to you. Watch out for more updates and publications on Cloud Computing services on the tech merchant's blog.

I used to be a complete novice to technology not until the year 2021 when I started my journey of self-discovery in the tech space. It was during a discussion with some colleagues in a software development company that I heard of Cloud Computing for the very first time and the explanation they gave me of the concept that day did more harm to my understanding than good and I know that there would be many who are currently in the shoe I was then and are curious to understand what the meaning of "Cloud Computing" is all about.

Let me start with a simple definition of what Cloud Computing is:

According to Microsoft, one of the tech giants, Cloud computing is the delivery of computing services over the Internet. Computing services include common IT infrastructure such as virtual machines, storage, databases, and networking.

Let's go back to what was happening before the era of Cloud Computing. Before the era of cloud computing, the traditional scenario of an organisation buying and maintaining a physical server base on business needs was the norm. The implication of this is the fact that there must be a location within the organisation's business space that is mapped out for housing the servers.

In such a situation, the challenge organisations face majorly is the challenge that is brought about by increasing business needs that would warrant buying more computer resources or more servers which will lead to looking for additional space until there is no space available. Organisations also have situations whereby they get more server space in preparation for future business needs or preparation for business peak periods thereby leading to unused server space for much of the time which will result in tying down capital that could better be utilized for better productive purposes.

The Difference Cloud Computing introduced:

To address the challenges being faced by organisations with having physical server houses otherwise known as data centres, we have some reputable technology giants known as "Cloud Service Providers" that undertake to take the headache of building and maintaining physical data centres off the radi of businesses to allow business leaders focus their time and energy on core business matters.

These Cloud service providers build their own giant data centres and compute resources on a very wide expanse of land across different locations across the world to host computing-based infrastructure and platform services for customer organizations who subscribed to having access to the computing resources through internet connectivity which is priced using various pay-as-you-go subscription models. Customers are charged only for resources they consume, such as the amount of time a service is used or the storage capacity or virtual machines used.

We can otherwise say that cloud computing is the usage or access to another organisation's (Cloud Service Providers) physical computing resources, Servers or data centres on a rent basis through internet connectivity. This is what Cloud Computing is all about.

Why is it called cloud computing?

A fundamental concept behind cloud computing is that the location of the service, and many of the details such as the hardware or operating system on which it is running, are largely irrelevant to the user. It's with this in mind that the metaphor of the cloud was borrowed from old telecoms network schematics, in which the public telephone network (and later the internet) was often represented as a cloud to denote that the location didn't matter.

In subsequent blogs, we would be delving more into how cloud computing works and the different types of Cloud computing deployment and models.