Azure PowerShell Best Practices

Key Best Practices

1. Use the Latest Az Module

Always install the most recent Az module to benefit from security patches and new cmdlets.

Install-Module -Name Az -AllowClobber -Scope CurrentUser

2. Prefer `WhatIf` and `Confirm` Parameters

During development, add -WhatIf or -Confirm to preview actions without making changes.

Remove-AzResourceGroup -Name MyResourceGroup -WhatIf

3. Secure Credential Handling

Never hard‑code credentials. Use Connect-AzAccount with managed identities or Azure AD service principals.

$sp = Get-AzADServicePrincipal -DisplayName "MyApp"
Connect-AzAccount -ServicePrincipal -ApplicationId $sp.ApplicationId -Tenant $sp.TenantId -CertificateThumbprint "YOUR_CERT_THUMBPRINT"

4. Implement Idempotent Scripts

Design scripts that can be re‑run safely. Check for existence before creating resources.

if (-not (Get-AzResourceGroup -Name $rgName -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)) {
    New-AzResourceGroup -Name $rgName -Location $location
}

5. Use Structured Logging

Output JSON logs for better integration with monitoring tools.

$log = @{
    Time = (Get-Date).ToString("o")
    Action = "CreateVM"
    Status = "Success"
}
$log | ConvertTo-Json | Out-File "deployment.log" -Append

6. Parameter Validation

Validate script parameters to catch errors early.

param(
    [Parameter(Mandatory)][ValidateNotNullOrEmpty()][string]$ResourceGroup,
    [Parameter(Mandatory)][ValidatePattern('^[a-z0-9-]{3,24}$')][string]$VmName
)

7. Leverage Parallelism

Use ForEach-Object -Parallel (PowerShell 7+) for concurrent operations.

$vms = @('vm1','vm2','vm3')
$vms | ForEach-Object -Parallel {
    Start-AzVM -Name $_ -ResourceGroupName "MyRG"
}