Microsoft Azure

Introduction to Azure

Welcome to the Azure documentation. This guide will help you get started with Microsoft Azure, a comprehensive cloud computing platform that offers a wide range of services for building, deploying, and managing applications and services through Microsoft-managed data centers.

Azure provides everything from infrastructure as a service (IaaS) to platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS), enabling you to scale your solutions globally and innovate faster.

Create an Azure Account

To begin using Azure, you'll need an Azure account. You can create one for free and get a credit to explore services. Follow these steps:

1. Visit the Azure Free Account page.
2. Click "Start free".
3. Sign in with your Microsoft account or create one if you don't have one.
4. Complete the registration process, which may include verifying your identity and providing payment information (for verification purposes, though you won't be charged for free services).

Your free account includes access to popular services for 12 months, plus a credit of $200 to use in the first 30 days to try any Azure service.

Explore the Azure Portal

The Azure portal is a web-based, unified management experience for Azure. It allows you to provision, manage, and monitor your Azure resources.

Key features of the Azure portal:

• Resource Management: Create, configure, and manage all your Azure resources.
• Monitoring: Track the health and performance of your services.
• Cost Management: Understand and optimize your Azure spending.
• Marketplace: Discover and deploy third-party solutions and services.

Access the Azure portal at portal.azure.com.

Get Started with Azure CLI

The Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI) is a cross-platform tool for managing Azure resources. You can install it on your local machine or use it via the Azure Cloud Shell.

Installation:

Download and install the Azure CLI from the official Azure CLI documentation.

Login:

az login

This command will open a browser window to authenticate your Azure account.

Example command to create a resource group:

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus

Get Started with Azure PowerShell

Azure PowerShell is a set of cmdlets that use the .NET Framework for managing Azure resources. It's ideal for Windows-based environments and automation tasks.

Installation:

Install the Azure PowerShell module using PowerShellGet: Install Azure PowerShell.

Login:

Connect-AzAccount

This command will prompt you to sign in to your Azure account.

Example command to create a storage account:

New-AzStorageAccount -ResourceGroupName MyResourceGroup -Name mystorageaccount -SkuName Standard_LRS -Location eastus

Azure SDKs

Azure provides Software Development Kits (SDKs) for various programming languages, allowing you to integrate Azure services directly into your applications.