The

NERD'S GUIDE TO
Azure
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Azure Fundamentals 03

IaaS / PaaS / SaaS 05

Azure Storage 06

Azure & SQL 07

Azure DevOps 08

Azure Data Factory 09

Azure Key Vaults 10

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 02

 AZURE FUNDAMENTALS

MI C R OS OF T A Z UR E I S A N E V E R - E X P A NDI NG WHY US E A Z UR E ?
set of cloud services that help build, run, and T o c r e a t e a n d ma n a g e y o u r o wn a p p l i c a t i o n s y o u
ma n a g e a p p l i c a t i o n s wi t h e x p a n s i v e c o mp u t i n g need servers, storage, developers, a dedicate
resources. It helps organizations in all industries n e t wo r k , s e c u r i t y , a n d mo r e . I n v e s t i n g i n a l l o f
solve business challenges through hundreds of these things can be expensive, difficult to
s e r v i c e s , i n c l u d i n g a p p l i c a t i o n d e v e l o p me n t , ma n a g e , a n d c o u l d h u r t wh e t h e r y o u f a i l -
t e s t i n g , a n d h o s t i n g , t o c r e a t e v i r t u a l ma c h i n e s , b e c a u s e y o u l o s e y o u r i n v e s t me n t - o r a r e
t o i n t e g r a t e a n d s y n c s y s t e ms , t o c o l l e c t a n d successful - because you’ll end up needing to
s t o r e me t r i c s , a n d t o u t i l i z e v i r t u a l h a r d d r i v e s . i n v e s t i n a n d ma n a g e mo r e s e r v e r s a n d s t o r a g e
s y s t e ms t o k e e p u p wi t h d e ma n d .

Az u r e i s a n e c o s y s t e m ma d e u p o f
Az u r e s o l v e s a l l t h e s e i s s u e s b y p u t t i n g t h e
various parts, including, but not
resources you need in one place. It’s free to start
l i mi t e d t o :
a n d h a s a p a y p e r u s e mo d e l , s o y o u o n l y h a v e t o
Az u r e Ac c o u n t s & S u b s c r i p t i o n s p a y f o r t h e s e r v i c e s y o u u s e . Az u r e i s a l s o
Az u r e P o r t a l a c c e s s i b l e t o j u s t a b o u t a n y o n e . Al l y o u n e e d i s
Az u r e Ma r k e t p l a c e i n t e r n e t a n d a c c e s s t o t h e Az u r e p o r t a l , wh i c h
Az u r e AP I s a n d C L I s connects you to hundreds of services.
Az u r e R e s o u r c e Ma n a g e r
Az u r e Mo n i t o r
Az u r e R e g i o n s & Da t a c e n t e r s
The cloud hosts, stores, manages, and
Az u r e S L A, C o mp l i a n c e & T r u s t
processes data online, or remotely, using
servers around the globe, as opposed to
locally on one device, and can be accessed
through any internet browser.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 03

Azure Fundamentals Continued

HOW A Z UR E WOR K S A Z UR E DA T A S E R V I C E S
Az u r e wo r k s wi t h a t e c h n o l o g y c a l l e d Az u r e c a n b e v e r y i n t i mi d a t i n g a n d
v i r t u a l i z a t i o n , wh i c h s e p a r a t e s t h e c o u p l i n g o v e r wh e l mi n g a t f i r s t , t h e r e a r e mo r e t h a n
b e t we e n a c o mp u t e r ’ s C P U a n d i t s o p e r a t i n g 2 0 0 Az u r e s e r v i c e s , wh i c h a r e c u r r e n t l y
s y s t e m u s i n g a n a b s t r a c t i o n l a y e r k n o wn a s a divided into 18 different categories.
h y p e r v i s o r . Hy p e r v i s o r s i mi t a t e t h e f u n c t i o n s C o mp u t e
o f a c o mp u t e r a n d i t s C P Us i n a v i r t u a l Ne t wo r k i n g
ma c h i n e a n d r u n mu l t i p l e v i r t u a l ma c h i n e s a t Storage
a t i me . IoT
Mi g r a t i o n
Az u r e u s e s v i r t u a l i z a t i o n o n a ma s s i v e s c a l e i n Mo b i l e
Mi c r o s o f t d a t a c e n t e r s a c r o s s t h e wo r l d . E a c h An a l y t i c s
d a t a c e n t e r h a s ma n y r a c k s o f s e r v e r s , a n d Containers
each server has a hypervisor. Every rack has AI a n d Ma c h i n e L e a r n i n g
o n e s e r v e r t h a t r u n s a s o f t wa r e c a l l e d a f a b r i c Integration
c o n t r o l l e r , wh i c h c o n n e c t s t h e m t o a n o t h e r Ma n a g e me n t T o o l s
p i e c e o f s o f t wa r e c a l l e d a n o r c h e s t r a t o r . De v e l o p e r T o o l s
Or c h e s t r a t o r s ma n a g e e v e r y t h i n g i n Az u r e , Security
including user requests. Da t a b a s e s
De v Op s
Wh e n a u s e r r e q u e s t s t o ma k e a v i r t u a l Me d i a
ma c h i n e , t h e o r c h e s t r a t o r p a c k a g e s Identity
everything that’s needed, locates a server We b
rack, and sends the package to the fabric
c o n t r o l l e r , wh i c h c r e a t e s a v i r t u a l ma c h i n e
that users can connect to.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 04

 IaaS / PaaS / SaaS

S a a S , o r S o f t wa r e a s a S e r v i c e, i s a s e r v i c e t h a t o f f e r s o n - d e ma n d p a y - p e r - u s e
a p p l i c a t i o n s o f t wa r e t o u s e r s . Wi t h S a a S , s o f t wa r e i n s t a l l a t i o n i s n ’ t r e q u i r e d b e c a u s e i t s
r u n i n t h e c l o u d a n d i s a c c e s s i b l e f r o m a n y p l a t f o r m b y mu l t i p l e u s e r s . S a a s ’ s r e s o u r c e s
a r e ma n a g e d b y v e n d o r s . S a a S i s t y p i c a l l y u s e d b y e n d u s e r s .

P a a S , o r P l a t f o r m a s a S e r v i c e , i s a d e v e l o p me n t e n v i r o n me n t . I t ’ s ma d e u p o f a
p r o g r a mmi n g l a n g u a g e e x e c u t i o n e n v i r o n me n t , a n o p e r a t i n g s y s t e m, we b s e r v e r , a n d
d a t a b a s e . Us e r s c a n b u i l d a n d ma n a g e p r o g r a ms wi t h o u t wo r r y i n g a b o u t t h e u n d e r l y i n g
i n f r a s t r u c t u r e . T h e y ma n a g e d a t a a n d a p p l i c a t i o n r e s o u r c e s , wh i l e a l l o t h e r r e s o u r c e s a r e
ma n a g e d b y a v e n d o r . P a a S i s mo s t o f t e n u s e d b y d e v e l o p e r s .

I a a S , o r I nf r a s t r uc t ur e a s a S e r v i c e , o f f e r s a l l c o mp u t i n g r e s o u r c e s i n a v i r t u a l
e n v i r o n me n t . R e s o u r c e s i n c l u d e , d a t a s t o r a g e a n d v i s u a l i z a t i o n , v i r t u a l i z a t i o n , a n d
s e r v e r s a n d n e t wo r k i n g , a l l o f wh i c h v e n d o r s a r e t y p i c a l l y r e s p o n s i b l e f o r ma n a g i n g .
Us e r s a r e r e s p o n s i b l e f o r r e s o u r c e s s u c h a s a p p l i c a t i o n s , d a t a , r u n t i me , a n d mi d d l e wa r e .
I a a S h a s e n h a n c e d s c a l a b i l i t y s o d y n a mi c wo r k l o a d s a r e s u p p o r t e d . I a a S i s
t y p i c a l l y u s e d b y d e v e l o p e r s a n d S y s Ad mi n s .

IaaS PaaS SaaS

Managed by You

Applications Applications Applications

Data Data Data

Managed by You

Runtime Runtime Runtime

Managed by Vendor

Middleware Middleware Middleware

Managed by Vendor

O/S O/S O/S

Visualization Visualization Visualization

Managed by Vendor

Servers Servers Servers

Storage Storage Storage

Networking Networking Networking

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 05

AZURE
STORAGE

Blob Storage
Blob storage stores massive amounts of unstructured data such as text,
binary or application data, videos, and audio files. It contains data
management that allows you to optimize your storage using different
data tiers – premium, hot, cold, and archived.

Data Lake Store Gen 2

Data Lake Storage Gen2 is a multimodal cloud storage service. Before it,
cloud users had to choose between object store – such as blob storage,
which stores massive amounts of objects in a flat hierarchy – or file
system, which is a hierarchy that organizes data into structured
directories. Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 combines the qualities of
both object store and file system, so you have file store capability and
organization and object store scale.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 06

 AZURE
& SQL
WHE N C HOOS I NG A S QL S E R V E R S OL UT I ON I N A Z UR E , A N I MP OR T A NT C ONS I DE R A T I ON
i s h o w c l o s e t h e f e a t u r e s o f t h a t s e r v i c e ma t c h a n o n - p r e m i n s t a l l a t i o n . Wi t h Az u r e S QL
Da t a b a s e a n d S QL Ma n a g e d I n s t a n c e , mo s t o f t h e d a t a b a s e ma n a g e me n t f e a t u r e s , S QL
l a n g u a g e , a n d q u e r y p r o c e s s i n g a r e t h e s a me . T h e y s h a r e a c o mmo n c o d e b a s e wi t h l a t e s t
v e r s i o n o f S QL S e r v e r . Ot h e r c o mmo n f a c t o r s i n c l u d e s e c u r i t y f e a t u r e s , d a t a b a s e f e a t u r e s ,
l a n g u a g e f e a t u r e s , a n d mu l t i - mo d e l c a p a b i l i t i e s .

Azure SQL Database

Azure SQL Database is a platform as a service used for building new apps in the
cloud. It has pre-provisioned or serverless compute and hyperscale storage to meet
demanding workload environments. Users manage the database while Azure handles
the infrastructure, OS, and SQL server.

SQL Server on Virtual Machines

SQL Server on Virtual Machines is an Infrastructure as a Service used for re-hosting
apps requiring OS-level access and control with automated manageability features.
Azure manages the infrastructure and host while users manage the OS and SQL server.

Azure Managed Instance

Azure Managed Instance is a Platform as a Service used for modernizing existing
apps. It offers high capability with SQL Server and native VNET support. Azure
manages the infrastructure and OS while users are responsible for the server.

SQL Server on Virtual Machines

SQL Pools are a massively parallel processing (MPP) architecture designed for big data
applications and large aggregated queries. SQL Pools can support up to 128 concurrent
queries and 1,200 active concurrent slots. Because it’s a MPP solution, queries can be
20 to 100 times faster than other solutions. SQL Pools can also be paused to save costs.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 07

AZURE DEVOPS

Azure DevOps
Azure DevOps is a Software as a Service platform and orchestrator that provides a
toolchain for developing and deploying software. By operating in the SaaS
model, patches or upgrades to the toolchain aren’t required. DevOps’ popularity
comes from its use in any language, on any platform, and in any cloud. With it,
users can plan, code, build, test, deploy, and operate software. DevOps is
supported by Azure Marketplace, which allows third parties to extend its
functionality.

GitHub
Git is a version control system for tracking changes to computer files. It is distributed,
or decentralized, version control, which means many developers can work on a single
project without having to be on the same network. It tracks who made what changes
to the work and when, making for easy collaboration. Files can be reverted to old
versions at any time.

GitHub is a Git repository hosting service that provides a web-based graphical

interface. Some of its features include identifying and analyzing vulnerabilities to
code, the ability to publish privately or publicly, and easy code hosting with all of the
codes and documentations hosted in one place.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 08

AZURE DATA FACTORY

What is Azure Data Factory?

A z u r e D a t a F a c t o r y ( A D F ) i s a c l o u d - b a s e d s e r v i c e f o r d a ta i ntegr ati o n. I t i s
u s e d t o i n t e g r a t e d i s p a r a t e d a t a s o u r c e s f r o m a c r o s s y o u r o r gani z ati on
i n c l u d i n g d a t a i n t h e c l o u d a n d d a ta s to r e d o n - p r e m i s e s .

Azure Data Factory replaces SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)

Azure Data Factory is Microsoft’s cloud replacement for SSIS and is better designed
and suited for connecting to and working with Cloud and Hybrid environments.

Lift & Shift Scheduling Monitoring

with Triggers
Az u r e Da t a F a c t o r y i s a Mo n i t o r i n g i n ADF i s b u i l t
solution for running A pipeline is a logical in and is easy to use. It’s
S S I S p a c k a g e s i n ADF . I t grouping of activities accessed through the
l e v e r a g e s Az u r e that together perform a ma n a g e a n d mo n i t o r t a b ,
Infrastructure, but you task. A pipeline run wh i c h f e a t u r e s a l i s t o f
can still use or run your defines an instance of a triggered pipeline runs in
existing SSIS Packages pipeline execution. To t h e s e l e c t e d t i me p e r i o d .
either in the cloud or on execute a pipeline run Yo u c a n c h a n g e t h e t i me
a s e l f - h o s t e d n e t wo r k . y o u u s e a t r i g g e r , wh i c h range and filter by status,
is a unit of processing p i p e l i n e n a me , o r
t h a t d e t e r mi n e wh e n a a n n o t a t i o n . Wi t h
pipeline execution needs mo n i t o r i n g , y o u c a n ma k e
t o b e k i c k e d o f f . Yo u c a n run-specific actions such
schedule a pipeline to as rerun and view
run on a schedule or c o n s u mp t i o n r e p o r t s .
based on a trigger.

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 09

 AZURE KEY VAULTS

HOW A Z UR E K E Y V A UL T C A N S E C UR E S E NS I T I V E I NF OR MA T I ON A ND P A S S WOR DS
Az u r e Ke y Va u l t i s a c l o u d h o s t e d s e r v i c e o f f e r i n g s e c u r e s t o r a g e a n d a c c e s s f o r
c e r t i f i c a t e s , c o n n e c t i o n s t r i n g s a n d o t h e r s e c r e t s . I t s t r e a ml i n e s t h e k e y ma n a g e me n t
process and provides full control of keys for accessing and encrypting your data.
Ad mi n i s t r a t o r s c a n g r a n t o r r e v o k e a c c e s s t o k e y s a s n e e d e d . Ke y Va u l t s a l s o c o n t r o l
a c c e s s t o a n y t h i n g s t o r e d wi t h i n t h e m. Ap p l i c a t i o n s i n Az u r e r e s o u r c e s a u t h e n t i c a t e t o
Ke y Va u l t t o r e t r i e v e s e c r e t s . T h e b e s t a u t h e n t i c a t i o n me t h o d f o r Az u r e s e r v i c e s i s t o u s e
a ma n a g e d i d e n t i t y , a s i t a l l o ws Az u r e s e r v i c e s t o a u t h e n t i c a t e t o t h e Ke y Va u l t o r t o a n y
s e r v i c e t h a t s u p p o r t s Ac t i v e Di r e c t o r y a u t h e n t i c a t i o n , wi t h o u t h a v i n g t o i n c l u d e
c r e d e n t i a l s i n y o u r c o d e . Wi t h Az u r e Ke y Va u l t , a p p l i c a t i o n s n e v e r h a v e d i r e c t a c c e s s t o
k e y s ; a d mi n i s t r a t o r s c a n mo n i t o r a n d a u d i t k e y u s e s wi t h Az u r e l o g g i n g . Ke y Va u l t a l s o
a l l o ws t h e s e p a r a t i o n o f s e c u r i t y ma i n t e n a n c e f r o m a p p l i c a t i o n d e v e l o p me n t . F o r
e x a mp l e , Ke y Va u l t s e c r e t s c a n b e u s e d t o s t o r e c o n n e c t i o n s s t r i n g s f o r v a r i o u s r e s o u r c e s
a c c e s s e d b y Az u r e Da t a F a c t o r y . T h o s e c o n n e c t i o n s t r i n g s c a n b e u p d a t e d b y
a d mi n i s t r a t o r s wi t h o u t a f f e c t i n g t h e Az u r e Da t a F a c t o r y p i p e l i n e s o r h a v i n g t o s e n d n e w
p a s s wo r d s t o d e v e l o p e r s .

THE NERD'S GUIDE TO AZURE | 10

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