Cloud computing has become one of the pillars of the new normal during the global pandemic. Amongst all the major players, Microsoft Azure has come up to be one of the leading choices of enterprises worldwide. But its huge catalog and large use cases can be difficult to comprehend at once. That is why we have prepared an Azure cheat sheet that can help you understand the basic overview of Microsoft Azure.
Currently, more than 77% of businesses use some kind of enterprise cloud solution for their computing framework. According to Microsoft, 95% of Fortune 500 companies use Microsoft Azure. This should be a reason enough to be intrigued to know more about Microsoft Azure with an Azure learning path. If you are a fresher, you can start with the AZ-900 Exam and also get your hands on Azure fundamentals practice tests.
Why Is Cloud Computing Popular?
Before we start with this Azure cheat sheet, it is important to know the basics of cloud computing. Cloud computing is the modern alternative to having physical computing resources and on-premise data centers with the help of virtualization.
Some of the significant advantages of cloud computing are:
- Faster deployment of large compute environments
- Quicker deallocation of retired systems
- Cost-effective solutions
- Easy accessibility from anywhere
- Flexible computing capacity
- Easier deployment of usually complex systems
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What Is Microsoft Azure?
Beginning this Azure cheat sheet with a brief introduction, Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform that hosts proprietary solutions and open-source, standards-based technologies from Microsoft and other partner companies.
The billing structure of Microsoft Azure is based on resource consumption and not on reserve capacity. The pricing can also vary with the types of services, storage types, and the physical location from which you are hosting your Azure instances.
For example, in the central US region, the pricing for hot locally redundant block blob storage (LRS-HOT) with three copies in one data center is $0.0184 per GB. The pricing for geographically redundant storage (GRS-HOT) that provides three copies in one data center and three copies in another geographically distant data center is $0.0368 per GB. The pricing for Read-Access GRS (RAGRS-HOT) that enables read access at the second data center is $0.046 per GB.
All Azure cheat sheets should focus on the basic services offered by Microsoft Azure. A brief outline of what you can expect from Microsoft Azure is:
- Azure IoT Suite is the best tool to explore diverse options for the connection and monitoring of devices. The Azure IoT suite also provides telemetry and analytics services.
- HDInsight is also a common mention in any new Microsoft Azure cheat sheet. It is a custom Hadoop deployment.
- Azure Media Services provide an assortment of services including cloud-based video playing, transcoding, indexing, and services for content protection.
- Azure Redis Cache is one of the most interesting services you can find in an Azure cheat sheet. It is a managed version of the renowned open-source Redis data structure server.
- Azure Search provides an OData-based managed search service.
- Azure Cosmos DB gives a hosted NoSQL database for particular use cases.
In addition to these services, you can also use the Azure Stack application for apps in hybrid cloud developments. Several hardware vendors like HP Enterprise, Lenovo, Dell EMC, and Huawei have collaborated to develop the Azure Stack.
A Brief History
In this Azure cheat sheet, we will slightly focus on its history. Microsoft announced its Azure project in 2008, which finally became commercially available in 2010, February. It was named ‘Microsoft Azure’ in 2015.
The Azure Stack was developed in May 2015, and the first technical preview was available in January 2016. With time, Microsoft kept expanding its services. Another highlight to mention in this Azure cheat sheet is the inclusion of support for Linux distributions on the Azure platform. Currently, Microsoft Azure supports Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Clear Linux, CentOS, OpenSUSE, SUSE Linux Enterprise, Ubuntu, CoreOS, and Debian. In addition, Azure also provides support for FreeBSD and Docker images.
The collaboration between Microsoft and SAP is also a worth-mentioning milestone in this Azure cheat sheet. In the 2018 Sapphire Now conference, Microsoft presented the common availability of SAP HANA. Microsoft emphasized 26 different SAP HANA offerings by Azure, ranging in capacity from 192 GB to 24 TB. In 2019, the additions of AWS, Google Cloud, and many other global strategic service partners improved the cloud-based delivery of S/4HANA.
The Architecture of Microsoft Azure
It is mandatory to mention the architecture of Microsoft Azure in any Azure cheat sheet. All Azure architects need to understand the Azure architecture that emulates computer hardware utilizing virtualization technology. It is simply a virtualized hardware that can function like real hardware by leveraging software.
Microsoft Azure has various data centers that have multiple physical servers to provide the virtualized hardware to customers. It is a colossal grid of networking hardware and servers. It is important to note in this Azure cheat sheet that this architecture helps save time and money that could have been spent on maintenance and upgrades of computer hardware.
Components Of Microsoft Azure Architecture
The Microsoft Azure architecture contains three main aspects. The foundation element is the enterprise-level infrastructure on which the AppFabric SDK or the middleware is placed. This middleware is responsible for services like networking, storage, compute, and identity management.
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Microsoft data centers host Azure, and you can access them through Microsoft Azure Management. Here is an outline of the services in Azure that form its architecture.
Services Offered by Microsoft Azure
So far, you must have understood that you can avail of various cloud services on Microsoft Azure. However, this Azure cheat sheet will be incomplete without mentioning all the services available in the Microsoft Azure architecture. From here, you can easily understand the kind of services they offer, and make their best use for your enterprise.
AI + Machine Learning – Dive into the next generation of applications with artificial intelligence capabilities
| Service | Description |
| Anomaly Detector | Easily add anomaly detection capabilities to your apps. |
| Azure Bot Service | Intelligent, serverless bot services that scale on demand |
| Azure Cognitive Search | AI-powered cloud search service for mobile and web app development |
| Azure Databricks | Fast, easy, and collaborative Apache Spark-based analytics platform |
| Azure Machine Learning | Bring AI to everyone with an end-to-end, scalable, trusted platform with experimentation and model management |
| Azure Open Datasets | Cloud platform to host and share curated open datasets to accelerate the development of machine learning models |
| Azure Cognitive Services | Deploy high-quality AI models as APIs |
| Azure Video Analyzer | An AI service for quickly building video analytics solutions |
| Computer Vision | Distill actionable information from images |
| Content Moderator | Automated image, text, and video moderation |
| Custom Vision | Easily customize your own state-of-the-art computer vision models for your unique use case |
| Data Science Virtual Machines | Rich pre-configured environment for AI development |
| Face API | Detect, identify, analyze, organize, and tag faces in photos |
| Azure Form Recogniser | The AI-powered document extraction service that understands your forms |
| Azure Immersive Reader | Empower users of all ages and abilities to read and comprehend text |
| Kinect DK | Build computer vision and speech models using a developer kit with advanced AI sensors |
| Language Understanding | Teach your apps to understand commands from your users |
| Microsoft Genomics | Power genome sequencing & research insights |
| Personalizer | An AI service that delivers a personalized user experience |
| Project Bonsai | A machine teaching service for creating intelligent industrial control systems using simulations |
| QnA Maker | Distill information into conversational, easy-to-navigate answers |
| Speaker Recognition | A Speech service feature that verifies and identifies speakers |
| Speech to Text | A Speech service feature that accurately converts spoken audio to text |
| Speech Translation | Easily integrate real-time speech translation intoyour app |
| Text Analytics | Easily evaluate sentiment and topics to understand what users want |
| Text to Speech | A Speech service feature that converts text to lifelike speech |
| Translator | Easily conduct machine translation with a simple REST API call |
| Azure Metrics Advisor | An AI service that monitors metrics and diagnoses issues |
| Health Bot | A managed service purpose-built for the development of virtual healthcare assistants |
| Azure Percept | Accelerate edge intelligence from silicon to service |
| Azure Applied AI Services | Specialized services that enable organizations to accelerate time to value in applying AI to solve common scenarios |
Analytics – Collect, process, store, analyze, and visualize data irrespective of its volume and variety
| Service | Description |
| Azure Analysis Services | Enterprise-grade analytics engine as a service |
| Azure Data Explorer | Fast and highly scalable data exploration service |
| Azure Data Lake Storage | Massively scalable, secure data lake functionality built on Azure Blob Storage |
| Azure Data Share | A simple and safe service for sharing big data with external organizations |
| Azure Databricks | Fast, easy, and collaborative Apache Spark-based analytics platform |
| Azure Stream Analytics | Real-time analytics on fast-moving streams of data from applications and devices |
| Azure Synapse Analytics | Limitless analytics service with unmatched time to insight |
| Data Catalog | Get more value from your enterprise data assets |
| Azure Data Factory | Hybrid data integration at enterprise scale made easy |
| Data Lake Analytics | Distributed analytics service that makes big data easy |
| Event Hubs | Receive telemetry from millions of devices |
| HDInsight | Provision cloud Hadoop, Spark, R Server, HBase, and Storm clusters |
| Power BI Embedded | Embed fully interactive, stunning data visualizations in your applications |
| R Server for HDInsight | Predictive analytics, machine learning, and statistical modeling for big data |
| Azure Purview | Maximize business value with unified data governance |
| Microsoft Graph Data Connect | A secure, high-throughput connector designed to copy select Microsoft 365 productivity datasets into your Azure tenant |
Azure Virtual Desktop – The best virtual desktop experience through Azure
| Service | Description |
| Azure Virtual Desktop | The best virtual desktop experience, delivered on Azure |
| VMware Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure | Provision Windows desktops and apps with VMware and Azure Virtual Desktop |
| Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops for Azure | Provision Windows desktops and apps on Azure with Citrix and Azure Virtual Desktop |
Blockchain – Get integrated tools to build and manage blockchain-based applications
| Service | Description |
| Azure Blockchain Service | Build, govern, and expand consortium blockchain networks |
| Azure Blockchain Workbench | Easily prototype blockchain apps in the cloud |
| Azure Cosmos DB | Fast NoSQL database with open APIs for any scale |
| Azure Logic Apps | Automate the access and use of data across clouds without writing code |
| Microsoft Azure Confidential Ledger | Easily use a REST API managed service to store your unstructured metadata in a blockchain structure |
Compute – Avail cloud computing services and scale at your wish while paying only for the resources that you use
| Service | Description |
| API Apps | Easily build and consume Cloud APIs |
| App Service | Quickly create powerful cloud apps for web and mobile |
| Azure CycleCloud | Create, manage, operate, and optimize HPC and big compute clusters of any scale |
| Azure Functions | Process events with serverless code |
| Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) | Simplify the deployment, management, and operations of Kubernetes |
| Azure Quantum | Experience quantum impact today on Azure |
| Azure Spot Virtual Machines | Provision unused compute capacity at deep discounts to run interruptible workloads |
| Azure Spring Cloud | A fully managed Spring Cloud service, jointly built and operated with VMware |
| Azure VMware Solution | Run your VMware workloads natively on Azure |
| Batch | Cloud-scale job scheduling and compute management |
| Cloud Services | Create highly available, infinitely-scalable cloud applications and APIs |
| Container Instances | Easily run containers on Azure without managing servers |
| Linux Virtual Machines | Provision virtual machines for Ubuntu, Red Hat, and more |
| Mobile Apps | Build and host the backend for any mobile app |
| Service Fabric | Develop microservices and orchestrate containers on Windows or Linux |
| SQL Server on Virtual Machines | Host enterprise SQL Server apps in the cloud |
| Static Web Apps | A modern web app service that offers streamlined full-stack development from source code to global high availability |
| Virtual Machine Scale Sets | Manage and scale up to thousands of Linux and Windows virtual machines |
| Virtual Machines | Provision Windows and Linux virtual machines in seconds |
| Web Apps | Quickly create and deploy mission-critical web apps at scale |
| Azure Virtual Desktop | The best virtual desktop experience, delivered on Azure |
| Azure Dedicated Host | A dedicated physical server to host your Azure VMs for Windows and Linux |
| Azure VM Image Builder | Simplify your image building process with easy to use tool |
Containers – Integrated tools to develop and manage all the applications faster within a container
| Service | Description |
| API Apps | Easily build and consume Cloud APIs |
| Azure Functions | Process events with serverless code |
| Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) | Simplify the deployment, management, and operations of Kubernetes |
| Azure Red Hat OpenShift | Fully managed OpenShift service, jointly operated with Red Hat |
| Container Instances | Easily run containers on Azure without managing servers |
| Container Registry | Store and manage container images across all types of Azure deployments |
| Mobile Apps | Build and host the backend for any mobile app |
| Service Fabric | Develop microservices and orchestrate containers on Windows or Linux |
| Web App for Containers | Easily deploy and run containerized web apps that scale with your business |
| Web Apps | Quickly create and deploy mission-critical web apps at scale |
Databases – With fully managed and secure database services, innovate faster and grow rapidly
| Service | Description |
| Azure API for FHIR | Easily create and deploy an FHIR service for health data solutions and interoperability |
| Azure Cache for Redis | Accelerate applications with high-throughput, low-latency data caching |
| Azure Cosmos DB | Fast NoSQL database with open APIs for any scale |
| Azure Database for MariaDB | Managed MariaDB database service for app developers |
| Azure Database for MySQL | Fully managed, scalable MySQL Database |
| Azure Database for PostgreSQL | Fully managed, intelligent, and scalable PostgreSQL |
| Azure Database Migration Service | Simplify on-premises database migration to the cloud |
| Azure SQL | Managed, always up-to-date SQL instance in the cloud |
| Azure SQL Database | Managed, intelligent SQL in the cloud |
| Azure SQL Edge | Consume Services privately on Azure Platform |
| Azure SQL Managed Instance | Managed, always up-to-date SQL instance in the cloud |
| SQL Server on Virtual Machines | Host enterprise SQL Server apps in the cloud |
| Table Storage | NoSQL key-value store using semi-structured datasets |
| Azure Managed Instance for Apache Cassandra | Cloud Cassandra with flexibility, control, and scale |
Developer Tools – Tools to create and manage cloud applications on any platform and in any language
| Service | Description |
| App Configuration | Fast, scalable parameter storage for app configuration |
| Azure DevOps | Services for teams to share code, track work, and ship software |
| Azure DevTest Labs | Quickly create environments using reusable templates and artifacts |
| Azure Lab Services | Set up labs for classrooms, trials, development and testing, and other scenarios |
| Azure Pipelines | Continuously build, test, and deploy to any platform and cloud |
| SDKs | Get the SDKs and command-line tools you need |
| Visual Studio | The powerful and flexible environment for developing applications in the cloud |
| Visual Studio Code | A powerful, lightweight code editor for cloud development |
DevOps – Innovative tools for faster and reliable tools
| Service | Description |
| Azure Artifacts | Create, host, and share packages with your team |
| Azure Boards | Plan, track, and discuss work across your teams |
| Azure DevOps | Services for teams to share code, track work, and ship software |
| Azure DevTest Labs | Quickly create environments using reusable templates and artifacts |
| Azure Monitor | Full observability into your applications, infrastructure, and network |
| Azure Pipelines | Continuously build, test, and deploy to any platform and cloud |
| Azure Repos | Get unlimited, cloud-hosted private Git repos for your project |
| Azure Test Plans | Test and ship with confidence with a manual and exploratory testing toolkit |
| DevOps tool integrations | Use your favorite DevOps tools with Azure |
Hybrid + Multicloud – Incorporate the Azure agility of cloud computing into the operations at your workplace
| Service | Description |
| Azure Active Directory | Synchronize on-premises directories and enable single sign-on |
| Azure Arc | Extend Azure management and services anywhere |
| Azure Database for PostgreSQL | Fully managed, intelligent, and scalable PostgreSQL |
| Azure DevOps | Services for teams to share code, track work, and ship software |
| Azure ExpressRoute | Dedicated private network fiber connections to Azure |
| Azure IoT Edge | Extend cloud intelligence and analytics to edge devices managed by Azure IoT Hub |
| Azure Sentinel | Put cloud-native SIEM and intelligent security analytics to work to help protect your enterprise |
| Azure SQL Database | Managed, intelligent SQL in the cloud |
| Azure SQL Edge | Consume Services privately on Azure Platform |
| Azure Stack | Build and run innovative hybrid applications across cloud boundaries |
| Security Center | Unify security management and enable advanced threat protection across hybrid cloud workloads |
| Azure Stack HCI | Run your production workloads on hybrid, familiar hyper-converged infrastructure |
| Azure Stack Hub | Azure Stack Hub is sold as an integrated hardware system, with software pre-installed on validated hardware |
| Azure Stack Edge | An Azure managed device that brings the compute, storage, and intelligence of Azure to the edge |
| Azure Modular Datacenter | A complete, rugged data center solution |
Identity – Increase security by managing user identities and protecting them against advanced threats across applications, data, infrastructure, and devices
| Service | Description |
| Azure Active Directory | Synchronize on-premises directories and enable single sign-on |
| Azure Active Directory Domain Services | Join Azure virtual machines to a domain without domain controllers |
| Azure Information Protection | Better protect your sensitive information—anytime, anywhere |
| Azure Active Directory External Identities | Consumer identity and access management in the cloud |
Integration – Seamless integration between cloud-based applications and on-premise software across the enterprise
| Service | Description |
| API Management | Publish APIs to developers, partners, and employees securely and at scale |
| Azure API for FHIR | Easily create and deploy an FHIR service for health data solutions and interoperability |
| Event Grid | Reliable event delivery at a massive scale |
| Azure Logic Apps | Automate the access and use of data across clouds without writing code |
| Service Bus | Connect across private and public cloud environments |
| Azure Web PubSub | Easily build real-time messaging web applications using WebSockets and the publish-subscribe pattern |
Internet of Things – Without changing your infrastructure, enjoy the perks of IoT on all applications
| Service | Description |
| API Management | Publish APIs to developers, partners, and employees securely and at scale |
| Azure Cosmos DB | Fast NoSQL database with open APIs for any scale |
| Azure Digital Twins | Build next-generation IoT solutions that model entire environments in real-time |
| Azure Functions | Process events with serverless code |
| Azure IoT Central | Accelerate the creation of IoT solutions |
| Azure IoT Edge | Extend cloud intelligence and analytics to edge devices managed by Azure IoT Hub |
| Azure IoT Hub | Connect, monitor, and manage IoT assets with a scalable platform |
| Azure IoT solution accelerators | Create fully customizable solutions with templates for common IoT scenarios |
| Azure Machine Learning | Bring AI to everyone with an end-to-end, scalable, trusted platform with experimentation and model management |
| Azure Maps | Simple and secure location APIs provide geospatial context to data |
| Azure RTOS | Making embedded IoT development and connectivity easy |
| Azure Sphere | Securely connect embedded MCU-powered devices from silicon to cloud |
| Azure SQL Edge | Consume Services privately on Azure Platform |
| Azure Stream Analytics | Real-time analytics on fast-moving streams of data from applications and devices |
| Azure Time Series Insights | Monitor, analyze, and visualize your industrial IoT data at scale |
| Event Grid | Reliable event delivery at a massive scale |
| Kinect DK | Build computer vision and speech models using a developer kit with advanced AI sensors |
| Azure Logic Apps | Automate the access and use of data across clouds without writing code |
| Notification Hubs | Send push notifications to any platform from any back end |
| Windows 10 IoT Core Services | Long-term OS support and services to manage device updates and assess device health |
| Azure Defender for IoT | Monitor and detect security threats to both managed and unmanaged IoT assets |
| Azure Percept | Accelerate edge intelligence from silicon to service |
| Windows IoT Enterprise | Build intelligent edge solutions with world-class developer tools, long-term support, and enterprise-grade security. |
Management and Governance – Automate and optimize all your cloud resources with simplified management and compliance
| Service | Description |
| Automation | Simplify cloud management with process automation |
| Azure Advisor | Your personalized Azure best practices recommendation engine |
| Azure Backup | Simplify data protection and protect against ransomware |
| Azure Blueprints | Enabling quick, repeatable creation of governed environments |
| Azure Lighthouse | Empowering service providers to manage customers at scale and with precision |
| Azure Managed Applications | Simplify management of cloud offerings |
| Azure Migrate | Easily discover, assess, right-size, and migrate your on-premises VMs to Azure |
| Azure mobile app | Stay connected to your Azure resources—anytime, anywhere |
| Azure Monitor | Full observability into your applications, infrastructure, and network |
| Azure Policy | Implement corporate governance and standards at scale for Azure resources |
| Azure Resource Manager | Simplify how you manage your app resources |
| Azure Resource Manager templates | Deliver infrastructure as code for all your Azure resources using Resource Manager |
| Azure Service Health | Personalized guidance and support for when issues in Azure services affect you |
| Azure Site Recovery | Keep your business running with built-in disaster recovery service |
| Cloud Shell | Streamline Azure administration with a browser-based shell |
| Azure Cost Management and Billing | Manage your cloud spending with confidence |
| Microsoft Azure portal | Build, manage, and monitor all Azure products in a single, unified console |
| Network Watcher | Network performance monitoring and diagnostics solution |
| Traffic Manager | Route incoming traffic for high performance and availability |
| Azure Automanage | Simplify and optimize IT management with automated operations |
| Azure Resource Mover | Simplify how you move multiple resources between Azure regions |
| Azure Purview | Maximize business value with unified data governance |
Media – High-quality video content available across devices at any time
| Service | Description |
| Azure Media Player | A single-player for all your playback needs |
| Content Delivery Network | Ensure secure, reliable content delivery with a broad global reach |
| Content Protection | Securely deliver content using AES, PlayReady, Widevine, and Fairplay |
| Encoding | Studio-grade encoding at cloud scale |
| Live and On-Demand Streaming | Deliver content to virtually all devices with scale to meet business needs |
| Media Services | Encode, store, and stream video and audio at scale |
Migration – Easily migrate all your application data to the cloud with required tools, resources, and guide
| Service | Description |
| Azure Database Migration Service | Simplify on-premises database migration to the cloud |
| Azure Migrate | Easily discover, assess, right-size, and migrate your on-premises VMs to Azure |
| Azure Site Recovery | Keep your business running with built-in disaster recovery service |
| Azure Cost Management and Billing | Manage your cloud spending with confidence |
| Azure Data Box | Appliances and solutions for offline data transfer to Azure |
Mixed Reality – Create immersive and collaborative experience by blending both the digital and physical worlds
| Service | Description |
| Azure Digital Twins | Build next-generation IoT solutions that model entire environments in real-time |
| Kinect DK | Build computer vision and speech models using a developer kit with advanced AI sensors |
| Azure Remote Rendering | Render high-quality, interactive 3D content, and stream it to your devices in real-time |
| Spatial Anchors | Create multi-user, spatially aware mixed reality experiences |
| Object Anchors | Automatically align and anchor 3D content to objects in the physical world |
Mobile – Build and deploy cross-platform and apps for all mobile devices
| Service | Description |
| API Management | Publish APIs to developers, partners, and employees securely and at scale |
| App Service | Quickly create powerful cloud apps for web and mobile |
| Azure Cognitive Search | AI-powered cloud search service for mobile and web app development |
| Azure Maps | Simple and secure location APIs provide geospatial context to data |
| Azure Cognitive Services | Deploy high-quality AI models as APIs |
| Notification Hubs | Send push notifications to any platform from any back end |
| Spatial Anchors | Create multi-user, spatially aware mixed reality experiences |
| Visual Studio App Centre | Continuously build, test, release, and monitor your mobile and desktop apps |
| Xamarin | Create cloud-powered mobile apps faster |
| Azure Communication Services | Build rich communication experiences with the same secure CPaaS platform used by Microsoft Teams |
Networking – Bring the best user experience to your customers by connecting on-premise and cloud infrastructure
| Service | Description |
| Application Gateway | Build secure, scalable, and highly available web front ends in Azure |
| Azure Bastion | Private and fully managed RDP and SSH access to your virtual machines |
| Azure DDoS Protection | Protect your applications from Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks |
| Azure DNS | Host your DNS domain in Azure |
| Azure ExpressRoute | Dedicated private network fiber connections to Azure |
| Azure Firewall | Native firewalling capabilities with built-in high availability, unrestricted cloud scalability, and zero maintenance |
| Load Balancing | Explore Azure load balancing services and find the best solution for your workloads using an easy-to-use service selection tool |
| Azure Firewall Manager | Central network security policy and route management for globally distributed, software-defined perimeters |
| Azure Front Door | Secure, fast, and reliable cloud CDN with intelligent threat protection |
| Azure Internet Analyzer | Test how networking infrastructure changes will impact your customers’ performance. |
| Azure Private Link | Private access to services hosted on the Azure platform, keeping your data on the Microsoft network |
| Content Delivery Network | Ensure secure, reliable content delivery with a broad global reach |
| Network Watcher | Network performance monitoring and diagnostics solution |
| Traffic Manager | Route incoming traffic for high performance and availability |
| Virtual Network | Provision private networks, optionally connect to on-premises datacenters |
| Virtual WAN | Optimize and automate branch to branch connectivity through Azure |
| VPN Gateway | Establish secure, cross-premises connectivity |
| Web Application Firewall | A cloud-native web application firewall (WAF) service that provides powerful protection for web apps |
| Azure Orbital | Satellite ground station and scheduling service connected to Azure for fast downlinking of data |
| Azure Route Server | Enable network appliances to exchange routes dynamically with virtual networks in Azure |
Security – Keep your enterprise safe from advanced threats across hybrid cloud workloads
| Service | Description |
| Application Gateway | Build secure, scalable, and highly available web front ends in Azure |
| Azure Active Directory | Synchronize on-premises directories and enable single sign-on |
| Azure Active Directory Domain Services | Join Azure virtual machines to a domain without domain controllers |
| Azure Defender | Protect hybrid cloud workloads |
| Azure DDoS Protection | Protect your applications from Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks |
| Azure Dedicated HSM | Manage hardware security modules that you use in the cloud |
| Azure Front Door | Secure, fast, and reliable cloud CDN with intelligent threat protection |
| Azure Information Protection | Better protect your sensitive information—anytime, anywhere |
| Azure Sentinel | Put cloud-native SIEM and intelligent security analytics to work to help protect your enterprise |
| Key Vault | Safeguard and maintain control of keys and other secrets |
| Security Center | Unify security management and enable advanced threat protection across hybrid cloud workloads |
| VPN Gateway | Establish secure, cross-premises connectivity |
| Web Application Firewall | A cloud-native web application firewall (WAF) service that provides powerful protection for web apps |
| Azure Defender for IoT | Monitor and detect security threats to both managed and unmanaged IoT assets |
| Microsoft Azure Attestation | A unified solution for remotely verifying the trustworthiness of a platform and integrity of the binaries running inside it |
| Microsoft Azure Confidential Ledger | Easily use a REST API managed service to store your unstructured metadata in a blockchain structure |
Storage – Get a large and highly scalable cloud data storage to keep your apps and workloads
| Service | Description |
| Archive Storage | An industry-leading price point for storing rarely accessed data |
| Avere vFXT for Azure | Run high-performance, file-based workloads in the cloud |
| Azure Backup | Simplify data protection and protect against ransomware |
| Azure Data Lake Storage | Massively scalable, secure data lake functionality built on Azure Blob Storage |
| Azure Data Share | A simple and safe service for sharing big data with external organizations |
| Azure Files | Simple, secure, and serverless enterprise-grade cloud file shares |
| Azure FXT Edge Filer | Hybrid storage optimization solution for HPC environments |
| Azure HPC Cache | File caching for high-performance computing (HPC) |
| Azure NetApp Files | Enterprise-grade Azure file shares, powered by NetApp |
| Azure Blob Storage | Massively scalable and secure object storage |
| Azure Data Box | Appliances and solutions for offline data transfer to Azure |
| Azure Disk Storage | High-performance, highly durable block storage for Azure Virtual Machines |
| Queue Storage | Effectively scale apps according to traffic |
| Storage Accounts | Durable, highly available, and massively scalable cloud storage |
| Storage Explorer | View and interact with Azure Storage resources |
| StorSimple | Lower costs with an enterprise hybrid cloud storage solution |
| Microsoft Azure Confidential Ledger | Easily use a REST API managed service to store your unstructured metadata in a blockchain structure |
Web – Quick build and deploy web applications
| Service | Description |
| API Apps | Easily build and consume Cloud APIs |
| API Management | Publish APIs to developers, partners, and employees securely and at scale |
| App Service | Quickly create powerful cloud apps for web and mobile |
| Azure Cognitive Search | AI-powered cloud search service for mobile and web app development |
| Azure Maps | Simple and secure location APIs provide geospatial context to data |
| Azure SignalR Service | Add real-time web functionalities easily |
| Azure Spring Cloud | A fully managed Spring Cloud service, jointly built and operated with VMware |
| Content Delivery Network | Ensure secure, reliable content delivery with a broad global reach |
| Mobile Apps | Build and host the backend for any mobile app |
| Notification Hubs | Send push notifications to any platform from any back end |
| Static Web Apps | A modern web app service that offers streamlined full-stack development from source code to global high availability |
| Web App for Containers | Easily deploy and run containerized web apps that scale with your business |
| Web Apps | Quickly create and deploy mission-critical web apps at scale |
| Azure Communication Services | Build rich communication experiences with the same secure CPaaS platform used by Microsoft Teams |
| Azure Web PubSub | Easily build real-time messaging web applications using WebSockets and the publish-subscribe pattern |
Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI)
It is very important to mention Microsoft Azure commands in any Azure cheat sheet. The Azure command-line is the cross-platform command-line tool that can help you manage your resources. You can also develop custom automation with this tool.
You can approach Azure CLI through a selection of Azure Cloud Shell environments in your browser. After installing Azure CLI by following the given instructions, you should also check the version of your Azure CLI by using ‘az version’ command. Once you are done, you need to sign in with ‘az login’ to use the CLI commands with the local install.
Common Commands
As you start using Microsoft Azure, you will come across several common commands to be implemented in the CLI. Here is an outline of the common command groups:
- ‘az group’ deals with resource groups.
- ‘az VM’ deals with virtual machines.
- ‘az storage account’ deals with storage accounts.
- ‘az keyvault’ deals with the Key Vault.
- ‘az webapp’ deals with Web applications.
- ‘az sql server’ deals with SQL databases.
- ‘az cosmosdb’ command relates to functions of CosmosDB
This organization of CLI commands into groups is also an important part of every Azure cheat sheet. You can choose ‘az find’ to look for more command names.
Arguments Available Globally
The next component of this Azure cheat sheet is the discussion on globally available arguments, that can be used with every command.
- The ‘- -output’ argument helps in changing the output format. The different formats available in this argument include JSON, tsv (tab-separated values), YAML, jsonc (colorized JSON) and table (human-readable ASCII tables).
- The ‘- -query’ argument helps in filtering the output from Azure services. This argument utilizes the JMESPath query language.
- ‘- -verbose’ argument helps in printing information regarding resources created in Azure in the course of an operation. This argument also provides additional useful information.
- ‘- -debug’ argument is ideal for printing additional information about CLI operations. As the name of the command implies directly, it is ideal for debugging objectives. When users find a bug, they should provide output with ‘- -debug’ tag activated during submission of the bug report.
Microsoft Azure Certifications
Microsoft offers a plethora of certifications to validate role-based assessment and evaluate the design and implementation skills of the interested candidates. Based on your preference and current knowledge, you can create your own learning path from the beginner level to the expert level. According to the official information by Microsoft, they offer 25 certifications under various specialties for Microsoft Azure. We have compiled a quick list of references for these certifications along with the relevant exams required to undertake.
Certification |
Exam |
Microsoft Documentation |
Whizlabs Course Link |
| Microsoft 365 Certified: Teams Support Engineer Associate | MS 740 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Administrator Associate(Legacy) | AZ 100,AZ 101(expired),AZ 103(name changed from AZ-103 to AZ-104) | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Developer Associate(Legacy) | AZ 200,AZ 201,AZ 203(expired) | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Solutions Architect Expert(Legacy) | AZ 300(expired),AZ 301(expired), AZ 303(name changed from AZ-303 to AZ-305) | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure AI Engineer Associate | AI 102 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Data Engineer Associate | DP 203 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Network Engineer Associate | AZ 700 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Virtual Desktop Specialty | AZ 140 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure for SAP Workloads Specialty | AZ 120 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Power Platform Solutions Architect Expert | PL 600 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Data Scientist Associate | DP 100 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals | SC 900 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Solutions Architect Expert | AZ 303(name changed from AZ-303 to AZ-305), AZ 304(name changed from AZ-304 to AZ-305) | Click Here | Click Here |
| Security Operations Analyst Associate | SC 200 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Identity and Access Administrator Associate | SC 300 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Stack Hub Operator Associate | AZ 600 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure IoT Developer Specialty | AZ 220 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Developer Associate | AZ 204 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Fundamentals | AZ 900 | Click Here | Click Here |
| DevOps Engineer Expert | AZ 400 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Administrator Associate | AZ 104 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Database Administrator Associate | DP 300 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Security Engineer Associate | AZ 500 | Click Here | Click Here |
| Azure Data Fundamentals | DP 900 | Click Here | Click Here |
Conclusion
With this elaborate discussion, we have created an illustrated Azure cheat sheet for your convenience. You can now understand all the prospects of Microsoft Azure, along with its architecture. This Azure cheat sheet can also clarify most of your apprehensions about taking training in Microsoft Azure.
If you want to prepare and learn further about the concepts and implementations of Microsoft Azure, then you can check out our vast directory of courses available for a free trial, right away! Remember, a professional certification can validate your skills and add credibility to your resume while steering your career towards growth.
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