Module 2: Core Azure Services for SREs

Overview

This module covers essential Azure services every SRE must know: resource groups, networking, virtual machines, storage, and identity management.

Lesson 2.1: Resource Groups & Subscriptions

• Organize resources with Resource Groups
• Understand Subscriptions and billing
• Demo:

az group create --name DemoGroup --location westus

Lesson 2.2: Networking Basics (VNet, Subnet, NSG)

• Virtual Networks, Subnets, IP addressing
• Network Security Groups (NSG) for access control
• Demo:

az network vnet create --resource-group DemoGroup --name DemoVNet --address-prefix 10.0.0.0/16
az network vnet subnet create --resource-group DemoGroup --vnet-name DemoVNet --name WebSubnet --address-prefix 10.0.1.0/24
az network nsg create --resource-group DemoGroup --name DemoNSG

Lesson 2.3: Virtual Machines (VMs)

• Creating, scaling, and monitoring VMs
• Demo:

az vm create --resource-group DemoGroup --name DemoVM --image UbuntuLTS --admin-username azureuser --generate-ssh-keys

Lesson 2.4: Storage Essentials (Blob, Disk, File Shares)

• Types of Azure Storage and use cases
• Demo:

az storage account create --name demostorageacct --resource-group DemoGroup --location westus --sku Standard_LRS

Lesson 2.5: Identity & Access Management (Azure AD & RBAC)

• Azure Active Directory and Role-Based Access Control
• Demo: Assign Reader role

az role assignment create --assignee <user-email> --role Reader --resource-group DemoGroup

Assessment

• Hands-on lab: Create and manage resources

Troubleshooting Tips & Common Mistakes

• Always check address prefixes for VNets and subnets to avoid overlap errors.
• If a VM fails to deploy, verify quota limits and region availability.
• Common mistake: Forgetting to assign NSG rules for required ports (SSH, HTTP).
• Clean up resources after labs to avoid charges.

Visual Guide

Sample Azure networking architecture.

Quick Quiz

1. What is the purpose of a Resource Group?
2. How do NSGs help secure your environment?
3. What is the difference between a public and private IP in Azure?

Discuss your answers in the course forum or with your instructor.

Community & Discussion

• Join the Azure SRE Learners Forum to ask questions, share projects, and connect with peers.

Goal: Practice creating and managing core Azure resources.

Tasks:

1. Create a Resource Group named CoreRG.
2. Deploy a Virtual Network (CoreVNet) with two subnets: WebSubnet and DbSubnet.
3. Create a Linux VM (CoreVM) in WebSubnet and a Storage Account (corestorageacct).
4. Assign the Reader role to a test user for the Resource Group.
5. Delete all resources after completion.

Submission:

• Provide screenshots and a short summary of what each resource does.

Hands-On Assignment

Scenario: You are asked to design a simple Azure environment for a small web application.

Instructions:

1. Draw or describe the resource group, network, VM, and storage setup.
2. Explain why you chose each resource and how they interact.
3. Share your design in the course forum or with your instructor.

Resources

• Azure CLI Documentation
• Azure Networking Overview