Azure VM Overview¶
Azure Virtual Machines (VMs) provide on-demand, high-scale, and secure Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) compute. This service allows you to run virtualized environments in the cloud with complete control over the operating system and its configurations.
Key Characteristics¶
| Component | Description | Included Resources |
|---|---|---|
| Compute | Scalable CPU and RAM configurations | Virtual Machine (SKU) |
| Storage | Persistent virtual hard disks | OS Disk, Data Disks |
| Networking | Connectivity and security boundaries | NIC, Public IP, NSG, VNet |
| Identity | Managed access control | Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), Managed Identity |
Resource Hierarchy¶
graph TD
Sub[Subscription] --> RG[Resource Group]
RG --> VM[Virtual Machine]
VM --> NIC[Network Interface]
VM --> OSD[OS Disk (Managed Disk)]
VM --> DSK[Data Disks (Managed Disks)]
NIC --> VNET[Virtual Network]
NIC --> NSG[Network Security Group]
NIC --> PIP[Public IP Address]Shared Responsibility¶
Azure manages the underlying physical infrastructure, while you handle everything inside the virtualized environment.
| Area | You Manage | Azure Manages |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Hardware | ✔ | |
| Virtualization Layer | ✔ | |
| Operating System | ✔ | |
| Applications & Data | ✔ | |
| Network Security (NSG) | ✔ |
Note
While Azure manages the host hardware, you are responsible for patching the guest OS unless you use specialized services like Azure Automanage.
Scope of This Guide¶
- Included: Practical configuration, deployment, security, and maintenance of Azure VMs.
- Excluded: Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) deep dives, App Service dev-ops, or non-compute services.