About the course
Microsoft Azure provides a vast array of services for developers to build, deploy, and manage modern cloud applications efficiently and at scale. This course offers a practical, hands-on introduction to the essential Azure Platform as a Service (PaaS) tools and services most relevant to developers getting started on the cloud. It equips you with the foundational knowledge and practical skills needed to confidently leverage Azure for your application development and deployment projects, moving beyond traditional infrastructure approaches and focusing on cloud-native capabilities.
You will begin by understanding core cloud computing concepts (PaaS, IaaS, SaaS) and navigating the Azure ecosystem, including the Azure Portal and command-line tools. The course provides in-depth coverage of key Azure compute services for developers, focusing on building and deploying web applications and APIs using Azure App Services, and creating event-driven serverless workloads with Azure Functions. You will learn how to integrate your applications with essential Azure data services, connecting to and performing operations with Azure SQL Database for relational data, Azure Cosmos DB for flexible NoSQL requirements, and Azure Blob Storage for handling unstructured data.
The workshop also covers crucial aspects of building connected and secure applications on Azure. You will explore Azure messaging services like Azure Queue Storage and Azure Service Bus for implementing robust asynchronous communication patterns that promote scalability and resilience, and learn how to secure your applications and manage identities and access using Microsoft Entra ID and Azure Key Vault. Essential practices for deploying applications using modern methods (e.g., Azure CLI, PowerShell, Visual Studio), monitoring their performance and health with Azure Monitor and Application Insights, and understanding basic cost management are also covered. Through extensive hands-on labs integrated throughout the modules, you will gain practical experience building, deploying, securing, and managing components of a modern application on Azure.
Instructor-led online and in-house face-to-face options are available - as part of a wider customised training programme, or as a standalone workshop, on-site at your offices or at one of many flexible meeting spaces in the UK and around the World.
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- Understand core cloud computing concepts (PaaS, IaaS, SaaS) and navigate the Azure ecosystem and developer tools.
- Build and deploy web applications and APIs to Azure App Services.
- Create and deploy Azure Functions for serverless scenarios.
- Connect applications to and perform data operations with Azure SQL Database and Azure Cosmos DB.
- Work with Azure Blob Storage from an application.
- Implement asynchronous messaging using Azure Queue Storage and Azure Service Bus.
- Secure applications and manage identities using Microsoft Entra ID and Azure Key Vault.
- Deploy applications to Azure using modern methods (e.g., Azure CLI, Visual Studio/VS Code integration, basic CI/CD concepts).
- Monitor Azure applications using Azure Monitor and Application Insights.
- Understand basic Azure cost management concepts.
- Troubleshoot common deployment and runtime issues.
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This course is designed for software developers (likely from a .NET background due to common tooling examples, but the concepts are applicable to developers using other languages like Java, Python, Node.js) who are new to developing and deploying applications on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform. It is ideal for:
Developers looking to get started with Azure PaaS services.
Developers migrating applications from on-premises or other cloud platforms to Azure.
Developers interested in building cloud-native applications on Azure.
Technical Leads and Architects needing a practical understanding of modern Azure development capabilities.
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Participants should have:
Working knowledge of programming concepts and experience developing applications in a modern language (e.g., C#, Java, Python, Node.js). The course examples and labs may lean towards .NET, but the Azure concepts apply broadly.
Basic familiarity with web application concepts (e.g., HTTP, REST APIs).
Basic familiarity with using a command line or terminal.
No prior experience with Microsoft Azure or cloud computing concepts is required, as these will be introduced in the course.
We can customise the training to match your team's experience and needs - with more time and coverage of fundamentals for new developers, or a swifter pace for experienced coders.
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This Azure Development course is available for private / custom delivery for your team - as an in-house face-to-face workshop at your location of choice, or as online instructor-led training via MS Teams (or your own preferred platform).
Get in touch to find out how we can deliver tailored training which focuses on your project requirements and learning goals.
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Introduction to Cloud Development on Azure
Understanding Cloud Computing Concepts: PaaS, IaaS, SaaS – What they are and why they matter for developers.
Why Develop on Microsoft Azure? Exploring the benefits and common use cases for developers.
The Azure Ecosystem for Developers: An overview of key services you'll interact with (Compute, Data, Messaging, Identity, Management, DevOps).
Setting up Your Azure Environment:
Creating an Azure account/subscription
Introduction to managing resources via the Azure Portal
Introduction to command-line tools (Azure CLI/PowerShell)
Setting up your development environment (Visual Studio / VS Code) with Azure tools and SDKs.
Hands-On Labs: Setting up Azure environment, exploring the Portal, basic CLI/PowerShell commands, installing dev tools.
Core Azure Compute Services for Developers (PaaS Focus)
Choosing the Right Compute Service: Understanding scenarios for App Services, Functions, and Containers.
Azure App Services:
Overview: A fully managed platform for hosting web applications, APIs, and mobile backends (supports .NET, Node.js, Python, Java, etc.).
Creating and configuring App Services.
Deployment Slots: Implementing staging, production, and swap for reliable deployments.
Scaling App Services: Understanding manual and auto-scaling options.
Developing and deploying sample web applications or APIs to App Services.
Azure Functions (Serverless Compute):
Overview: An event-driven, serverless compute service.
Understanding Triggers (HTTP, Timer, Queue, Blob, etc.) and Bindings (input/output).
Creating and deploying sample Azure Functions.
Common use cases for serverless functions.
Hands-On Labs: Creating and deploying a web app/API to Azure App Services, configuring deployment slots, setting up auto-scaling, creating and deploying a simple Azure Function with a trigger.
Azure Data Services for Developers
Choosing the Right Data Service: Overview of Azure's diverse data storage and database portfolio (Relational, NoSQL, Blob, etc.).
Azure SQL Database:
Overview: Microsoft's managed relational database PaaS offering.
Creating and configuring Azure SQL Database.
Connecting to Azure SQL DB securely from Azure compute services and local development.
Essential data access techniques from your applications.
Azure Cosmos DB:
Overview: Microsoft's globally distributed, multi-model NoSQL database service.
Understanding different APIs (NoSQL, MongoDB, Table, Cassandra, Gremlin). Focus on the NoSQL API.
Creating and configuring a Cosmos DB account and database/container.
Connecting to and performing basic data operations from applications.
Azure Storage (Blob Storage):
Overview: Scalable object storage for unstructured data (documents, images, videos).
Working with Blob Containers, Block Blobs, and Page Blobs.
Accessing and managing Blob Storage from applications.
Hands-On Labs: Creating and connecting to Azure SQL DB, performing basic operations, creating and connecting to Azure Cosmos DB (NoSQL API), performing basic operations, working with Azure Blob Storage from code.
Module 4: Azure Messaging and Integration Services
Messaging Patterns in Distributed Systems: When to use Queues vs. Topics vs. Event Hubs.
Azure Queue Storage:
Overview: Simple, durable, and cost-effective asynchronous messaging for decoupling applications.
Creating and using Queue Storage from code (sending/receiving messages).
Azure Service Bus:
Overview: Enterprise message broker offering reliable messaging scenarios (Queues and Topics).
Creating and using Service Bus Queues and Topics from code.
Implementing Publish/Subscribe patterns.
Hands-On Labs: Implementing basic messaging scenarios using Azure Queue Storage, implementing messaging scenarios using Azure Service Bus Queues and Topics.
Securing Azure Applications
Introduction to Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory): Understanding identity, authentication, and authorisation concepts in Azure.
Securing Applications with Entra ID: Implementing authentication (e.g., integrating login) and authorisation (e.g., role-based access) in your applications.
Using Managed Identities for Azure resources: Enabling Azure services to authenticate to other Azure services securely without managing credentials.
Azure Key Vault: Securely storing and managing application secrets, keys, and certificates.
Implementing Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) for managing access to Azure resources.
Hands-On Labs: Implementing authentication/authorisation with Entra ID in a sample app, using Managed Identity to access Azure resources, retrieving secrets from Azure Key Vault.
Deploying, Monitoring, and Managing Azure Applications
Modern Deployment Methods:
Deploying directly from Visual Studio / VS Code.
Deploying via Azure CLI / PowerShell commands.
Introduction to automated deployment using CI/CD Pipelines: Overview of Azure DevOps Pipelines (with the option to focus on GitHub Actions in addition / instead, for custom courses) for automating build, test, and deployment.
Monitoring Azure Applications:
Azure Monitor: Collecting metrics and logs from your applications and resources.
Application Insights: Application Performance Monitoring (APM) for understanding application behaviour and diagnosing issues.
Setting up dashboards and alerts based on metrics and logs.
Troubleshooting common deployment and runtime issues in Azure.
Introduction to Cost Management in Azure: Monitoring and optimising cloud spend.
Hands-On Labs: Deploying applications using modern methods (CLI/PowerShell or basic CI/CD setup), configuring Azure Monitor and Application Insights, viewing application logs and metrics.
Summary and next steps
Review of key Azure development and deployment concepts and services covered.
Best practices for developing on Azure.
Next steps in your Azure development journey (e.g., exploring containers/orchestration, more advanced services).
Q&A
Optional topics for custom courses
Introduction to Azure Event Grid (event routing)
Azure Event Hubs (data streaming)
Introduction to automated deployment using CI/CD Pipelines: GitHub Actions for automating build, test, and deployment.
Introduction to Containers on Azure:
Azure Container Instances (ACI) vs Azure Container Apps vs Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
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Get started with Azure DevOps (ADO): https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/devops
Microsoft Visual Studio: Microsoft's flagship enterprise IDE for developers. https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/
Azure DevOps Community Discussion: Get help and connect with the ADO community. https://developercommunity.visualstudio.com/AzureDevOps
Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) Documentation: Official documentation for identity and access management in Azure. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/entra/identity/
Azure PowerShell Documentation: for managing Azure resources using PowerShell. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/az.accounts/
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