Domain 3 of 3 · Chapter 3 of 4

Resource Management Tools

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Included in this chapter:

  • Azure Resource Manager: the layer everything calls
  • The Azure portal: the interactive graphical console
  • Azure Cloud Shell, Azure CLI, and Azure PowerShell
  • Infrastructure as Code, ARM templates, and Bicep
  • Azure Arc: extending Azure management beyond Azure
  • Recognizing these questions on the exam

Azure management tools at a glance

AspectAzure portalAzure CLI / PowerShellARM templates / Bicep
Interaction modelGraphical (point and click)Imperative commands / scriptsDeclarative configuration files
RepeatabilityLow (manual)Medium (scriptable)High (idempotent IaC)
Local install neededNo (browser)No in Cloud Shell; yes if localAuthored as files, deployed via ARM
Best forOne-off, interactive, dashboardsAutomating and scripting tasksConsistent, repeatable deployments

Decision tree

Is the resource INSIDEAzure?No (on-prem / multicloud)YesAzure Arcgovern non-Azure resourcesRepeatable, declarativedeployment?YesNoARM templates / BicepInfrastructure as CodeScripting / automation,or one-off by hand?script itone-offAzure CLI orAzure PowerShellvia Cloud ShellAzure portalinteractive GUI
Cheat sheet

Cheat sheet

  • ARM is Azure's deployment and management layer, not a tool you click
  • Every management request flows through ARM, so results are identical
  • ARM authenticates and authorizes every request before acting
  • The Azure portal is the web-based graphical console for Azure
  • Reach for the portal for one-off, interactive tasks and dashboards
  • Azure Cloud Shell is a browser shell that's already signed in
  • Cloud Shell lets you pick Bash (Azure CLI) or PowerShell
  • Azure CLI uses cross-platform Bash-style az commands
  • Azure PowerShell manages Azure with verb-noun cmdlets
  • CLI vs PowerShell is mostly a matter of preferred syntax
  • CLI and PowerShell are the imperative, scriptable approach
  • Infrastructure as Code defines infrastructure in versioned config files
  • IaC keeps deployments in a consistent, drift-free state
  • An ARM template is a declarative JSON file of desired state
  • ARM template deployments are idempotent, so re-running is safe
  • Bicep is a cleaner DSL that compiles down to ARM JSON
  • Azure Arc extends Azure management to resources outside Azure
  • Arc projects non-Azure resources into ARM to manage them as native
  • Arc-enabled resources accept Azure governance like native ones
  • Resources already in Azure don't need Arc
  • The tools differ by interaction model, but ARM is the shared layer
  • For repeatable, consistent deployments, choose IaC over the portal
  • Distinguish ARM the layer from an ARM template

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Also tested in

References

  1. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-resource-manager/management/overview
  2. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-portal/azure-portal-overview
  3. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cloud-shell/overview
  4. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cli/azure/what-is-azure-cli
  5. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/azure/what-is-azure-powershell
  6. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/devops/deliver/what-is-infrastructure-as-code
  7. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-resource-manager/templates/overview
  8. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-resource-manager/bicep/overview
  9. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-arc/overview
  10. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/governance/policy/overview
  11. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-arc/servers/overview