INTRODUCTION
Providing shared file storage for company offices is essential for collaboration, security, and operational efficiency. A centralized file storage solution ensures teams can securely access, manage, and share documents across departments while maintaining data protection standards. By implementing high availability, snapshots for recovery, and network access restrictions, organizations can protect critical business files, prevent accidental data loss, and control who can access sensitive information.
IMPLEMENTATION STEPS
1.Create a Storage Account for Azure Files
Objective:
Provision a premium storage account optimized for Azure File Shares with high availability.
Steps:
1.In the Azure portal, go to Storage accounts →
Click + Create.
2.Select Create new Resource group, provide a name, and click OK.
3.Provide a globally unique Storage account name.
4.Set:
•Performance: Premium
•Premium account type: File shares
•Redundancy: Zone-redundant storage (ZRS)
5.Select Review + Create, then Create.
6.After deployment, select Go to resource.
2.Create and Configure a File Share with Directory
2a.Create a File Share
Objective:
Create a shared file location for corporate office use.
Steps:
1.In the storage account, go to Data storage → File shares.
2.Select + File share.
3.Provide a Name.
4.Leave other settings as default.
5.Select Create.
2b.Create a Directory and Upload a File
Objective:
Organize files within the share and prepare for snapshot testing.
Steps:
1.Open the created file share.
2.Select + Add directory.
3.Name the directory finance.
4.Select Browse, then open the finance directory.
5.Upload a test file.
Result:
•The finance directory contains the uploaded file.
•File structure is ready for snapshot protection.
3.Configure and Test Snapshots
3a.Create a Snapshot
Objective:
Protect files from accidental deletion using file share snapshots.
Steps:
1.Open the file share.
2.Go to Operations → Snapshots.
3.Select + Add snapshot.
4.Optionally add a comment.
5.Select OK.
6ii.Open the snapshot and verify the finance directory.
6i.Confirm if file exist.
3b.Restore a File from Snapshot
Objective: Practice restoring deleted files using snapshots.
Steps:
1.Return to the live file share.
2.Navigate to the finance directory.
3.Select the uploaded file → Delete → Confirm.
4.Go to Snapshots.
5.Select the snapshot.
6.Locate the deleted file.
7.Select Restore.
8.Provide a new file name.
9.Confirm the restored file appears in the directory.
Result:
•File successfully restored from snapshot.
•This demonstrates recovery capability.
4.Restrict Storage Access to a Virtual Network
4a.Create a Virtual Network and Configure Service Endpoint
Objective:
Prepare a virtual network to restrict storage access.
Steps:
1.Search for and select Virtual networks
→ click + Create.
2.Select your resource group and provide a Virtual network name.
3.Accept defaults → Review + Create
→ Create.
4.After deployment, select Go to resource.
5.Go to Settings → Subnets.
6.Select the default subnet.
7.Under Service endpoints, select Microsoft.Storage.
8.Click Save.
4b.Restrict Storage Account to Selected Virtual Network
Objective:
Ensure the storage account is only accessible from the configured virtual network.
Steps:
1.Return to the storage account.
2.Go to Security + networking → Networking.
3.Change Public network access to:
•Enabled from selected virtual networks and IP addresses
4.Under Virtual networks, select Add existing virtual network.
5.Choose your virtual network and subnet.
6.Click Add, then Save.
Testing Network Restriction:
1.Open Storage browser.
2.Attempt to access the file share.
3.Confirm you receive the message:
•Not authorized to perform this operation
Result:
•Storage account is now restricted to the specified virtual network.
•Access from outside the VNet is blocked.
Key Outcomes
•Premium Azure File storage account deployed with Zone redundancy.
•File share and directory created for structured storage.
•Snapshots configured to protect against accidental deletion.
•Files successfully restored from snapshot.
•Storage account access restricted to a specific virtual network.
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