DEV Community: Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor

Deploying Scalable Virtual Machines on AWS Using Amazon EC2: A Beginner’s Guide.

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 12:43:30 +0000

Cloud computing has transformed how individuals and organizations deploy computing resources, and one of its core components is the virtual machine. A virtual machine (VM) is a software-based computer that runs operating systems and applications just like a physical server, but within a cloud environment. On the Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform, virtual machines are provisioned through Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), which provides secure and resizable compute capacity in the cloud. EC2 allows users to scale resources up or down based on demand, making it ideal for startups, developers, and enterprises. By leveraging AWS infrastructure, users benefit from flexibility, cost-efficiency, and high availability. This guide introduces beginners to the fundamental concepts and practical steps involved in deploying scalable virtual machines using Amazon EC2.

To create an EC2 instance

On your AWS home page search for EC2
Click on the dashboard

-click on Launch Instances

- Select Name and Tag , click on add tag.

-select ubuntu or amazon linux

-scroll down to key pair, click on add ,create a name and click on create

-leave all other sections as default
-click on launch image

*go back to the dashboard and click connect *

-click on instance and click connect

The EC2 / virtual machine is set and ready for use.

“Provisioning a Virtual Machine in Microsoft Azure: A Practical Guide”

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 11:01:31 +0000

A virtual machine (VM) is a software-based emulation of a physical computer that runs an operating system and applications using virtualized hardware resources. Creating a virtual machine on the Microsoft Azure Portal or AWS platform allows users to deploy and manage scalable computing resources without purchasing physical hardware. Some key components of a VM include virtual CPU (vCPU), memory (RAM), virtual storage disks, network interfaces, and a hypervisor that manages resource allocation.
Virtual machines are needed to support flexible development, testing, remote work, and workload isolation while optimizing infrastructure costs. For professionals, VMs provide scalability, disaster recovery options, secure environments, and the ability to deploy applications globally within minutes.
As cloud adoption accelerates, virtual machines will continue evolving with automation, AI-driven optimization, and hybrid cloud integration shaping the future of computing.

Step 1

On Azure portal search for Virtual Machines.
Click on Azure Virtual Machine .

Select virtual machine hosted by Azure.

Step 2
select

Subscription
Create Resource group - name it (its preferred to create a new RG for A new VM to avoid mix -up of old and new data)

any region of your choose.
Configure Virtual Machine details , choose a unique name.
Security- standard
Operating system - windows server Data center *64 Gen 2
check the spot discount (optional, this is used to minimize cost.

Authentication type - password
choose a username and password of your choice
configure inbound port rules - RDP (for windows), SSH ( for linux)
select port 80
accept the license agreement

Step 3

Go to Monitoring Tab
Disable Boot Diagnostics

Step 4

Go to Tags Tab
choose a name and value of your choose. ** tags helps to identify data on the VM.

Go to the Review + create Tab
when the validation process is complete

select "create" to deploy.
after a successful deployment click on 'GO to resource'

click on 'connect' to kick start your VM.

-to increase your VMs time out , click on public IP address then increase it to 30.

Step 4
To download and run Open RDP file

select Native RDP - download the file
open RDP file on your computer
Enter Username + password
click connect to access VM
click continue.

I selected my region as Turkey hence the Turkish language on my virtual machine

Your virtual computer is ready to be used , you can access any data stored on the cloud.

Providing shared file storage on Azure

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 16:43:42 +0000

How to Provide shared file storage

STEP 1

In the portal, search for and select** Storage accounts.** Select + Create.
For Resource group select Create new. Give your resource group a name and select **OK **to save your changes.
Provide a Storage account name. Ensure the name meets the naming requirements.
Set the Performance to Premium.
Set the Premium account type to File shares.
Set the Redundancy to Zone-redundant storage.
Select Review and then Create the storage account.
Wait for the resource to deploy.
Select Go to resource.

STEP 2
Create and configure a file share with directory.
Example :Create a file share for the corporate office..

In the storage account, in the Data storage section, select the File shares blade.
Select + File share and provide a*Name*.
Review the other options, but take the defaults.
Select Create

STEP 3
We need to Configure and test snapshots. Similar to blob storage, you need to protect against accidental deletion of files. You decide to use snapshots

Select your file share.
In the Operations section, select the Snapshots blade.
Select + Add snapshot. The comment is optional. Select OK.
Select your snapshot and verify your file directory and uploaded file are included.

STEP 3a
Configure restricting storage access to selected virtual networks.
This tasks in this section requires a virtual network with subnet. In a production environment these resources would already be created.

Search for and select Virtual networks.
Select Create. Select your resource group. and give the virtual network a name.
Take the defaults for other parameters, select Review + create, and then Create.
Wait for the resource to deploy.
Select Go to resource.

In the Settings section, select the Subnets blade.
Select the default subnet. In the Service endpoints section **choose **Microsoft.Storage in the Services drop-down.
Do not make any other changes.
Be sure to Save your changes.

STEP 4
The storage account should only be accessed from the virtual network you just created.

Return to your files storage account.
In the Security + networking **section, select the **Networking blade.
Change the Public network access to Enabled from selected virtual networks and IP addresses.
In the Virtual networks section, select Add existing virtual network.
Select your virtual network and subnet, select Add.
Be sure to Save your changes.
Select the Storage browser and navigate to your file share.
Verify the message not authorized to perform this operation. You are not connecting from the virtual network.

How to Configure simple settings in the storage account on Azure.

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 14:47:40 +0000

Simple steps on how to configure simple settings in the storage account on Azure

STEP 1
When the data in this storage account doesn’t require high availability or durability. A lowest cost storage solution is desired.

In your storage account, in the Data management section, select the Redundancy blade.
Select Locally-redundant storage (LRS) in the Redundancy drop-down. Be sure to Save your changes.
Refresh the page and notice the content only exists in the primary location.

STEP 2
When the storage account should only accept requests from secure connections and developers would like the storage account to use at least TLS version 1.2.

In the Settings section, select the Configuration blade.
Ensure Minimal TLS version is set to Version 1.2. is enabled
Ensure Allow storage account key access is Disabled.
Be sure to Save your changes.

STEP 3
To ensure the storage account allows public access from all networks.

In the Security + networking **section, select the **Networking blade.
Ensure Public network access is set to Enabled from all networks.
Be sure to Save your changes.

Creating a resource group and a storage account on Azure for beginners.

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 13:50:49 +0000

What is a Resource Group?
A Resource Group in Microsoft Azure is a container that holds related resources for an Azure solution. These resources could include virtual machines, storage accounts, databases, web apps, and more.

Uses of a Resource Groups.
✅ 1. Organizing Azure Resources
Resource groups help you logically group related Azure resources (like VMs, storage accounts, databases) so they’re easier to manage based on project, environment (dev/test/prod), department, or application.

✅ 2. Simplified Resource Management
You can manage and monitor all resources in a resource group collectively:
Deploy or delete resources together
Apply tags for cost tracking or resource categorization
Use Azure Policy to enforce rules on all resources in the group

✅ 3. Access Control and Security
Resource groups support Role-Based Access Control (RBAC):
Grant specific users or groups permission to only one resource group (instead of the whole subscription)
Example: Give a developer team access only to their project’s resource group

✅ 4. Cost Tracking and Budgeting
By grouping resources by project, team, or department, you can:
Track costs more easily
Assign budgets or spending alerts
Use tags to identify resource ownership and purpose

✅ 5. Automation and Deployment
You can use tools like:
ARM templates, Bicep, or Terraform to deploy multiple resources to a resource group at once
This ensures consistent, repeatable infrastructure deployments

✅ 6. Resource Lifecycle Management
Deleting a resource group deletes all resources inside it. This is useful for:
Cleaning up after temporary environments (e.g., dev/test)
Avoiding “resource sprawl” or leftover orphaned services

✅ 7. Monitoring and Alerts
You can apply:
Alerts
Diagnostics settings
Log analytics
to all resources within a group for centralized monitoring.

What is a storage account
This is the actual Azure service used to store data. A Storage Account is a top-level container that provides:
Blobs (object storage)
Files (file shares)
Queues (messaging)
Tables (NoSQL storage)
Disks (for VMs)
✅ Example: mystorageaccount.blob.core.windows.net

Simple steps to create a resource group and a storage account on Azure

STEP 1

In the Azure portal, search for and select Resource groups. Select Create.
Give your resource group a name. For example, storagerg.
Select a region. Use this region throughout the project.
Select **Review and create **to validate the resource group.
Select Create to deploy the resource group.

STEP 2
Create and deploy a storage account to support testing and training.

In the Azure portal, search for and select Storage accounts. Select + Create.
On the Basics tab, select your Resource group.
Provide a Storage account name. The storage account name must be unique in Azure.
Set the Performance to Standard.
Select Review, and then Create.
Wait for the storage account to deploy and then Go to resource.

Benefits of Cloud Computing.

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 12:51:53 +0000

What is Cloud Computing.?
Cloud computing is the delivery of computing services—like storage, servers, databases, networking, software, and more—over the internet (the "cloud"). Instead of owning and maintaining physical data centers or hardware, businesses and individuals can access these resources on demand from cloud providers like Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services (AWS), or Google Cloud.
Here’s what makes it stand out:

🌍 Accessibility: Use apps and files from anywhere, on any device, with an internet connection.
📈 Scalability: Easily scale your resources up or down depending on your needs.
💸 Cost-Efficiency: Pay only for what you use, cutting down on upfront investments.
🔐 Security & Reliability: Most providers offer strong security features and backup systems. It’s like having a powerful digital toolkit that lives online—flexible, fast, and always within reach. Want a deeper dive into its benefits or real-life applications? I’ve got you covered.

*Benefits of Cloud Computing *

Virtualization
Virtualization is a technology that allows you to create a virtual version of something—like a computer, server, storage device, or network—using software. Instead of using a physical machine for every task, virtualization lets multiple virtual machines (VMs) run on a single physical device.

- Scalability
Scalability is the cloud’s superpower to grow with you. It refers to the ability of a system to handle increasing workloads, traffic, or users by adding more resources—like computing power, storage, or bandwidth—without compromising performance.

- Agility
This refers to how quickly and efficiently organizations can adapt to changes, deploy solutions, and respond to new opportunities or challenges using cloud-based services.

- High Availability
In cloud environments, this means ensuring that services, applications, and resources are always up and running, even in the face of hardware failures, traffic spikes, or maintenance.

- Fault Tolerant
The ability of a cloud system to continue functioning smoothly even when some parts of it fail. It’s all about designing systems that anticipate problems and keep running without interruption—like a backup generator kicking in when the power goes out.

- Global Reach
Thanks to vast networks of data centers spread across continents, cloud computing empowers businesses to serve customers, collaborate with teams, and deploy applications on a global scale.

*What is the difference between Elasticity and Scalability in cloud computing
*

Elasticity is like stretching or shrinking instantly as needed.
Scalability is more like upgrading your entire toolkit to support bigger and better projects.

Why DevOps engineering ?.

Ifeoma Usonwa Nwafor — Sun, 06 Jul 2025 14:56:58 +0000

What is DevOps engineering
DevOps engineering is a discipline that combines software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to improve how software is built, tested, deployed, and maintained. The goal of DevOps is to shorten the development lifecycle, increase deployment frequency, and deliver high-quality software reliably.

**A DevOps Engineer typically focuses on:
Automation: **Creating scripts and tools to automate repetitive tasks like testing, deployment, and monitoring.

CI/CD (Continuous Integration / Continuous Deployment): Setting up pipelines that automatically build, test, and release code updates quickly and safely.

Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Managing cloud infrastructure using code (e.g., Terraform, AWS CloudFormation).

Monitoring & Logging: Ensuring systems are observable, with proper logs and metrics for troubleshooting.

Collaboration: Bridging gaps between development, QA, security, and operations teams to foster a culture of shared responsibility.

Why It Matters:
Speeds up delivery of software.

Reduces errors and downtime.

Enables teams to respond faster to changes or incidents.

Promotes a more collaborative and agile workflow.

DevOps Engineers are problem-solvers who work across technical and organizational boundaries. They must understand both code and infrastructure, and they play a vital role in enabling modern, scalable, and resilient systems**

_KEY BENEFITS OF DevOps
_
Here are the key benefits of DevOps in our world today, especially in the context of modern businesses, technology, and customer expectations:

🚀 1. Faster Software Delivery
DevOps automates development, testing, and deployment, allowing teams to release updates and new features more quickly and frequently.

✅ 2. Improved Software Quality
Continuous integration and automated testing reduce bugs and errors early in the development cycle, leading to more stable, reliable software.

🤝 3. Better Collaboration
DevOps breaks down silos between developers, operations, and other teams, encouraging shared responsibility and improved communication.

📉 4. Reduced Downtime and Failures
By using monitoring, logging, and automation, DevOps minimizes downtime and helps teams quickly detect and fix issues in production.

💸 5. Cost Efficiency
Automation and optimized workflows reduce wasted effort, cloud costs, and downtime—making IT operations more financially efficient.

☁️ 6. Effective Cloud Utilization
DevOps practices like Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and containerization enable efficient use of cloud platforms, making systems scalable and adaptable.

🔄 7 Continuous Improvement****
DevOps promotes a feedback-driven culture where teams can constantly learn, adapt, and improve both the product and the process.

🔐 8. Enhanced Security
With DevSecOps (Security + DevOps), security is integrated into every stage of the development pipeline, making systems more secure by default.