DEV Community: Ikechukwu John Uche

Windows 11 Virtual Machine Set Up on Microsoft Azure

Ikechukwu John Uche — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 04:46:08 +0000

What is Microsoft Azure Virtual Machine?

A Microsoft Azure Windows 11 Virtual Machine (VM) provides a flexible solution for deploying cloud-based, on-demand computing resources that function similarly to physical hardware. By using a Windows 11 VM on Azure, users can enjoy the latest Windows operating system while leaving their main system unchanged, facilitating safer experimentation, testing, and development. Whether you are a developer, IT expert, or tech enthusiast, setting up a Windows 11 VM on Azure offers a secure environment without requiring extra hardware investments.

This comprehensive guide will walk you through each step of creating a Windows 11 virtual machine on Microsoft Azure using the Azure portal. It provides detailed instructions for configuring and launching your VM.

Step 1: Sign In to the Azure Portal

Create an Azure Account and Subscription

To start, you’ll need an Azure account. If you’re new to Azure, Microsoft offers a free account that includes a credit for exploring various services. You can sign up at the Azure portal. After setting up your subscription, you’ll have access to various levels, such as Free, Pay-as-you-Go, or Enterprise options

Step 2: Launch the Virtual Machine Creation Wizard

Access the Azure Portal

Once registered, log in to the Azure portal using your credentials. The portal’s home page gives you quick access to core services, frequently accessed resources and built-in management tools. Here, you can initiate new services, review recent activity, and access documentation. If you need a specific tool or resource, use the Search bar or navigate through the portal menu, which is accessible across every page.

Clicking + Create starts the configuration wizard. This wizard will guide you through assigning essential settings for your VM, including resource group selection, VM size, security, and disk options.

"Experience the future of computing with a Microsoft Azure Windows 11 Virtual Machine—harnessing the power, flexibility, and security of the cloud to run the latest Windows OS anytime, anywhere. Whether for development, testing, or productivity, Azure’s scalable platform transforms your desktop experience into an on-demand, high-performance workspace."

Step 3: Configure Resource-Specific Settings

The settings at this stage will define the specifications and functionalities of your VM. It’s important to note that while some configurations are adjustable post-deployment, certain settings are permanent. The configuration tabs include:

Tags
Basics
Disks
Networking
Management
Monitoring
Advanced

Basics Tab

The Basics section is where you define the foundational elements of your VM:

- Subscription

Select the subscription plan you’re using. Subscriptions in Azure operate like service plans that provide access to Azure’s ecosystem. Choose your current subscription or any other relevant options, whether free, trial, or paid.

- Resource Group

Resource groups help in organizing and managing your Azure assets. Think of them as folders containing resources, such as virtual machines, databases, and storage accounts. You can either use an existing resource group or create a new one.

Instance Details

VM Name:
Enter a unique name for your virtual machine, making it easily identifiable.
Region:
Choose the data center region where your VM will be hosted. Azure regions represent geographically distinct locations with independent data centers designed for high availability and low latency. US West 2 is recommended because it is more cost-effective when compared to other regions.
Availability Options:
Select ''No Infrastructure Redundancy Required' to increase VM redundancy. Availability Zones within a region are isolated, reducing downtime in case of hardware failure.
Security Type and Image

Choose Windows 11 Pro as the image, which serves as the template for your VM. This image is essentially a blueprint that includes the OS and basic software configurations.

VM Size

Select a VM size based on your project requirements. Larger VMs offer more CPU power and RAM but are also costlier. Click See all sizes to explore options if the suggested sizes don’t fit your needs. For this demonstration, the "Standard B1is- 1 vcpu, 0.5 GiB memory ($3.80/month)" is selected

Administrator Account Configuration

Inbound Port Rules

Azure’s networking options help secure access to your VM:

Allow Selected Ports: Choose RDP (3389), allowing remote desktop protocol access for remote connections. This setting is especially useful for those managing their VMs from different devices or locations.

Click Next: Disks to proceed.

Step 4: Configure Disk Options

OS Disk Type

Select Standard SSD or Premium SSD based on your VM performance needs. Standard SSDs are reliable and more economical, while Premium SSDs are suitable for I/O-intensive applications.

Additional Disks

Azure enables you to add data disks if needed, allowing you to customize storage based on workload demands. For basic tasks, the OS disk is generally sufficient.

After setting up disks, click Next: Networking.

Step 5: Configure Networking Settings

Azure VMs require network configurations for connectivity and security. In the Networking tab, options include:

Virtual Network

Select or create a virtual network (VNet) where your VM will reside. VNets facilitate communication between Azure resources.

Public IP

Assign a public IP if you need internet access for your VM.

NIC Network Security Group (NSG)

Use NSGs to control inbound and outbound network traffic, adding an extra layer of security.

After configuring your network settings, click Next: Management.

Step 6: Enable Management and Monitoring

In the Management tab, you can configure settings for VM monitoring and management:

Boot Diagnostics:
Enable this feature to capture boot logs in case of startup issues.
System-Assigned Managed Identity:
Assign a managed identity to simplify VM access to other Azure services.

For monitoring, enable Azure Monitor and Auto-shutdown to help control costs.

Proceed by clicking Next: Advanced.

Step 7: Apply Advanced Configurations

The Advanced tab provides additional options for extensions and scripts. Here, you can install extensions or run automation scripts that enhance VM functionality. These options are ideal for users requiring specific configurations during deployment.

Step 8: Organize Resources with Tags

Tags are custom labels that help organize and manage resources, making it easier to categorize and track costs, environments, or projects.

Tag Name: Enter a name to identify your VM or categorize it by project or team.

After adding tags, click Review + Create

Step 9: Validate and Deploy Your Virtual Machine

Azure will validate your settings to ensure compatibility. If validation flags any issues, you’ll need to adjust your settings accordingly.

Once validated:

Click **Create **to deploy your VM.
Azure will initiate the VM creation process, which can take a few minutes

After deployment, click Go to Resource to access your VM’s details.

Step 10: Connect to Your Windows 11 Virtual Machine

Once your VM is ready, connect to it remotely:

In the Overview page, select Connect and choose RDP as the connection method.

Download the RDP file and open it to establish a remote connection.

Enter the administrator username and password created earlier

Accept the security prompt by clicking Yes to connect.

You’re now connected to your Windows 11 VM and can start exploring Windows 11 features in a secure environment.

Setting up a Windows 11 VM on Azure offers flexibility, security, and access to the latest Windows features without affecting your primary system. This setup is perfect for testing applications, exploring Windows 11, or performing isolated tasks in a dedicated environment. By following this guide, you’ll be able to configure and deploy a fully operational Windows 11 virtual machine, optimizing your cloud computing experience on Microsoft Azure.

Linux Virtual Machine Scale Set Creation and Connection

Ikechukwu John Uche — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 16:34:14 +0000

What is a Virtual machine Scale Set?

Linux Virtual Machine Scale Set (VMSS) allows you to deploy and manage a group of identical, auto-scaling virtual machines (VMs). VMSS ensures high availability and makes it easy to scale in or out based on demand. This is particularly useful for applications requiring high availability and the ability to handle fluctuating workloads. VMSS also optimizes costs by charging only for the resources you actively use.

Prerequisites for Linux VMSS

Before proceeding, ensure you have the following:

Azure Subscription: An active Azure subscription. If you don’t have one, create a free account here.
Basic Azure Knowledge: Familiarity with Azure concepts like virtual machines, networking, and resource groups.

Steps to Create and Connect to a Linux VM Scale Set

Step 1: Sign in to Azure Portal

Open the Azure portal at portal.azure.com.
Log in using your Azure credentials

Step 2: Create the Linux Virtual Machine Scale Set

In the search bar, type VMSS and select it.

Click +Create

Configure the Basics Tab

The first step in creating a Linux VMSS is to configure the Basics tab, and provide the following details:

Subscription: Select your active Azure subscription.
Resource Group: Choose an existing resource group or create a new one. We'll be creating a new one.

Region: Choose East US from the dropdown.
Name: Enter a name for your scale set(CloudOpsVMSSRg).
Availability Zones: Select None.
Orchestration: For orchestration mode, choose Uniform

Orchestration and Scaling

A scale set has a "scale set model" that defines the attributes of virtual machine instances (size, number of data disks, etc). As the number of instances in the scale set changes, new instances are added based on the scale set model.

Under Orchestration mode, define scaling conditions by selecting Uniform
Security type: Choose Standard from the dropdown
Under scaling, we choose autoscaling as our scaling mode for this Lab and click on Configure to edit the default scaling configuration.

Scaling conditions

Configure scaling conditions by editing the existing default condition, and if needed, add more conditions for more customized scaling. For this Lab, we'll edit the default conditions.

Click on the pencil icon to edit the default conditions.

To edit the default conditions, use the settings as they appear in the diagram below:

Default instance count: Set the default instance count to 2.
Instance limit: For Instance limit set the minimum to 1 and maximum to 5
Complete the edit as shown below and click Save to continue

For scale-in policy,

To configure the order in which virtual machines are selected for deletion during a scale-in operation, select "Oldest VM- Balance across zones then delete the oldest created VM" from the drop-down and then click Save

Configure Instance Details

Instance Details

Choose the Authentication type as "SSH public key" and for SSH public key source, select Generate new key pair from the drop-down.
Ensure the SSH Key Type is set to RSA SSH Format
Click: Next: Spot> to continue

Here,in the Spot Tab, leave things as they are and click Next: Disk> to continue

Next: Networking>

For the Virtual network configuration, the Virtual Network and Subnet should be left as default.

Under the Network interface, click on the pencil icon to edit the setting

Edit network interface

For Load balancing options select/choose Azure load balancer
Under Select a load balancer, click on Create a load balancer

Create a load balancer

Use the diagram below as a guide to create a load balancer click on Create. Once the load balancer details have been filled in, click on Create. The next thing is to click on the Review + Create button.

Once validation is passed, click on Create to create the VMSS

Download the Private Key and Create a Resource

Deployment in Progress

Once you click on Download the Private Key and Create a Resource, deployment of the VMSS begins

Once deployed, click on Go To Resource

Explore Your VMSS

Feel free to explore your Virtual Machine Scale Set as seen in the image below.

Click on Instances to Explore

Clicking on the Instances menu allows you to see how many VMSS you have created. In this case, we have one VMSS.

Connect To VMSS

To connect to the VMSS, go to the Networking menu on your VMSS overview page. Click on load balancing. Now, click on vmss-lb to go to the next page.

Configure high availability and scalability for your applications

Scroll down the vmss-lb page and click the View Inbound NAT rules.

Run Command Prompt

Run The Sudo Apt Update

Conclusion

You’ve successfully created and connected to a Linux Virtual Machine Scale Set in Azure. This scalable and cost-efficient solution ensures your applications are always ready to handle dynamic workloads. Explore additional features like monitoring and scaling policies to optimize your deployment further.

How to Create Azure Resource Group: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ikechukwu John Uche — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 06:46:40 +0000

What is an Azure Resource Group?

A resource group in Azure is a logical container for deploying and managing Azure resources like virtual machines, databases, and storage accounts. This guide covers the step-by-step guide to creating a resource group using the Azure Portal.

Prerequisites

An Azure account with an active subscription.
Permissions: Ensure your account has the Contributor or Owner role (or equivalent permissions) to create resource groups

Step 1: Using the Azure Portal

Navigate to portal.azure.com and log in or sign up for a Free Azure Account.

Step 2: Create the Resource Group

In the search bar, type "Resource group" and click the ENTER key on your keyboard.

Click + Create (top-left corner).

Fill in the details

Subscription: Select your Azure subscription.

Resource group name: Use a unique, descriptive name (for this example, I used Jote-Feb-Rg).

Region: Choose a region closest to your users (e.g., East US).

Click Review + create

Click Create after validation is passed

Step 3: Verify The Resource Group

Go to Resource Groups in the portal.
Search for your new resource group to confirm its creation.

Conclusion

Creating a resource group is the first step in organizing Azure resources. Whether using the Azure Portal, CLI, PowerShell, ARM templates, or Terraform, ensure alignment with your organization’s governance and compliance policies. Resource groups simplify lifecycle management, cost tracking, and access control for related resources.

For more details, refer to: