DEV Community: Shadrack Acquah

I deployed ONE Dockerized Notes App (Node.js + Postgres) locally + to Azure ACI! (CLOUD)

Shadrack Acquah — Tue, 29 Sep 2026 18:34:57 +0000

I Deployed Docker App on Azure — Part 1: Local + ACI (Working)

Stack: Node.js 20 + Express + PostgreSQL 16 + Docker + Azure Container Instances

Repo old: https://github.com/krisking7/lexszy-note

New repo:https://github.com/Shack793/Docker-to-Cloud.git

My Docker Hub: devshadd/notes-app:v1 → https://hub.docker.com/r/devshadd/notes-app

Azure: Subscription 1, eastus, SUFFIX=dev12

Live ACI: http://notes-app-dev12.eastus.azurecontainer.io:3000 (IP 48.194.78.11:3000)(Pulled Down To avoid billing-refer to screenshot)

Core lesson: same image everywhere, config via env, vars DB_HOST, DB_PORT, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD, DB_NAME, DB_SSL.

STEP 1 — Prepare Tools
Ran:
git --version # 2.52.0
docker --version # 29.8.1
docker compose version # v5.5.1
az --version # 2.90.0

Challenge: docker info failed — failed to connect to docker API at npipe:////./pipe/dockerDesktopLinuxEngine.

Fix: Docker Desktop installed at %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\DockerDesktop\Docker Desktop.exe (not C:\Program Files\Docker).

Started it, waited 5s, docker info → Server=29.8.1 OS=Docker Desktop.

STEP 2 — Get Code + Run Locally first

cd C:\laragon2\www\Cloud-Docker

git clone https://github.com/krisking7/lexszy-note.git

cd lexszy-note

dir # Dockerfile, docker-compose.yaml, package.json, server.js, public/

30-sec tour:

server.js — Express API, creates notes table on startup, /health → {"status":"ok"}
public/index.html — frontend
Dockerfile — FROM node:20-alpine > WORKDIR /app > COPY package*.json > RUN npm install > COPY . . > EXPOSE 3000 >

CMD ["node","server.js"]

docker-compose.yaml — app reaches DB at hostname db, volume db_data

Ran:
docker compose up -d --build
docker compose ps # app + db Up
docker compose logs app

Challenge 1: First build timed out after 120s pulling postgres:16-alpine + node:20-alpine.

Fix: Re-ran with 300s timeout, resumed and finished: added 82 packages in 26s.

Challenge 2: Logs showed:
Notes app running on port 3000
Database initialization failed: ECONNREFUSED 172.18.0.2:5432

depends_on only waits for container start, not DB ready.

Fix (per guide):
docker compose restart app

Start-Sleep 8
docker compose logs app

→ Notes app running on port 3000

→ Database initialized (notes table ready)

Test:
curl http://localhost:3000/health # {"status":"ok"}
Invoke-RestMethod http://localhost:3000/api/notes -Method Post -Body '{"title":"Test1"}'...

→ id:1 Test1 created, GET returns row

Challenge 3: curl.exe -X POST -d '{"title":...}' failed in PowerShell with Unterminated string in JSON.

Fix: Used PowerShell native:
$body = @{title="Test1";content="hello from step2"} | ConvertTo-Json
Invoke-RestMethod -Uri http://localhost:3000/api/notes -Method Post -Body $body -ContentType "application/json"

STEP 3 — Publish to Docker Hub
My username: devshadd (social login).
Changed docker-compose.yaml:6:

before:

image: krisking2024/notes-app:v1

after:

image: devshadd/notes-app:v1
docker tag krisking2024/notes-app:v1 devshadd/notes-app:v1
docker image ls # both → be7d37659533 212MB
docker push devshadd/notes-app:v1

Challenge: First push timed out: failed commit ... net/http: timeout awaiting response headers after some layers Pushed.

Fix: Re-ran docker push — resumable:
44136fa355b3: Already exists
4feea04c1543: Pushed
v1: digest: sha256:be7d376595330de84a093765019acda4ec777df4064570499210f5c6818c442e
Verified at https://hub.docker.com/r/devshadd/notes-app → tag v1, 48.9MB, docker pull devshadd/notes-app:v1.

Social-login note: if docker login asks password, create Hub PAT: Hub → Account Settings → Personal Access Tokens → use token as password.

STEP 4 — Prepare Azure
Already logged in:
az account show --output table # Subscription 1 Enabled
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.ContainerInstance
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.DBforPostgreSQL
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.Web

first → Registering, after 1min → Registered

Vars (PowerShell):
$DOCKER_USER="devshadd"
$SUFFIX="dev12"
$LOCATION="eastus"
$DB_PASS="*** lab-only, redacted for post ***"

STEP 5 — Option A: ACI
az group create --name notes-app-rg --location eastus

Created aci-notes.yaml:
image: devshadd/notes-app:v1
command: ["/bin/sh", "-c", "sleep 20 && node server.js"]
DB_HOST: localhost # NOT db — ACI group shares localhost network
dnsNameLabel: notes-app-dev12
secureValue: "***" # hides password

az container create --resource-group notes-app-rg --file aci-notes.yaml
Challenge: First create → MultipleErrorsOccurred Conflict RegistryErrorResponse index.docker.io. Please retry later.
Fix: Waited 30s, retried — succeeded with full JSON ID returned.
Verify:
az container show --resource-group notes-app-rg --name notes-app-group --query "{provisioning:provisioningState, fqdn:ipAddress.fqdn, ip:ipAddress.ip}" --output table

Succeeded notes-app-dev12.eastus.azurecontainer.io 48.194.78.11

az container logs --resource-group notes-app-rg --name notes-app-group --container-name app

Notes app running on port 3000

Database initialized (notes table ready)

curl http://notes-app-dev12.eastus.azurecontainer.io:3000/health # {"status":"ok"}

Challenge: Browser ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED for notes-app-dev12.eastus.

Fix: URL was truncated. Must use full + http + :3000:

Lesson for post:
ACI = fastest, closest to compose, but ephemeral — delete/recreate loses data (no volume). No HTTPS.

Cleanup (run after screenshots):
az group delete --name notes-app-rg --yes --no-wait

Biggest lessons: depends_on ≠ DB ready (needed restart/sleep), same image runs everywhere via env vars.
ACI was fast but ephemeral.
#Azure #Docker #DevOps

[Boost]

Shadrack Acquah — Tue, 26 May 2026 15:54:16 +0000

Shadrack Acquah

May 26

Azure Entra ID: Creating Users and Managing Global Administrator Access — A Step-by-Step Guide

#azure #cloud #microsoft #beginners

4 min read

Microsoft Azure Entra ID tutorial

Shadrack Acquah — Tue, 26 May 2026 15:47:27 +0000

Shadrack Acquah

May 26

Azure Entra ID: Creating Users and Managing Global Administrator Access — A Step-by-Step Guide

#azure #cloud #microsoft #beginners

4 min read

Azure Entra ID: Creating Users and Managing Global Administrator Access — A Step-by-Step Guide

Shadrack Acquah — Tue, 26 May 2026 15:45:54 +0000

Introduction
Microsoft Azure Entra ID (formerly known as Azure Active Directory) is Microsoft's cloud-based identity and access management service. It helps organizations manage who can access what — from internal apps to cloud resources — and is a foundational skill for any cloud or IT administrator.
In this guide, I'll walk you through:

**1. Creating a new user in Azure Entra ID

Signing in with the new user account
Granting Global Administrator access to that user
Using the promoted account to create a second user
Revoking the Global Administrator role from the first user ** Let's get started!

Prerequisites

An active Azure subscription (a free account works)
Access to the Azure Portal with an existing admin account
A browser in private/incognito mode (useful for signing in with the new user simultaneously)

Step 1 — Sign In to the Azure Portal
Open your browser and navigate to https://portal.azure.com. Sign in with your existing administrator account.

Once signed in, you'll land on the Azure home dashboard. From here, we'll navigate to Microsoft Entra ID.
In the left sidebar or search bar at the top, type "Microsoft Entra ID" and click on it.

Step 2 — Create the First New User
Inside the Microsoft Entra ID blade, click on "Users" in the left-hand menu under the Manage section.

On the Users page, click "+ New user" at the top of the page, then select "Create new user" from the dropdown.

You'll be taken to the Create new user form. Fill in the following fields:
*Field Example Value *
User principal name john.doe@yourdomain.onmicrosoft.com
Display name John Doe
Password Auto-generate or set a temporary password

⚠️ Note: Copy the temporary password — you'll need it to sign in as this user in the next step.

After filling in the details, click "Review + create", then "Create".

Step 3 — Sign In With the Newly Created User Account
Open a private/incognito browser window and navigate to https://portal.azure.com.
Sign in using the new user's credentials:

Username: the user principal name you set (e.g., john.doe@yourdomain.onmicrosoft.com)
Password: the temporary password you copied

You will be prompted to change the password on first login. Set a new permanent password and complete the sign-in process.

The new user has limited access at this point — this is expected. Keep this window open; we'll come back to it.

Step 4 — Grant Global Administrator Access to the First User
Switch back to your original browser window (logged in as your admin account).
In Microsoft Entra ID, navigate to "Users" and search for or click on the user you just created (e.g., John Doe).

On the user's profile page, click "Assigned roles" in the left menu under the Manage section.

Click "+ Add assignments" at the top.

In the search box that appears on the right panel, type "Global Administrator" and check the box next to it.
Click "Add" to confirm.

The first user now has Global Administrator privileges.

Step 5 — Create a Second User Using the Promoted Account
Switch back to the incognito/private browser window where you're signed in as the first user (e.g., John Doe).

⚠️ Note: You may need to refresh the page or sign out and sign back in for the new Global Administrator role to take effect.

After refreshing, navigate to Microsoft Entra ID → Users and click "+ New user" → "Create new user" again.

Fill in the details for the second user:
Field Example Value
User principal name jane.smith@yourdomain.onmicrosoft.com
Display name Jane Smith
Password Auto-generate or set a temporarypassword
Click "Review + create", then "Create".

The second user has been successfully created using the promoted account.

Step 6 — Revoke Global Administrator Access From the First User
Switch back to your original admin browser window.
Navigate to Microsoft Entra ID → Users and select the first user (e.g., John Doe).
Click "Assigned roles" in the left menu.

Click the checkbox next to "Global Administrator" to select it, then click "Remove assignments" (or the trash/remove icon that appears).
Confirm the removal when prompted.

The Global Administrator role has been successfully revoked from the first user.

Key Takeaways

Azure Entra ID is the identity backbone of Microsoft Azure, managing users, groups, and access roles.
Global Administrator is the most powerful role in Azure Entra ID — assign it carefully and always revoke it when it's no longer needed. This follows the principle of least privilege.
Using incognito/private windows is a practical trick for testing multiple user sessions simultaneously without conflict.
Role assignments in Entra ID may take a few seconds to propagate — always refresh after making changes.

Conclusion
Managing identities and access in Azure Entra ID is a critical cloud skill. Through this exercise, we've seen how straightforward it is to create users, elevate their privileges, and — importantly — take those privileges away. Practicing proper access management habits now builds a strong foundation for real-world cloud administration.
If you found this guide helpful, drop a reaction below or share it with a teammate learning Azure!