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Harshitha S
Harshitha S

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AWS (Amazon Web Services) Course

🔹 Overview of the Tool / Exam

Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure (AZ-204) is a Microsoft certification exam (part of the Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate) focused on building, deploying, and maintaining cloud applications and services on Azure. It tests your ability to design and implement solutions using core Azure services such as compute, storage, security, APIs, event-driven functions, and monitoring.

Unlike a singular “tool,” AZ-204 covers a set of Azure platform features and development practices — including working with App Services, Azure Functions, Cosmos DB, Key Vault, API Management, event and message-based solutions, caching, and monitoring.

Key Features / Skill Areas Covered

The exam evaluates real-world cloud development tasks across several domains:

  1. Develop Azure compute solutions – App Services, container apps, Azure Functions, etc. ([Microsoft Learn][1])
  2. Develop for Azure storage – Blob Storage, Cosmos DB, solutions that use cloud data. ([Microsoft Learn][1])
  3. Implement Azure security – authentication/authorization with Azure AD/Entra, Key Vault, managed identities. ([Microsoft Learn][1])
  4. Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize – Application Insights, metrics, caching (e.g., Redis). ([Microsoft Learn][1])
  5. Connect to and consume services – APIs (API Management), event- and message-based systems (Event Grid, Service Bus). ([Microsoft Learn][1])

These skills reflect the tasks that developers perform in building cloud apps and services.

🔁 How It Fits into DevOps / DevSecOps

📌 DevOps Integration:
AZ-204 skills align closely with DevOps practices by emphasizing automation, cloud-native deployment, and efficient development workflows:

  • CI/CD pipelines & automation: You’ll need proficiency with Azure CLI, PowerShell, and deployment automation tools, which can be integrated into CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, etc.).
  • Observability and monitoring: Use Application Insights and Azure Monitor for application health in production, essential in DevOps.

📌 DevSecOps Integration:
Security is embedded in the exam’s skill domains — authentication with Azure AD/Entra, securing secrets with Azure Key Vault, and implementing secure configuration all contribute to shift-left security practices that are central to DevSecOps.

🧠 Programming Languages

The exam itself doesn’t limit you to a single language but expects you to be proficient in languages supported by Azure development tools and SDKs. Common languages used in AZ-204 work include:

  • C#
  • Python
  • JavaScript/TypeScript (Node)
  • PowerShell / Bash (for CLI scripting)

Most hands-on development and samples in documentation are shown using these languages.

🏢 Parent Organization / Ownership

  • Owner: Microsoft Corporation — the exam, study guides, and official learning paths are developed and maintained by Microsoft.
  • Certification: Part of Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate credential.

There’s no separate “company” for AZ-204; it sits under Microsoft’s cloud platform strategy.

💰 Open Source or Paid?

Certification Exam: Paid — Microsoft charges an exam fee (typically around USD 165, price varies by country).

💡 Learning Tools:

  • Microsoft Learn modules and documentation are free and publicly accessible (open for study).
  • Third-party courses (Coursera, Udemy, practice tests) may be paid. There’s no open-source “tool” called AZ-204 — the exam tests knowledge of Azure, which is a commercial cloud platform.

I’d like to thank our staff @santhoshnc for introducing and explaining about aws courses in such a clear and practical way. Their guidance helped us understand not just the tool itself, but how it fits into real-world . The hands-on explanations and industry-relevant insights made the learning experience truly valuable.

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