When I first started working with DevOps tools, Azure DevOps felt overwhelming.
So many sections. Boards, Repos, Pipelines, Artifacts — it wasn’t immediately clear where to start.
But after using it in real projects, one thing became clear:
Azure DevOps is not complicated — it’s structured.
In this post, I’ll walk through Azure DevOps step by step, the same way I approach it when setting up a new project in the real world.
No theory overload. Just practical flow.
Step 1: Create an Azure DevOps Organization & Project
Everything in Azure DevOps starts with a project.
Sign in to Azure DevOps
Create an organization (if you don’t have one)
Create a new project
Choose Public or Private
Select Git as version control
Pick Agile process (Scrum / Agile / CMMI)
This project becomes the single place for:
Code
CI/CD
Planning
Releases
Step 2: Azure Repos – Manage Your Source Code
Once the project is ready, the next stop is Azure Repos.
Here you get:
Git repositories
Branching strategies
Pull Requests
Branch policies
Typical setup:
main or master branch → production-ready code
develop branch → active development
Feature branches → new changes
Branch policies are important:
Require pull request reviews
Block direct pushes to main
Run build validation before merge
This alone prevents many production issues.
Step 3: Azure Boards – Track Work the Right Way
Azure Boards is often ignored — but it shouldn’t be.
Use it to:
Create user stories
Track bugs
Plan sprints
Visualize progress
What makes it powerful:
You can link commits and pull requests to work items
Every change has context
Easy traceability
In real teams, this connection between code and work matters a lot.
Step 4: Azure Pipelines – Build and Deploy Automatically
This is where DevOps really comes alive.
Azure Pipelines lets you automate:
Build
Test
Package
Deploy
Most teams today use YAML pipelines.
Basic flow:
Developer pushes code
Pipeline triggers automatically
Build runs
Tests execute
Artifact or Docker image is created
Deployment happens
Azure Pipelines works with:
Azure services
Kubernetes
Docker
AWS & GCP
On-prem servers
You can use:
Microsoft-hosted agents
Or self-hosted agents for full control
Step 5: Secure Your Pipeline & Access
Security is where Azure DevOps really shines.
Key practices:
Use service connections instead of credentials
Store secrets in variable groups
Integrate with Azure Key Vault
Apply role-based access control (RBAC)
Also:
Protect important branches
Require approvals for production deployments
This setup is common in enterprise environments.
Step 6: Monitor, Improve, Repeat
DevOps is not “set once and forget”.
After deployment:
Monitor pipeline runs
Improve build time
Add caching
Improve test coverage
Optimize deployment steps
Azure DevOps gives clear logs and history, which makes continuous improvement easier.
Final Thoughts
Azure DevOps may not be the newest tool in the DevOps world, but it is:
Stable
Mature
Enterprise-ready
Extremely practical for real projects
If your goal is to build reliable CI/CD pipelines, not just demo workflows, Azure DevOps is absolutely worth learning.
*** About the Author
I work with Cloud and DevOps technologies, focusing on Azure, CI/CD, Docker, Kubernetes, and automation.
I enjoy building real systems and sharing practical learnings from them.
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