What Is an Azure Virtual Machine, and How to Create One?

An Azure Virtual Machine is a computer usage asset that provides users with the benefits of virtualization. Users no longer need to purchase and manage the physical components/hardware to enjoy a computing experience. They can configure, patch, and install their software-based VM to get an absolute computing service.?

What is a Virtual Machine?

A virtual machine (VM), similar to any computer, laptop, or smartphone, has a CPU, memory, storage disks, and the ability to connect to the internet. However, unlike legacy systems made of hardware or physical components, a VM is a software-based computer residing as a code within a physical server. It often behaves like a real computer and can work on an isolated partition as a different computer running a different OS (operating system), providing a complete computer experience to users.?

What is a Windows Virtual Machine?

Windows Virtual Machine, an expandable computing resource offered by Microsoft Azure, allows users to enjoy virtualization flexibility or create a software-based virtual computer version with allocated CPU, memory, and storage acquired from a physical host computer.

The following are some of the many uses of Azure Virtual Machine:

• Easy and quick creation of a virtual computer with desired configurations for coding and assessing an application
• Easy connection of VMs existing in an Azure virtual network with your organization’s network
• Pay for creating additional VMs or shut them down according to changing application demand

Are you aware of Azure App Service that allows developers to create web applications in the cloud easily? Read our blog on Azure App Service and learn about the benefits and use cases.

Best practices to create Azure Virtual Machines

1. Location: Azure distributes all created resources across different geographical regions globally. This geographic region or location for a virtual machine indicates the storage location of virtual hard disks.?
2. Virtual machine size: Azure offers different virtual machine sizes to match user workloads and utilities. The VM size determines the memory, storage, and processing power. Users are charged hourly, depending upon VM size and processing power. In the case of partial hour usage, Azure charges on a per-minute basis. Storage price is separate.
3. Virtual machine limits: Every Azure subscription has a quota limit of 20 VMs per region, which might affect the deployment of numerous VMs required for a user project. However, users can file a support ticket and demand an increase.
4. Availability: Azure's industry-leading single instance virtual machine SLA of 99.9% requires users to deploy VM with premium storage for every disk. Users must deploy two or more VMs running the workload within an availability set, ensuring that their VMs are dispersed across multiple fault domains in the Azure datacenters. It is also deployed onto hosts with varied maintenance windows for their deployment to qualify for the standard 99.95% VM Service Level Agreement.
5. OS disks and images: Apart from aiding VMs to store their OS, virtual hard disks (VHDs) are required in images that work in the OS installation process. Azure offers varied marketplace images to suit different types and versions of Windows Server operating systems. These images are identified by offer, image publisher, SKU, and version. Only 64-bit OS is supported.?
6. Data storage: Only the Southeast Asia Region (Singapore) of the Asia Pacific Geo and Brazil South (Sao Paulo State) Region of Brazil Geo can store client data in a single region. The client data of the other regions are stored in Geo.
7. VM extensions: The following extensions can enhance the capabilities of VMs via post-deployment configuration and automated tasks:

• Custom Script?
• PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC)
• Azure Diagnostics

Fast track your learning with NetCom

The best way for you to have a successful career in Azure technologies is to clear the AZ-104: Microsoft Azure Administrator exam. The exam costs US$ 165 (depending upon the country) and is available in English and 12 other languages.

Take the AZ-104T00: Microsoft Azure Administrator course from NetCom Learning to clear the AZ-104 exam and earn the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate certification. Customize your course date, location, and time and learn from Microsoft Certified Trainers (MCTs).

The NetCom Learning course on Creating a Windows Virtual Machine in Microsoft Azure gives you a live demo of configuring a virtual machine and connecting to it on the Azure portal.

Start your career in Azure with a Microsoft certification. Checkout our Azure Administrator guide blog to learn more about their goals, responsibilities and the tools and services they use.