1. What is Microsoft Azure, and why is it used?
Answer:
Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform and service provided by Microsoft. It offers a wide range of services, including computing, storage, databases, networking, AI, and analytics, enabling businesses to build, deploy, and manage applications in the cloud.
Key Benefits:
- Scalability and flexibility.
- Cost-effective pay-as-you-go pricing.
- Integration with Microsoft tools like Power BI and Office 365.
2. What are Azure Resource Groups?
Answer:
Azure Resource Groups are logical containers that group related Azure resources, such as virtual machines, storage accounts, and databases, for easier management and organization.
Key Features:
- Allows you to manage and monitor resources collectively.
- Enables role-based access control (RBAC).
- Supports tagging for cost tracking and organization.
3. What is the Azure App Service?
Answer:
Azure App Service is a fully managed platform for building, deploying, and scaling web apps, APIs, and mobile backends.
Key Features:
- Supports multiple languages (e.g., .NET, Java, Python, PHP).
- Offers built-in scaling and load balancing.
- Integrates with CI/CD pipelines.
Example Use Case: Hosting a business website with automatic scaling during high traffic periods.
4. Explain the difference between Azure Virtual Machines and Azure App Services.
Answer:
- Azure Virtual Machines (VMs): Provide Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) for hosting applications with full control over the operating system and environment.
- Azure App Services: Provide Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) for deploying applications without managing infrastructure.
When to Use:
- Use VMs for applications needing custom environments.
- Use App Services for web apps requiring quick deployment and scaling.
5. What is Azure Blob Storage, and what are its types?
Answer:
Azure Blob Storage is an object storage solution for storing unstructured data, such as text and binary data.
Blob Types:
- Block Blobs: For large files like videos and images.
- Append Blobs: For logs and append-only data.
- Page Blobs: For random-access scenarios, such as virtual machine disks.
6. How does Azure Load Balancer work?
Answer:
Azure Load Balancer is a Layer-4 load balancer that distributes incoming traffic across multiple virtual machines or services to ensure high availability and reliability.
Features:
- Supports inbound and outbound scenarios.
- Provides health probes to monitor backend instances.
- Scales automatically based on traffic.
7. What are Azure Logic Apps, and how do they differ from Azure Functions?
Answer:
- Azure Logic Apps: A cloud-based workflow automation service for integrating apps and services using predefined connectors.
- Azure Functions: A serverless compute service for running custom code in response to events.
Difference:
Logic Apps focus on workflows and automation, while Functions are event-driven and used for custom processing tasks.
8. What is Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)?
Answer:
Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a managed Kubernetes service that simplifies containerized application deployment and management.
Key Benefits:
- Automates cluster maintenance, updates, and scaling.
- Integrates with other Azure services like Azure Monitor and Azure Active Directory.
Use Case: Deploying microservices-based applications at scale.
9. What is Azure Active Directory (Azure AD)?
Answer:
Azure Active Directory is a cloud-based identity and access management service.
Key Features:
- Provides single sign-on (SSO).
- Enables multi-factor authentication (MFA).
- Supports identity protection with conditional access policies.
Example Use Case: Controlling user access to Office 365 applications.
10. What are Azure DevOps and its components?
Answer:
Azure DevOps is a set of tools for CI/CD and DevOps practices to build, test, and deploy applications.
Key Components:
- Azure Boards: For agile project management.
- Azure Repos: Git repositories for version control.
- Azure Pipelines: CI/CD pipelines for automated builds and deployments.
- Azure Artifacts: Package management for dependencies.
- Azure Test Plans: Tools for manual and exploratory testing.
Example Use Case: Automating the deployment of an e-commerce application using Azure Pipelines.