Azure CLI and Cloud Shell - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Azure CLI and Cloud Shell Basics

📖 Scenario: You are starting to manage cloud resources on Microsoft Azure. You want to practice using the Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI) inside the Azure Cloud Shell environment. This will help you create and manage resources easily from the browser without installing anything.

🎯 Goal: Learn how to open Azure Cloud Shell, create a resource group using Azure CLI, set a location variable, and list the resource groups to confirm your creation.

📋 What You'll Learn

Use Azure CLI commands inside Azure Cloud Shell

Create a resource group with a specific name and location

Set a variable for the location

List resource groups to verify creation

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Cloud administrators often use Azure CLI in Cloud Shell to quickly create and manage resources without installing software locally.

💼 Career

Knowing Azure CLI and Cloud Shell is essential for cloud engineers and administrators to automate and manage Azure resources efficiently.

1

Open Azure Cloud Shell and create a resource group

In Azure Cloud Shell, write the Azure CLI command to create a resource group named MyResourceGroup in the eastus location. Use the command az group create with the parameters --name MyResourceGroup and --location eastus.

Azure

# Type the az group create command to make MyResourceGroup in eastus
# Your code here

Hint

Use az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus to create the resource group.

2

Set a variable for the location

In Azure Cloud Shell, create a variable called location and set it to the string eastus. Use the syntax location=eastus.

Azure

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus
# Set the variable location to eastus
# Your code here

Hint

Use location=eastus to set the variable.

3

Create another resource group using the location variable

Use the Azure CLI command az group create to create a resource group named MySecondResourceGroup using the location variable for the location parameter. The command should include --name MySecondResourceGroup and --location $location.

Azure

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus
location=eastus
# Create MySecondResourceGroup using the location variable
# Your code here

Hint

Use az group create --name MySecondResourceGroup --location $location to create the second group.

4

List all resource groups to verify creation

Use the Azure CLI command az group list to list all resource groups. Add the parameter --output table to display the list in a readable table format.

Azure

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus
location=eastus
az group create --name MySecondResourceGroup --location $location
# List all resource groups in table format
# Your code here

Hint

Use az group list --output table to see your resource groups clearly.

Practice

1. What is the primary purpose of Azure Cloud Shell?

easy

A. To store files permanently in Azure storage

B. To create virtual machines automatically without commands

C. To replace the Azure Portal with a graphical interface

D. To provide a ready-to-use command line interface in the browser with Azure CLI pre-installed

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Cloud Shell functionality

   Cloud Shell is a browser-based shell environment with Azure CLI and other tools pre-installed, ready for use without setup.

2. Step 2: Compare options

   Options B, C, and D describe other Azure features but not Cloud Shell's main purpose.

3. Final Answer:

   To provide a ready-to-use command line interface in the browser with Azure CLI pre-installed -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Cloud Shell = browser CLI with Azure CLI [OK]

Hint: Cloud Shell = browser command line ready to use [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking Cloud Shell is a GUI tool
• Confusing Cloud Shell with Azure Portal
• Assuming Cloud Shell stores files permanently

2. Which command correctly logs you into Azure CLI in Cloud Shell?

easy

A. az connect

B. az login

C. az start

D. az authenticate

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the login command in Azure CLI

   The command to log in to Azure CLI is az login.

2. Step 2: Verify other options

   Commands like az connect, az start, and az authenticate do not exist or are incorrect for login.

3. Final Answer:

   az login -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Login command = az login [OK]

Hint: Login always uses 'az login' command [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'az connect' instead of 'az login'
• Trying 'az start' to login
• Assuming 'az authenticate' is valid

3. What will the following command do?

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus

medium

A. Create a new resource group named MyResourceGroup in the East US region

B. Delete the resource group named MyResourceGroup

C. List all resource groups in East US

D. Create a virtual machine named MyResourceGroup

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the command structure

   az group create creates a resource group. The parameters specify the name and location.

2. Step 2: Interpret parameters

   --name sets the resource group name to 'MyResourceGroup', --location sets the region to 'eastus'.

3. Final Answer:

   Create a new resource group named MyResourceGroup in the East US region -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   az group create = create resource group [OK]

Hint: az group create = make new resource group [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing resource group creation with VM creation
• Thinking it deletes or lists groups
• Misunderstanding --location parameter

4. You run this command in Cloud Shell:

az vm create --resource-group MyGroup --name MyVM --image UbuntuLTS

But get an error saying the resource group does not exist. What should you do?

medium

A. Create the resource group first using az group create

B. Change the VM name to match an existing resource group

C. Run az vm delete before creating the VM

D. Use az vm list to create the resource group

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the error cause

   The error says the resource group 'MyGroup' does not exist, so the VM cannot be created there.

2. Step 2: Fix by creating the resource group

   You must create the resource group first with az group create --name MyGroup --location eastus (or another location).

3. Final Answer:

   Create the resource group first using az group create -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Resource group must exist before VM creation [OK]

Hint: Create resource group before VM creation [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Trying to delete VM before creating resource group
• Changing VM name instead of resource group
• Using az vm list to create groups

5. You want to automate creating a VM and then immediately open its public IP in your browser using Azure CLI in Cloud Shell. Which sequence of commands is correct?

hard

A. az vm create --resource-group RG --name VM1 --image UbuntuLTS && az vm get-ip VM1 | open-browser

B. az vm create --resource-group RG --name VM1 --image UbuntuLTS; az vm list-ip --name VM1 | open

C. az vm create --resource-group RG --name VM1 --image UbuntuLTS && az vm show --resource-group RG --name VM1 --query publicIpAddress -o tsv | xargs xdg-open

D. az vm create --resource-group RG --name VM1 --image UbuntuLTS && az vm show --resource-group RG --name VM1 --query publicIpAddress -o tsv | xargs open

Solution

1. Step 1: Create VM with az vm create

   This command creates the VM in the specified resource group with the Ubuntu image.

2. Step 2: Retrieve public IP and open in browser

   az vm show --query publicIpAddress -o tsv extracts the IP. Piping to xdg-open opens it in the default browser on Linux-based Cloud Shell.

3. Step 3: Analyze options

   Options B and C use invalid commands or syntax. az vm create --resource-group RG --name VM1 --image UbuntuLTS && az vm show --resource-group RG --name VM1 --query publicIpAddress -o tsv | xargs open uses open which is MacOS-specific, not Cloud Shell.

4. Final Answer:

   az vm create ... && az vm show ... | xargs xdg-open -> Option C

5. Quick Check:

   Use az vm show + xdg-open in Cloud Shell [OK]

Hint: Use az vm show + xdg-open to open IP in Cloud Shell [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using MacOS 'open' command in Cloud Shell
• Using non-existent commands like az vm get-ip
• Not piping IP correctly to open command