Azure global infrastructure (regions, availability zones) - Commands & Configuration

Introduction

Azure global infrastructure is a network of data centers around the world. It helps keep your apps running smoothly by placing resources close to users and protecting them from failures.

When you want your app to respond quickly to users in different countries by placing resources nearby.

When you need to keep your app running even if one data center has a problem.

When you want to store data in a specific country to follow local rules.

When you want to spread your app across multiple locations to handle more users.

When you want to back up your app in a different place to avoid losing data.

Commands

This command lists all Azure regions where you can create resources. It helps you see the available locations worldwide.

Terminal

az account list-locations --output table

Expected Output

Name                 DisplayName

--------------------  -------------------------

eastus               East US

westus               West US

westeurope           West Europe

southeastasia        Southeast Asia

japaneast            Japan East

...                  ...

→

--output table - Shows the output in a readable table format

This command shows the available virtual machine sizes in the East US region. It helps you pick the right machine type near your users.

Terminal

az vm list-skus --location eastus --size Standard_DS1_v2 --output table

Expected Output

Name             Tier    Size           Family

----------------  ------  -------------  --------

Standard_DS1_v2   Standard  Standard_DS1_v2  DSv2-Series

→

--location - Specifies the region to check

→

--size - Filters by VM size

→

--output table - Shows output in table format

This command creates an availability set in East US to spread virtual machines across fault and update domains. It helps keep your app running during hardware or software updates.

Terminal

az vm availability-set create --name myAvailabilitySet --resource-group myResourceGroup --location eastus --platform-fault-domain-count 2 --platform-update-domain-count 5

Expected Output

{

  "id": "/subscriptions/xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx/resourceGroups/myResourceGroup/providers/Microsoft.Compute/availabilitySets/myAvailabilitySet",

  "location": "eastus",

  "name": "myAvailabilitySet",

  "platformFaultDomainCount": 2,

  "platformUpdateDomainCount": 5,

  "provisioningState": "Succeeded",

  "resourceGroup": "myResourceGroup",

  "type": "Microsoft.Compute/availabilitySets"

}

→

--platform-fault-domain-count - Number of fault domains to spread VMs across

→

--platform-update-domain-count - Number of update domains to spread VMs across

This command creates a virtual machine in the East US region inside the availability set. It ensures the VM benefits from high availability.

Terminal

az vm create --resource-group myResourceGroup --name myVM1 --image UbuntuLTS --availability-set myAvailabilitySet --location eastus --admin-username azureuser --generate-ssh-keys

Expected Output

{

  "fqdns": "",

  "id": "/subscriptions/xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx/resourceGroups/myResourceGroup/providers/Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/myVM1",

  "location": "eastus",

  "name": "myVM1",

  "powerState": "VM running",

  "resourceGroup": "myResourceGroup",

  "zones": null

}

→

--availability-set - Assigns the VM to the availability set

→

--generate-ssh-keys - Creates SSH keys for secure login

This command lists all virtual machines in the resource group to verify the VM creation and its availability set assignment.

Terminal

az vm list --resource-group myResourceGroup --output table

Expected Output

Name    ResourceGroup    Location    PowerState    Zones

------  ---------------  ----------  ------------  -----

myVM1   myResourceGroup  eastus      VM running    

→

--output table - Shows output in a readable table

Key Concept

If you remember nothing else from this pattern, remember: Azure regions are physical locations worldwide, and availability zones or sets help keep your apps running by spreading resources across separate hardware.

Common Mistakes

Trying to create resources in a region that does not support the chosen service or VM size.

Azure will return an error because the resource is not available in that region.

Use 'az account list-locations' and 'az vm list-skus' to check availability before creating resources.

Not assigning VMs to an availability set or zone when high availability is needed.

VMs may be placed on the same hardware, causing downtime if that hardware fails.

Create and assign VMs to availability sets or zones to spread risk.

Summary

Use 'az account list-locations' to find Azure regions worldwide.

Create availability sets to spread VMs across fault and update domains for reliability.

Assign VMs to availability sets during creation to ensure high availability.

Verify VM creation and placement with 'az vm list'.