Cost management and budgets in Azure - Commands & Configuration

Introduction

Managing cloud costs helps you avoid surprises in your bills. Budgets let you set limits and get alerts when spending approaches those limits.

When you want to track how much your team spends on cloud resources each month

When you need to get notified before your cloud costs exceed a certain amount

When you want to compare actual spending against planned budgets

When you want to control costs by setting spending limits for projects

When you want to analyze spending trends to optimize resource use

Commands

This command sets the active subscription to 'Example Subscription' so that all following commands apply to it.

Terminal

az account set --subscription "Example Subscription"

Expected Output

No output (command runs silently)

→

--subscription - Specifies which subscription to use for commands

Creates a monthly budget named 'MyBudget' with a limit of 100 currency units for June 2024 in the specified subscription.

Terminal

az consumption budget create --name "MyBudget" --amount 100 --time-grain Monthly --start-date 2024-06-01 --end-date 2024-06-30 --subscription "Example Subscription"

Expected Output

{

  "amount": 100.0,

  "category": "Cost",

  "currentSpend": {

    "amount": 0.0,

    "unit": "USD"

  },

  "name": "MyBudget",

  "timeGrain": "Monthly",

  "timePeriod": {

    "startDate": "2024-06-01T00:00:00Z",

    "endDate": "2024-06-30T23:59:59Z"

  }

}

→

--name - Names the budget

→

--amount - Sets the spending limit

→

--time-grain - Defines the budget period (Monthly)

→

--start-date - Sets the budget start date

→

--end-date - Sets the budget end date

Shows details of the budget named 'MyBudget' to check current spending and limits.

Terminal

az consumption budget show --name "MyBudget" --subscription "Example Subscription"

Expected Output

{

  "amount": 100.0,

  "category": "Cost",

  "currentSpend": {

    "amount": 0.0,

    "unit": "USD"

  },

  "name": "MyBudget",

  "timeGrain": "Monthly",

  "timePeriod": {

    "startDate": "2024-06-01T00:00:00Z",

    "endDate": "2024-06-30T23:59:59Z"

  }

}

→

--name - Specifies the budget to show

Lists all budgets in the subscription to see all active budgets and their statuses.

Terminal

az consumption budget list --subscription "Example Subscription"

Expected Output

[

  {

    "amount": 100.0,

    "category": "Cost",

    "currentSpend": {

      "amount": 0.0,

      "unit": "USD"

    },

    "name": "MyBudget",

    "timeGrain": "Monthly",

    "timePeriod": {

      "startDate": "2024-06-01T00:00:00Z",

      "endDate": "2024-06-30T23:59:59Z"

    }

  }

]

Key Concept

If you remember nothing else from this pattern, remember: setting budgets helps you control cloud spending by alerting you before costs get too high.

Common Mistakes

Not setting the correct subscription before creating or viewing budgets

Commands will run on the wrong subscription, causing confusion or no budget found errors

Always run 'az account set --subscription "Your Subscription"' before budget commands

Using incorrect date formats or forgetting to set start and end dates

Budget creation fails or budgets do not cover the intended time period

Use ISO date format YYYY-MM-DD and specify both start and end dates when creating budgets

Summary

Set the active subscription to ensure commands apply to the right account.

Create a budget with a spending limit and time period to track costs.

Check budget details to monitor current spending against limits.

List all budgets to see an overview of cost controls in place.

Practice

1. What is the main purpose of setting a budget in Azure Cost Management?

easy

A. To automatically scale resources

B. To increase the cloud service limits

C. To control and monitor cloud spending

D. To create virtual machines

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the role of budgets in Azure

   Budgets are used to keep track of how much money is spent on cloud resources.

2. Step 2: Identify the main goal of budgets

   The main goal is to control and monitor spending to avoid unexpected costs.

3. Final Answer:

   To control and monitor cloud spending -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Budgets help control spending = A [OK]

Hint: Budgets track and limit spending, not resource limits [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing budgets with resource scaling
• Thinking budgets create resources
• Assuming budgets increase service limits

2. Which of the following is the correct way to define a budget scope in Azure?

easy

A. Specify a resource group or subscription

B. Set a budget only for virtual machines

C. Apply budget to a single storage blob

D. Create budget for a specific IP address

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify valid budget scopes in Azure

   Budgets can be set at subscription or resource group level, which are logical containers.

2. Step 2: Check options for scope validity

   Resource groups and subscriptions are valid scopes; individual resources like blobs or IPs are not.

3. Final Answer:

   Specify a resource group or subscription -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Budget scope = resource group or subscription [OK]

Hint: Budgets apply to groups or subscriptions, not single resources [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Trying to set budget on individual resources
• Confusing resource types with scope
• Assuming IP addresses can have budgets

3. Given this budget alert rule in Azure: Alert when spending reaches 80% of a $1000 monthly budget. What will happen when spending hits $850?

medium

A. An alert will be triggered

B. No alert will be triggered

C. The budget will reset automatically

D. Azure will stop all resources

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the alert threshold

   The alert triggers when spending reaches 80% of $1000, which is $800.

2. Step 2: Compare spending to threshold

   Spending at $850 is above $800, so the alert will trigger.

3. Final Answer:

   An alert will be triggered -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Spending > 80% budget triggers alert = C [OK]

Hint: Alert triggers once spending passes threshold, not after budget ends [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking alert triggers only at 100%
• Assuming budget resets automatically
• Believing Azure stops resources on alert

4. You created a budget in Azure but never received any alerts even though spending exceeded the budget. What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. Spending was below the budget

B. Alert notifications were not configured

C. Azure does not support budget alerts

D. Budget amount was set to zero

Solution

1. Step 1: Check alert configuration

   Alerts require notification settings like email or action groups to send alerts.

2. Step 2: Understand why no alerts were received

   If notifications are missing, alerts won't be sent even if spending exceeds budget.

3. Final Answer:

   Alert notifications were not configured -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Missing alert notifications = no alerts sent [OK]

Hint: Always configure alert notifications to get budget warnings [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming Azure disables alerts automatically
• Ignoring notification setup
• Confusing budget amount with alert settings

5. You want to create a budget that resets every quarter and sends alerts at 50%, 75%, and 90% of the budget. Which approach should you take in Azure Cost Management?

hard

A. Create three separate monthly budgets with different alert thresholds

B. Use Azure Advisor to automatically manage budgets

C. Set a yearly budget and manually check spending each month

D. Create a quarterly budget with multiple alert conditions for each threshold

Solution

1. Step 1: Define budget period and alert thresholds

   Azure budgets can be set to reset quarterly and support multiple alert conditions.

2. Step 2: Choose correct setup for multiple alerts

   One budget with multiple alert rules for 50%, 75%, and 90% is best practice.

3. Step 3: Evaluate other options

   Monthly budgets split alerts unnecessarily; yearly budgets don't reset quarterly; Azure Advisor doesn't manage budgets.

4. Final Answer:

   Create a quarterly budget with multiple alert conditions for each threshold -> Option D

5. Quick Check:

   Quarterly budget + multiple alerts = B [OK]

Hint: Use one budget with multiple alerts for different thresholds [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Splitting alerts into multiple budgets unnecessarily
• Using yearly budget for quarterly needs
• Relying on Azure Advisor for budget alerts