Output formats (json, table, tsv) in Azure - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to set the Azure CLI output format to JSON.

Azure

az configure --defaults output=[1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Ayaml

Bjson

Ctsv

Dtable

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'table' or 'tsv' instead of 'json' will change the output format.

Setting the output to json makes Azure CLI return results in JSON format.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the command to list Azure VMs with output in table format.

Azure

az vm list --output [1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Atable

Bjson

Ctsv

Dnone

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Choosing 'json' or 'tsv' will not display a table.

The table output format shows results in a readable table layout.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in this command to output VM names only in TSV format.

Azure

az vm list --query "[].[1]" --output tsv

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

Bid

Clocation

Dtype

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'id' or 'location' will return unwanted data.

The name property returns the VM names, which is what we want in this query.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to output VM names and their locations in JSON format.

Azure

az vm list --query "[].{VMName: [1], Location: [2]" --output json

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

Blocation

Cid

Dtype

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Swapping 'name' and 'location' or using 'id' causes wrong output.

Use name for VM names and location for their regions.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to output VM names, resource groups, and OS types in table format.

Azure

az vm list --query "[].{Name: [1], ResourceGroup: [2], OS: storageProfile.[3].osType}" --output table

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aname

BresourceGroup

CosDisk

Dlocation

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'location' instead of 'resourceGroup' or wrong OS path causes errors.

The name is VM name, resourceGroup is the group, and osDisk holds the OS type info.

Practice

1. What is the main reason to use --output json when running Azure CLI commands?

easy

A. To shorten the output for quick reading

B. To display results in a colorful table format

C. To export data as a tab-separated file

D. To get output that machines and scripts can easily read

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand output formats purpose

   JSON format is structured and easy for programs to parse and use.

2. Step 2: Compare with other formats

   Table and TSV are better for humans to read or export, not for machines.

3. Final Answer:

   To get output that machines and scripts can easily read -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   JSON = machine-friendly output [OK]

Hint: JSON output is for scripts; table/TSV is for people [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing JSON with table format
• Thinking TSV is for machine parsing only
• Assuming JSON output is shorter

2. Which Azure CLI command correctly sets the output format to table?

easy

A. az vm list --output table

B. az vm list --format table

C. az vm list -o json

D. az vm list --output tsv

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify correct syntax for output option

   The correct flag to set output format is --output or -o.

2. Step 2: Match the format value

   To get table format, use --output table. Other options are either wrong flag or different formats.

3. Final Answer:

   az vm list --output table -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Use --output table for table format [OK]

Hint: Use --output or -o followed by format name [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using --format instead of --output
• Mixing output format names
• Using -o json when table is needed

3. What will be the output format of this command?
az storage account list -o tsv

medium

A. Tab-separated values without headers

B. A human-friendly table with headers

C. A JSON array of storage accounts

D. An error because tsv is invalid

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the -o tsv flag

   The tsv output format produces tab-separated values, useful for scripts or exporting.

2. Step 2: Check if headers are included

   TSV output usually does not include headers, just raw data separated by tabs.

3. Final Answer:

   Tab-separated values without headers -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   TSV = tab-separated, no headers [OK]

Hint: TSV outputs raw tab-separated data, no headers [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking TSV includes headers like table
• Confusing TSV with JSON format
• Assuming TSV causes errors

4. You run az group list --output tsv but get an error. What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. You forgot to install Azure CLI

B. The Azure subscription is not set

C. You used the wrong flag; it should be --output table

D. The command does not support TSV output format

Solution

1. Step 1: Check common prerequisites

   az group list requires an active Azure subscription (via az login and az account set-subscription).

2. Step 2: Eliminate other causes

   TSV is fully supported, CLI issues prevent az from running at all, wrong flag like table would output table instead of error.

3. Final Answer:

   The Azure subscription is not set -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   No subscription -> auth error on list [OK]

Hint: Run az login & az account set-subscription first [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming TSV unsupported (all standard formats work)
• CLI install confusion (command runs but auth fails)
• Wrong flag mixup (tsv is valid)

5. You want to export a list of Azure VMs with their names and locations in a format easy to import into Excel. Which command and output format should you use?

hard

A. az vm list --query '[].{Name:name, Location:location}' -o table

B. az vm list --query '[].{Name:name, Location:location}' -o json

C. az vm list --query '[].{Name:name, Location:location}' -o tsv

D. az vm list --output yaml

Solution

1. Step 1: Choose output format for Excel import

   TSV (tab-separated values) is easy to import into Excel as columns.

2. Step 2: Use query to select needed fields

   The query selects only VM name and location, simplifying the output.

3. Final Answer:

   az vm list --query '[].{Name:name, Location:location}' -o tsv -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   TSV + query = Excel-friendly export [OK]

Hint: Use -o tsv with query for Excel import [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using JSON which Excel needs extra steps to import
• Using table which is for human reading only
• Using unsupported YAML format