15 Azure Fundamentals Interview Questions and Answers

Azure Fundamentals is a foundational certification that validates your understanding of core cloud services and how they are provided with Microsoft Azure. As cloud computing continues to grow in importance across various industries, proficiency in Azure has become a valuable skill. Azure offers a wide range of services, including computing, analytics, storage, and networking, making it a versatile platform for businesses of all sizes.

This article aims to prepare you for interviews by presenting a curated selection of questions and answers related to Azure Fundamentals. By familiarizing yourself with these topics, you will be better equipped to demonstrate your knowledge and confidence in Azure, thereby enhancing your prospects in the competitive job market.

Azure Fundamentals Interview Questions and Answers

1. Describe the Azure Resource Manager (ARM) and its benefits.

Azure Resource Manager (ARM) is the deployment and management service for Azure, providing a consistent management layer for creating, updating, and deleting resources. ARM enables infrastructure management through declarative templates, ensuring resources are deployed consistently.

Key benefits of ARM include:

• Consistency: Ensures resources are deployed in a consistent state, reducing configuration drift.
• Resource Grouping: Allows resources to be managed as a group for easier deployment and monitoring.
• Access Control: Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) can be applied to resource groups for authorized management.
• Tagging: Facilitates organization and billing management.
• Template-Based Deployment: Enables declarative resource management for automation and replication.
• Dependency Management: Handles resource dependencies for correct deployment order.

2. Explain the concept of Availability Zones in Azure.

Availability Zones in Azure provide high availability and fault tolerance by using multiple physically separate datacenters within a region. These zones are connected through high-speed networks, ensuring low-latency communication. Deploying applications across multiple zones protects against datacenter-level failures, maintaining application availability. Azure offers a Service Level Agreement (SLA) of 99.99% uptime for virtual machines running in two or more Availability Zones.

3. What are Azure Managed Disks and how do they differ from unmanaged disks?

Azure Managed Disks simplify storage management for virtual machine disks by abstracting Azure Storage accounts. They offer advantages over unmanaged disks, such as:

• Simplified Management: Azure handles storage account management, reducing complexity.
• Scalability: Allows up to 50,000 VM disks per region, unlike unmanaged disks limited by storage account capacity.
• High Availability: Automatically replicates data for protection against hardware failures.
• Backup and Restore: Integrates with Azure Backup for easier data management.
• Security: Supports Azure Disk Encryption for data protection.

Unmanaged disks require manual storage account management, leading to complexities in handling storage limits and ensuring availability.

4. Explain the concept of Azure Policy and provide an example of its use.

Azure Policy is a governance tool that enforces rules on resources to ensure compliance with organizational standards. Policies are defined using JSON, specifying conditions and effects. Common effects include denying non-compliant resources and auditing existing ones.

Example of a policy enforcing a specific tag on resources:

{
  "properties": {
    "displayName": "Require a tag on resources",
    "policyType": "Custom",
    "mode": "All",
    "parameters": {
      "tagName": {
        "type": "String",
        "metadata": {
          "displayName": "Tag Name",
          "description": "Name of the tag, such as 'environment'"
        }
      }
    },
    "policyRule": {
      "if": {
        "field": "[concat('tags[', parameters('tagName'), ']')]",
        "exists": "false"
      },
      "then": {
        "effect": "deny"
      }
    }
  }
}

This policy denies the creation of resources without the specified tag, ensuring proper tagging.

5. How would you configure autoscaling for an Azure App Service using an ARM template?

Autoscaling in Azure App Service allows applications to scale based on predefined rules and metrics. ARM templates define infrastructure and configuration for automated deployment.

To configure autoscaling using an ARM template, define autoscale settings, including the target resource, scaling rules, and conditions.

Example:

{
  "$schema": "https://schema.management.azure.com/schemas/2019-04-01/deploymentTemplate.json#",
  "contentVersion": "1.0.0.0",
  "resources": [
    {
      "type": "Microsoft.Insights/autoscaleSettings",
      "apiVersion": "2015-04-01",
      "name": "autoscaleSetting",
      "location": "[resourceGroup().location]",
      "properties": {
        "profiles": [
          {
            "name": "autoscaleProfile",
            "capacity": {
              "minimum": "1",
              "maximum": "10",
              "default": "1"
            },
            "rules": [
              {
                "metricTrigger": {
                  "metricName": "CpuPercentage",
                  "metricNamespace": "",
                  "metricResourceUri": "[resourceId('Microsoft.Web/sites', 'yourAppServiceName')]",
                  "timeGrain": "PT1M",
                  "statistic": "Average",
                  "timeWindow": "PT5M",
                  "timeAggregation": "Average",
                  "operator": "GreaterThan",
                  "threshold": 70
                },
                "scaleAction": {
                  "direction": "Increase",
                  "type": "ChangeCount",
                  "value": "1",
                  "cooldown": "PT1M"
                }
              },
              {
                "metricTrigger": {
                  "metricName": "CpuPercentage",
                  "metricNamespace": "",
                  "metricResourceUri": "[resourceId('Microsoft.Web/sites', 'yourAppServiceName')]",
                  "timeGrain": "PT1M",
                  "statistic": "Average",
                  "timeWindow": "PT5M",
                  "timeAggregation": "Average",
                  "operator": "LessThan",
                  "threshold": 30
                },
                "scaleAction": {
                  "direction": "Decrease",
                  "type": "ChangeCount",
                  "value": "1",
                  "cooldown": "PT1M"
                }
              }
            ]
          }
        ],
        "enabled": true,
        "targetResourceUri": "[resourceId('Microsoft.Web/sites', 'yourAppServiceName')]"
      }
    }
  ]
}

6. Describe the differences between Azure Blob Storage, Azure File Storage, and Azure Disk Storage.

Azure offers various storage solutions:

1. Azure Blob Storage

• Purpose: Stores unstructured data like text, binary data, images, and videos.
• Use Cases: Serving images/documents, streaming media, and data backup.
• Features: Offers different tiers (Hot, Cool, Archive) for cost optimization.

2. Azure File Storage

• Purpose: Provides managed file shares accessible via SMB protocol.
• Use Cases: Sharing files across VMs, lift-and-shift migrations, and supplementing file servers.
• Features: Supports SMB and NFS protocols for integration with on-premises environments.

3. Azure Disk Storage

• Purpose: Provides block-level storage for Azure VMs.
• Use Cases: High-performance applications like databases and analytics.
• Features: Offers various disk types (Standard HDD, SSD, Premium SSD, Ultra Disk) for performance and cost needs.

7. Explain the concept of Azure Functions and provide a use case where they would be beneficial.

Azure Functions allow developers to focus on code without managing infrastructure, automatically scaling based on demand. A common use case is real-time data processing, such as an e-commerce platform processing orders. An event can trigger a function to validate orders, update inventory, and send confirmation emails, ensuring efficient order processing.

8. How would you implement a CI/CD pipeline for an Azure Web App using Azure DevOps?

To implement a CI/CD pipeline for an Azure Web App using Azure DevOps:

1. Create a Project: Set up a new project in Azure DevOps for managing resources.

2. Set Up a Git Repository: Use Azure Repos for source code storage.

3. Define a Build Pipeline: Create a pipeline to compile code, run tests, and produce artifacts.

4. Create a Release Pipeline: Deploy build artifacts to the Azure Web App with stages for different environments.

5. Configure Continuous Integration (CI): Trigger builds automatically on code changes.

6. Configure Continuous Deployment (CD): Deploy to environments automatically after successful builds.

7. Set Up Environment Variables and Secrets: Use Azure Key Vault or pipeline variables for secure management.

8. Monitor and Maintain: Use Azure Monitor and Application Insights for performance monitoring.

9. Explain the concept of Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) and its benefits.

Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a managed Kubernetes service for deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications. AKS reduces operational overhead by handling cluster management tasks.

Benefits of AKS:

• Managed Service: Azure manages the infrastructure, reducing operational overhead.
• Scalability: Easily scale applications based on demand.
• Integration with Azure Services: Seamless integration with Azure services like Active Directory and Monitor.
• Security: Built-in security features like network policies and RBAC.
• Cost-Effective: Pay only for consumed resources; control plane is free.

10. How would you secure an Azure Storage Account using Shared Access Signatures (SAS)?

Shared Access Signatures (SAS) in Azure grant limited access to storage account resources without exposing the account key. SAS tokens specify permissions, resource type, and duration.

To secure an Azure Storage Account using SAS:

• Generate a SAS Token: Use Azure tools to create a token with specific permissions and expiration.
• Distribute the SAS Token: Share the token securely with clients or applications needing access.
• Monitor and Revoke Access: Regularly monitor token usage and revoke if necessary. Regenerate storage account keys to invalidate tokens if needed.

11. Describe the steps to migrate an on-premises SQL Server database to Azure SQL Database.

Migrating an on-premises SQL Server database to Azure SQL Database involves:

1. Assessment and Planning: Evaluate the database for compatibility with Azure SQL Database using tools like Data Migration Assistant (DMA).

2. Preparation: Set up necessary Azure resources and ensure network connectivity.

3. Schema and Data Migration: Use tools like Azure Database Migration Service (DMS) or DMA for migration.

4. Testing and Validation: Test the database in Azure to ensure functionality and performance.

5. Cutover and Optimization: Redirect applications to the new database and optimize for performance.

12. Explain the concept of Azure Cost Management and how it can be used to optimize expenses.

Azure Cost Management helps organizations monitor and optimize cloud spending with features like cost analysis, budgeting, and recommendations.

Cost Analysis: Breaks down spending by resource, group, subscription, and tags for detailed insights.

Budgeting: Allows setting budgets and alerts for spending thresholds.

Cost Allocation: Allocates costs to departments or projects based on usage.

Recommendations: Provides cost optimization suggestions based on usage patterns.

13. Describe the features and benefits of Azure Security Center.

Azure Security Center offers:

• Unified Security Management: Centralized view of security state for cloud and on-premises workloads.
• Advanced Threat Protection: Detects and responds to threats using machine learning.
• Compliance and Regulatory Requirements: Provides continuous assessment and recommendations for compliance.
• Security Recommendations: Offers prioritized recommendations to improve security posture.
• Just-in-Time VM Access: Controls access to VMs by specifying time windows and IP addresses.
• File Integrity Monitoring: Monitors changes to important files and registry keys.
• Integration with Other Azure Services: Integrates with services like Azure Sentinel and Monitor.

14. What is Azure Advisor and how can it help in optimizing Azure resources?

Azure Advisor provides recommendations to optimize Azure resources in four areas:

• Cost: Identifies opportunities to reduce spending by eliminating or resizing resources.
• Security: Recommends best practices to enhance resource security.
• Performance: Suggests optimizations to improve application performance.
• Reliability: Offers guidance to increase application availability and reliability.

Azure Advisor continuously monitors resources and provides a dashboard for viewing and implementing recommendations.

15. Describe the key components of an Azure Virtual Network (VNet).

An Azure Virtual Network (VNet) is a private network in Azure, enabling secure communication between resources. Key components include:

• Subnets: Segment the network into sub-networks for organization and security.
• Network Security Groups (NSGs): Control inbound and outbound traffic with security rules.
• Virtual Network Peering: Connects VNets for seamless communication.
• Azure VPN Gateway: Sends encrypted traffic between Azure and on-premises locations.
• Azure Load Balancer: Distributes network traffic across VMs for high availability.
• Azure Application Gateway: Manages web traffic with features like SSL termination and URL routing.
• DNS Services: Resolves domain names to IP addresses within the VNet.
• Service Endpoints: Extend VNet private address space to Azure services.