Azure Managed Disks are block-level storage volumes that are managed by Azure and used with Azure Virtual Machines. Managed Disks are designed for high availability and durability, and they provide a simple and scalable way to manage your storage.
If you don't know anything about Azue Managed Disks, grab a cup of coffee( it will take you a while), you can read the official documentation to learn more about them.
There are several reasons to restrict managed disks from being imported or exported:
Security: By restricting managed disks from being imported or exported, you can reduce the risk of unauthorized access to your data.
Compliance: By restricting managed disks from being imported or exported, you can help ensure that your organization complies with data protection regulations.
## Create a managed disk with public network access disabled
az disk create --resource-group myResourceGroup --name myDisk --size-gb 128 --location eastus --sku Standard_LRS --no-wait --public-network-access disabled
If you want to restrict managed disks from being imported or exported, you can use Azure Policy to enforce this restriction. Azure Policy is a service in Azure that you can use to create, assign, and manage policies that enforce rules and effects over your resources. By using Azure Policy, you can ensure that your resources comply with your organization's standards and service-level agreements.
To restrict managed disks from being imported or exported using Azure Policy, you can use or create a policy definition that specifies the conditions under which managed disks can be imported or exported. You can then assign this policy definition to a scope, such as a management group, subscription, or resource group, to enforce the restriction across your resources.
In this post, I showed you how to restrict managed disks from being imported or exported in Azure. By restricting managed disks from being imported or exported, you can reduce the risk of unauthorized access to your data and help ensure that your organization complies with data protection regulations.
Curiosly, restrict managed disks from being imported or exported, it's not a compliance check in the Microsoft cloud security benchmark but it's a good practice to follow.
The virtual network (VNet) data gateway helps you to connect from Microsoft Cloud services to your Azure data services within a VNet without the need of an on-premises data gateway. The VNet data gateway securely communicates with the data source, executes queries, and transmits results back to the service.
A VNet data gateway acts as a bridge that allows for the secure flow of data between the Power Platform and external data sources that reside within a virtual network. This includes services such as SQL databases, file storage solutions, and other cloud-based resources. The gateway ensures that data can be transferred securely and reliably, without exposing the network to potential threats or breaches.
graph LR
User([User]) -->|Semantic Models| SM[Semantic Models]
User -->|"Dataflows (Gen2)"| DF["Dataflows (Gen2)"]
User -->|Paginated Reports| PR[Paginated Reports]
SM --> PPVS[Power Platform VNET Service]
DF --> PPVS
PR --> PPVS
PPVS --> MCVG[Managed Container<br>for VNet Gateway]
MCVG -->|Interfaces with| SQLDB[(SQL Databases)]
MCVG -->|Interfaces with| FS[(File Storage)]
MCVG -->|Interfaces with| CS[(Cloud Services)]
MCVG -.->|Secured by| SEC{{Security Features}}
subgraph VNET_123
SQLDB
FS
CS
SEC
end
classDef filled fill:#f96,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
classDef user fill:#bbf,stroke:#f66,stroke-width:2px,stroke-dasharray: 5, 5;
class User user
class SM,DF,PR,PPVS,MCVG,SQLDB,FS,CS,SEC filled
The process begins with a user leveraging Power Platform services like Semantic Models, Dataflows (Gen2), and Paginated Reports. These services are designed to handle various data-related tasks, from analysis to visualization. They connect to the Power Platform VNET Service, which is the heart of the operation, orchestrating the flow of data through the managed container for the VNet gateway.
This managed container is a secure environment specifically designed for the VNet gateway’s operations. It’s isolated from the public internet, ensuring that the data remains protected within the confines of the virtual network. Within this secure environment, the VNet gateway interfaces with the necessary external resources, such as SQL databases and cloud storage, all while maintaining strict security protocols symbolized by the padlock icon in our diagram.
If you need to connect to services on others VNets, you can use VNet peering to connect the VNets, and maybe access to on-premises resources using ExpressRoute or other VPN solutions.
By utilizing a VNet data gateway, organizations can enjoy several benefits:
Enhanced Security: The gateway provides a secure path for data, safeguarding sensitive information and complying with organizational security policies.
Network Isolation: The managed container and the virtual network setup ensure that the data does not traverse public internet spaces, reducing exposure to vulnerabilities.
Seamless Integration: The gateway facilitates smooth integration between Power Platform services and external data sources, enabling efficient data processing and analysis.
Before you can create a VNet data gateway, you need to register the Microsoft.PowerPlatform resource provider. This can be done using the Azure portal or the Azure CLI.
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.PowerPlatform
Create a VNet in your Azure subscription and a subnet where the VNet data gateway will be deployed. Next, you need to delegate subnet to service Microsoft.PowerPlatform/vnetaccesslinks.
Note
This subnet can't be shared with other services.
Five IP addresses are reserved in the subnet for basic functionality. You need to reserve additional IP addresses for the VNet data gateway, add more IPs for future gateways.
You need a role with the Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/subnets/join/action permission
This can be done using the Azure portal or the Azure CLI.
# Create a VNet and address prefix 10.0.0.0/24
az network vnet create --name MyVNet --resource-group MyResourceGroup --location eastus --address-prefixes 10.0.0.0/24
# Create a Netwrok Security Group
az network nsg create --name MyNsg --resource-group MyResourceGroup --location eastus
# Create a subnet with delegation to Microsoft.PowerPlatform/vnetaccesslinks and associate the NSG
az network vnet subnet create --name MySubnet --vnet-name MyVNet --resource-group MyResourceGroup --address-prefixes 10.0.0.1/27 --network-security-group MyNsg --delegations Microsoft.PowerPlatform/vnetaccesslinks
A Microsoft Power Platform User with with Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/subnets/join/action permission on the VNet is required. Network Contributor role is not necessary.
In the top navigation bar, select the settings gear icon on the right.
From the drop down, select the Manage connections and gateways page, in Resources and extensions.
Select Create a virtual network data gateway..
Select the license capacity, subscription, resource group, VNet and the Subnet. Only subnets that are delegated to Microsoft Power Platform are displayed in the drop-down list. VNET data gateways require a Power BI Premium capacity license (A4 SKU or higher or any P SKU) or Fabric license to be used (any SKU).
By default, we provide a unique name for this data gateway, but you could optionally update it.
Select Save. This VNet data gateway is now displayed in your Virtual network data gateways tab. A VNet data gateway is a managed gateway that could be used for controlling access to this resource for Power platform users.
The VNet data gateway is a powerful tool that enables secure data transfer between the Power Platform and external data sources residing within a virtual network. By leveraging this gateway, organizations can ensure that their data remains protected and compliant with security standards, all while facilitating seamless integration and analysis of data. If you are looking to enhance the security and reliability of your data connections, consider implementing a VNet data gateway in your environment.
In the cloud era, optimizing cloud spend has become a critical aspect of financial management. FinOps, a set of financial operations practices, empowers organizations to get the most out of their Azure investment. This blog post dives into the core principles of FinOps, explores the benefits it offers, and outlines practical strategies for implementing FinOps in your Azure environment.
Traditional IT expenditure followed a capital expenditure (capex) model, where businesses purchased hardware and software upfront. Cloud computing introduces a paradigm shift with the operational expenditure (opex) model. Here, businesses pay for resources as they consume them, leading to variable and unpredictable costs.
FinOps tackles this challenge by providing a framework for managing cloud finances. It encompasses three key pillars:
People: Establish a FinOps team or designate individuals responsible for overseeing cloud costs. This team should possess a blend of cloud technical expertise, financial acumen, and business process knowledge.
Process: Define processes for budgeting, forecasting, and monitoring cloud expenses. This involves setting spending limits, creating chargeback models for different departments, and regularly reviewing cost reports.
Tools: Leverage Azure Cost Management, a suite of tools that provides granular insights into your Azure spending. It enables cost allocation by resource, service, department, or any other relevant dimension.
It's essential to adopt a FinOps mindset that encourages collaboration between finance, IT, and business teams to drive cost efficiency and value realization in the cloud.
It's important to note that FinOps is not just about cost-cutting; it's about optimizing cloud spending to align with business objectives and maximize ROI.
Azure Cost Management empowers you to analyze your Azure spending patterns and identify cost-saving opportunities. Here's a glimpse into its key functionalities:
Cost Views: Generate comprehensive reports that categorize your Azure spending by various attributes like resource group, service, or department.
Cost Alerts: Set up proactive alerts to notify you when your spending exceeds predefined thresholds.
Reservations: Purchase reserved instances of frequently used Azure resources for significant upfront discounts.
Recommendations: Azure Cost Management analyzes your usage patterns and recommends potential cost-saving measures, such as rightsizing resources or leveraging spot instances.
Tags are metadata labels that you can attach to your Azure resources to categorize and track them effectively. They play a pivotal role in FinOps by enabling you to:
Associate costs with specific departments, projects, or applications.
Identify unused or underutilized resources for potential cost savings.
Simplify cost allocation and chargeback processes.
Azure Policy helps enforce tagging standards and governance rules across your Azure environment. You can define policies that mandate specific tags for all resources, ensuring consistent cost allocation and data accuracy.
Implementing FinOps doesn't necessitate a complex overhaul. Here's a recommended approach:
Establish a FinOps Team: Assemble a cross-functional team comprising representatives from finance, IT, and business departments.
Set Clear Goals and Objectives: Define your FinOps goals, whether it's reducing costs by a specific percentage or improving budget forecasting accuracy.
Leverage Azure Cost Management: Start by exploring Azure Cost Management to understand your current spending patterns.
Implement Basic Tagging Standards: Enforce basic tagging policies to categorize your Azure resources for cost allocation purposes.
Continuously Monitor and Refine: Regularly review your cloud cost reports and identify areas for further optimization.
By following these steps and embracing a FinOps culture, you can effectively manage your Azure expenses and derive maximum value from your cloud investment.
To streamline your FinOps practices in Azure, consider leveraging the following tools:
graph LR
A[Financial Operations Practices] --> B{Cloud Spend Optimization}
B --> C{Cost Visibility}
B --> D{Cost Optimization}
B --> E{Governance}
C --> F{Azure Cost Management}
D --> G{Azure Advisor}
E --> H{Azure Policy}
F --> I{Cost Views}
F --> J{Cost Alerts}
G --> K{Cost Recommendations}
H --> L{Tag Enforcement}
This toolchain combines Azure Cost Management, Azure Advisor, and Azure Policy to provide a comprehensive suite of capabilities for managing your Azure spending effectively.
Highly recommended, you can check FinOps toolkit, it's a set of tools and best practices to help you implement FinOps in your organization, it includes tools for cost allocation, budgeting, and forecasting, as well as best practices for FinOps implementation.
FinOps is an essential practice for organizations leveraging Azure. It empowers you to make informed decisions about your cloud finances, optimize spending, and achieve your business goals. As an Azure Solutions Architect, I recommend that you establish a FinOps practice within your organization to unlock the full potential of Azure and achieve financial efficiency in the cloud.
This blog post provides a foundational understanding of FinOps in Azure.
By embracing FinOps, you can transform your cloud cost management practices and drive business success in the cloud era.
When it comes to data security, reducing your attack surface is a crucial step. This post will guide you on how to minimize your attack surface when using Snowflake with Azure or Power BI.
Snowflake is a cloud-based data warehousing platform that allows you to store and analyze large amounts of data. It is known for its scalability, performance, and ease of use. Snowflake is popular among organizations that need to process large volumes of data quickly and efficiently.
An attack surface refers to the number of possible ways an attacker can get into a system and potentially extract data. The larger the attack surface, the more opportunities there are for attackers. Therefore, reducing the attack surface is a key aspect of securing your systems.
How to Reduce Your Attack Surface in Snowflake:
Use Azure Private Link Azure Private Link provides private connectivity from a virtual network to Snowflake, isolating your traffic from the public internet. It significantly reduces the attack surface by ensuring that traffic between Azure and Snowflake doesn't traverse over the public internet.
Implement Network Policies Snowflake allows you to define network policies that restrict access based on IP addresses. By limiting access to trusted IP ranges, you can reduce the potential points of entry for an attacker.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) MFA adds an extra layer of security by requiring users to provide at least two forms of identification before accessing the Snowflake account. This makes it harder for attackers to gain unauthorized access, even if they have your password.
In this blog post, we will show you how to reduce your attack surface when using Snowflake from Azure or Power BI by using Azure Private Link
By default, Snowflake is accessible from the public internet. This means that anyone with the right credentials can access your Snowflake account from anywhere in the world, you can limit access to specific IP addresses, but this still exposes your Snowflake account to potential attackers.
This is a security risk because it exposes your Snowflake account to potential attackers.
The architecture of using Azure Private Link with Snowflake is as follows:
graph TD
A[Virtual Network] -->|Private Endpoint| B[Snowflake]
B -->|Private Link Service| C[Private Link Resource]
C -->|Private Connection| D[Virtual Network]
D -->|Subnet| E[Private Endpoint]
A virtual network is a private network that allows you to securely connect your resources in Azure. To create a virtual network with azcli, follow these steps:
The first step is to create a private endpoint in Azure. A private endpoint is a network interface that connects your virtual network to the Snowflake service. This allows you to access Snowflake using a private IP address, rather than a public one.
To create a private endpoint with azcli, follow these steps:
To further reduce your attack surface, you can block public access to your Snowflake account. This ensures that all traffic to and from Snowflake goes through the private endpoint, reducing the risk of unauthorized access.
To block public access to your Snowflake account, you need to use Network Policy, follow these steps:
It's highly recommended to follow the best practices for network policies in Snowflake. You can find more information here: https://docs.snowflake.com/en/user-guide/network-policies#best-practices
If you are using Azure Blob Storage as an internal stage in Snowflake, you can also use Azure Private Link to secure the connection between Snowflake and Azure Blob Storage.
It's recommended to use Azure Blob Storage with Private Endpoints to ensure that your data is secure and that you are reducing your attack surface, you can check the following documentation for more information: Azure Private Endpoints for Internal Stages to learn how to configure Azure Blob Storage with Private Endpoints in Snowflake.
Reducing your attack surface is a critical aspect of securing your systems. By using Azure Private Link with Snowflake, you can significantly reduce the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches. Follow the steps outlined in this blog post to set up Azure Private Link with Snowflake and start securing your data today.
Azure Container Registry is a managed, private Docker registry service provided by Microsoft. It allows you to build, store, and manage container images and artifacts in a secure environment.
Artifact Cache is a feature in Azure Container Registry that allows users to cache container images in a private container registry. It is available in Basic, Standard, and Premium service tiers.
The first step is to create a cache rule in your Azure Container Registry. This rule specifies the source image that should be cached and the target image that will be stored in the cache.
Azure Container Registry's Artifact Cache feature provides a convenient way to cache container images in a private registry, improving pull performance and reducing network traffic. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can easily set up and use artifact caching in your Azure Container Registry.
I nedd to create a diagram of the Management Groups in Azure, and I remembered a project that did something similar but with PowerShell: https://github.com/PowerShellToday/new-mgmgroupdiagram.
Insert the header for the columns: id, displayName, itemType, Parent:
#label: %displayName%
#stylename: itemType
#styles: {"Management Group": "label;image=img/lib/azure2/general/Management_Groups.svg;whiteSpace=wrap;html=1;rounded=1; fillColor=%fill%;strokeColor=#6c8ebf;fillColor=#dae8fc;points=[[0.5,0,0,0,0],[0.5,1,0,0,0]];",\
#"Subscription": "label;image=img/lib/azure2/general/Subscriptions.svg;whiteSpace=wrap;html=1;rounded=1; fillColor=%fill%;strokeColor=#d6b656;fillColor=#fff2cc;points=[[0.5,0,0,0,0],[0.5,1,0,0,0]];imageWidth=26;"}
#
#
#namespace: csvimport-
#
#connect: {"from": "ParentId", "to": "displayName", "invert": true, "style": "curved=1;endArrow=blockThin;endFill=1;fontSize=11;edgeStyle=orthogonalEdgeStyle;"}
#
## Node width and height, and padding for autosize
#width: auto
#height: auto
#padding: -12
#
## ignore: id,image,fill,stroke,refs,manager
#
## Column to be renamed to link attribute (used as link).
## link: url
#
## Spacing between nodes, heirarchical levels and parallel connections.
#nodespacing: 40
#levelspacing: 100
#edgespacing: 40
#
## layout: auto
#layout: verticaltree
#
## ---- CSV below this line. First line are column names. ----
4. Paste the content of the CSV file and click on Import.
You should see a diagram with the Management Groups and Subscriptions.
For example:
This is the common structure for the Management Groups in the Enterprise Scale Landing Zone, now Accelerator Landing Zone:
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Intermediary-Management-Group]
B --> C[Decommissioned]
B --> D[Landing Zones]
B --> E[Platform]
B --> F[Sandboxes]
D --> G[Corp]
D --> H[Online]
E --> I[Connectivity]
E --> J[Identity]
E --> K[Management]
And this is the CSV file to import into draw.io:
#label: %displayName%
#stylename: itemType
#styles: {"Management Group": "label;image=img/lib/azure2/general/Management_Groups.svg;whiteSpace=wrap;html=1;rounded=1; fillColor=%fill%;strokeColor=#6c8ebf;fillColor=#dae8fc;points=[[0.5,0,0,0,0],[0.5,1,0,0,0]];",\
#"Subscription": "label;image=img/lib/azure2/general/Subscriptions.svg;whiteSpace=wrap;html=1;rounded=1; fillColor=%fill%;strokeColor=#d6b656;fillColor=#fff2cc;points=[[0.5,0,0,0,0],[0.5,1,0,0,0]];imageWidth=26;"}
#
#
#namespace: csvimport-
#
#connect: {"from": "ParentId", "to": "displayName", "invert": true, "style": "curved=1;endArrow=blockThin;endFill=1;fontSize=11;edgeStyle=orthogonalEdgeStyle;"}
#
## Node width and height, and padding for autosize
#width: auto
#height: auto
#padding: -12
#
## ignore: id,image,fill,stroke,refs,manager
#
## Column to be renamed to link attribute (used as link).
## link: url
#
## Spacing between nodes, heirarchical levels and parallel connections.
#nodespacing: 40
#levelspacing: 100
#edgespacing: 40
#
## layout: auto
#layout: verticaltree
#
## ---- CSV below this line. First line are column names. ----
id,displayName,itemType,ParentId
1,Tenant Root Group,Management Group,
2,Intermediary Management Group,Management Group,Tenant Root Group
3,Decommissioned,Management Group,Intermediary Management Group
4,Landing Zones,Management Group,Intermediary Management Group
5,Platform,Management Group,Intermediary Management Group
6,Sandboxes,Management Group,Landing Zones
7,Corp,Management Group,Landing Zones
8,Online,Management Group,Landing Zones
9,Connectivity,Management Group,Platform
10,Identity,Management Group,Platform
11,Management,Management Group,Platform
12,subcr-1,Subscription,Decommissioned
13,subcr-2,Subscription,Sandboxes
14,subcr-3,Subscription,Corp
15,subcr-4,Subscription,Online
16,subcr-5,Subscription,Connectivity
17,subcr-6,Subscription,Identity
18,subcr-7,Subscription,Management
To move a management group, you need to have the necessary permissions. You must be an owner of the target parent management group and have Management Group Contributor role at the group you want to move.
Here's the step-by-step process:
Navigate to the Azure portal.
Go to Management groups.
Select the management group you want to move.
Click Details.
Under Parent group, click Change.
Choose the new parent group from the list and click Save.
Remember, moving a management group will also move all its child resources including other management groups and subscriptions.
You can move a subscription from one management group to another or within the same management group. To do this, you must have the Owner or Contributor role at the target management group and Owner role at the subscription level.
Follow these steps:
Go to the Azure portal.
Navigate to Management groups.
Select the management group where the subscription currently resides.
Click on Subscriptions.
Find the subscription you want to move and select ..." (More options).
Click Change parent.
In the pop-up window, select the new parent management group and click Save.
Note
Moving subscriptions could affect the resources if there are policies or permissions applied at the management group level. It's important to understand the implications before making the move. Also, keep in mind that you cannot move the Root management group or rename it.
In conclusion, moving management groups and subscriptions allows for better organization and management of your Azure resources. However, it should be done carefully considering the impact on resources and compliance with assigned policies.
Management Groups are a way to manage access, policies, and compliance for multiple subscriptions. They provide a way to manage access, policies, and compliance for multiple subscriptions. Management groups are containers that help you manage access, policy, and compliance for multiple subscriptions. You organize subscriptions into containers called "management groups" and apply your governance conditions to the management groups. All subscriptions within a management group automatically inherit the conditions applied to the management group.
The management group hierarchy is a level of management groups that represent the different levels of your organization. The hierarchy starts with a single root management group, which represents the Microsoft Entra ID tenant. The root management group is the highest level in the hierarchy. All other management groups are subgroups of the root management group.
When designing your management group hierarchy, consider the following:
How does your organization differentiate services that are managed or run by particular teams?
Are there any specific operations that need to be isolated due to business or regulatory compliance requirements?
Management groups can be utilized to consolidate policy and initiative assignments through Azure Policy.
A management group hierarchy can accommodate up to six nested levels. The tenant root level and the subscription level are not included in this count.
Any principal, be it a user or service principal, within a Microsoft Entra tenant has the authority to establish new management groups. This is due to the fact that Azure role-based access control (RBAC) authorization for managing group activities is not activated by default. For additional details, refer to the guide on safeguarding your resource hierarchy.
By default, all newly created subscriptions will be assigned to the tenant root management group.
Maintain a relatively flat management group hierarchy, ideally with three to four levels maximum. This practice minimizes managerial complexity and overhead.
Refrain from mirroring your organizational structure into a deeply nested management group hierarchy. Utilize management groups primarily for policy assignment rather than billing. This strategy aligns with the Azure landing zone conceptual architecture, which applies Azure policies to workloads that need similar security and compliance at the same management group level.
Establish management groups under your root-level group representing different types of workloads you will host. These groups should reflect the security, compliance, connectivity, and feature requirements of the workloads. By doing this, you can apply a set of Azure policies at the management group level for all workloads with similar needs.
Leverage resource tags for querying and horizontally traversing across the management group hierarchy. Resource tags, enforced or appended via Azure Policy, allow you to group resources for search purposes without relying on a complex management group hierarchy.
Set up a top-level sandbox management group. This allows users to immediately experiment with Azure and try out resources not yet permitted in production environments. The sandbox provides isolation from your development, testing, and production settings.
Create a platform management group beneath the root management group to support common platform policy and Azure role assignments. This ensures distinct policies can be applied to subscriptions used for your Azure foundation and centralizes billing for common resources in one foundational subscription set.
Minimize the number of Azure Policy assignments made at the root management group scope. This reduces the debugging of inherited policies in lower-level management groups.
Implement policies to enforce compliance requirements either at the management group or subscription scope to achieve policy-driven governance.
Ensure only privileged users have operational access to management groups in the tenant. Enable Azure RBAC authorization in the management group hierarchy settings to fine-tune user privileges. By default, all users are authorized to create their own management groups under the root management group.
Set up a default, dedicated management group for new subscriptions. This prevents any subscriptions from being placed under the root management group. This is particularly important if there are users eligible for Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) or Visual Studio benefits and subscriptions. A sandbox management group could be a suitable candidate for this type of management group. For more information, see Setting - default management group.
Avoid creating management groups for production, testing, and development environments. If needed, separate these groups into different subscriptions within the same management group.
This is the common structure for the Management Groups in the Enterprise Scale Landing Zone:
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Intermediary-Management-Group]
B --> C[Decommissioned]
B --> D[Landing Zones]
B --> E[Platform]
B --> F[Sandboxes]
D --> G[Corp]
D --> H[Online]
E --> I[Connectivity]
E --> J[Identity]
E --> K[Management]
Root Management Group
Intermediary-Management-Group
Decommissioned: This could be where resources that are being phased out or decommissioned are managed.
Sandboxes: This could be an area where developers can test and experiment without affecting production systems.
Landing Zones
Corp: This could represent corporate resources or applications.
Online: This could represent online or customer-facing applications.
Platform
Connectivity: This could manage resources related to network connectivity.
Identity: This could manage resources related to identity and access management.
Management: This could manage resources related to overall platform management.
This structure allows for clear segmentation of resources based on their purpose and lifecycle. For example, decommissioned resources are separated from active ones, like Sandbox, and resources within the 'Platform' are further categorized based on their function (Connectivity, Identity, Management). The 'Landing Zones' group appears to separate resources based on their use case or environment (Corp, Online).
The exact interpretation would depend on the specific context and conventions of your organization.
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Group 1]
B --> C[Group 2]
C --> D[Group 3]
D --> E[Group 4]
E --> F[Group 5]
F --> G[Group 6]
Why it's bad: This hierarchy is too deep. It becomes difficult to manage and increases complexity. Azure supports up to six levels of nested management groups but it's recommended to keep the hierarchy as flat as possible for simplicity.
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Group 1]
A --> C[Group 2]
B --> D[Group 3]
C --> E[Group 4]
D --> F[Group 5]
E --> G[Group 6]
Why it's bad: The structure is not well-organized and doesn't follow a logical grouping or hierarchy. This can lead to confusion and difficulty in managing resources and policies.
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Group 1]
A --> C[Group 2]
A --> D[Group 3]
A --> E[Group 4]
A --> F[Group 5]
A --> G[Group 6]
Why it's bad: Although this structure is simple, it lacks the ability to group related subscriptions together under a common management group. This makes it harder to apply consistent policies across related subscriptions.
Why it's bad: This structure separates environments into different management groups, which can lead to duplication of policies and increased complexity. It's better to use subscriptions within the same management group to separate environments and apply policies accordingly.
graph TD
A[Root Management Group] --> B[Intermediary-Management-Group]
B --> C[Decommissioned]
B --> D[Landing Zones]
B --> E[Platform]
B --> F[Sandboxes]
D --> G[Corp]
D --> H[Online]
E --> I[Connectivity]
E --> J[Identity]
E --> K[Management]
Hub and Spoke is a network topology where a central Hub is connected to multiple Spokes. The Hub acts as a central point of connectivity and control, while the Spokes are isolated networks that connect to the Hub. This topology is common in Azure to simplify the connectivity and management of virtual networks.
Centralized Connectivity: The Hub centralizes the connectivity between the Spoke networks. This simplifies the administration and maintenance of the network.
Traffic Control: The Hub acts as a traffic control point between the Spoke networks. This allows for centralized application of security and routing policies.
Scalability: The Hub and Spoke topology is highly scalable and can grow to meet the organization's connectivity needs.
Resilience: The Hub and Spoke topology provides redundancy and resilience in case of network failures.
To implement the Hub and Spoke topology in Azure, follow these steps:
# Step 1: Create a virtual network for the Hubaznetworkvnetcreate--nameHubVnet--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--locationeastus--address-prefix
# Step 2: Create virtual networks for the Spokesaznetworkvnetcreate--nameSpoke1Vnet--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--locationeastus--address-prefix
aznetworkvnetcreate--nameSpoke2Vnet--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--locationeastus--address-prefix
aznetworkvnetcreate--nameSpoke3Vnet--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--locationeastus--address-prefix
# Step 3: Connect the Spokes to the Hubaznetworkvnetpeeringcreate--nameSpoke1ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke1Vnet--remote-vnetHubVnet--allow-vnet-access
aznetworkvnetpeeringcreate--nameSpoke2ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke2Vnet--remote-vnetHubVnet--allow-vnet-access
aznetworkvnetpeeringcreate--nameSpoke3ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke3Vnet--remote-vnetHubVnet--allow-vnet-access
# Step 4: Configure routing between the Hub and the Spokesaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameSpoke1ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke1Vnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:AllowGatewayTransit=trueaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameSpoke2ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke2Vnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:AllowGatewayTransit=trueaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameSpoke3ToHub--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke3Vnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:AllowGatewayTransit=true# Step 5: Configure routing in the Hubaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameHubToSpoke1--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameHubVnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:UseRemoteGateways=trueaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameHubToSpoke2--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameHubVnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:UseRemoteGateways=trueaznetworkvnetpeeringupdate--nameHubToSpoke3--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameHubVnet--setvirtualNetworkGateway:UseRemoteGateways=true
A variant of the Hub and Spoke topology is the Hub and Spoke with peering between spokes that is generally used to allow direct connectivity between the Spoke networks without going through the Hub. This can be useful in scenarios where direct connectivity between the Spoke networks is required, such as data replication or application communication.
In this case, it would be connecting the Spoke networks to each other via virtual network peering, for example:
# Connect Spoke1 to Spoke2aznetworkvnetpeeringcreate--nameSpoke1ToSpoke2--resource-groupMyResourceGroup--vnet-nameSpoke1Vnet--remote-vnetSpoke2Vnet--allow-vnet-access
The Hub and Spoke topology in Azure is highly scalable and can handle thousands of virtual networks and subnets. In terms of performance, the Hub and Spoke topology provides efficient and low-latency connectivity between the Spoke networks and the Hub.
The Hub and Spoke topology in Azure provides centralized control over network security and compliance. Security and routing policies can be applied centrally at the Hub, ensuring consistency and compliance with the organization's network policies.
Use Network Watcher to monitor and diagnose network problems in the Hub and Spoke topology. Network Watcher provides the following tools:
Monitoring
Topology view shows you the resources in your virtual network and the relationships between them.
Connection monitor allows you to monitor connectivity and latency between endpoints within and outside of Azure.
Network diagnostic tools
IP flow verify helps you detect traffic filtering issues at the virtual machine level.
NSG diagnostics helps you detect traffic filtering issues at the virtual machine, virtual machine scale set, or application gateway level.
Next hop helps you verify traffic routes and detect routing issues.
Connection troubleshoot enables a one-time check of connectivity and latency between a virtual machine and the Bastion host, application gateway, or another virtual machine.
Packet capture allows you to capture traffic from your virtual machine.
VPN troubleshoot runs multiple diagnostic checks on your gateways and VPN connections to help debug issues.
Traffic analytics processes data from your network security group flow log allowing you to visualize, query, analyze, and understand your network traffic.
Virtual network flow logs have recently been released which allows for monitoring network traffic in Azure virtual networks.
The Hub and Spoke topology is ideal for organizations that require centralized connectivity and traffic control between multiple virtual networks in Azure. For example, an organization with multiple branches or departments can use the Hub and Spoke topology to securely and efficiently connect their virtual networks in the cloud.
The Hub and Spoke topology is an effective way to simplify the connectivity and management of virtual networks in Azure. It provides centralized control over network connectivity and traffic, making it easier to implement security and routing policies consistently across the network. By following the recommended best practices and tips, organizations can make the most of the Hub and Spoke topology to meet their cloud connectivity needs.
Azure Graph is a powerful tool provided by Microsoft to query data across all your Azure resources. It uses the Kusto Query Language (KQL), a read-only language similar to SQL, designed to query vast amounts of data in Azure services.
KQL stands for Kusto Query Language. It's a request to process data and return results. The syntax is easy to read and author, making it ideal for data exploration and ad-hoc data mining tasks.
Azure Graph allows you to use KQL to create complex queries that fetch information from your Azure resources. You can filter, sort, aggregate, and join data from different resources using KQL.
Here's an example of how you might use KQL to query Azure Graph:
Resources
| where type =~ 'microsoft.web/sites'
| project name, location, resourceGroup
This query retrieves all Azure Web Apps (websites) and projects their name, location, and resourceGroup.
KQL supports pagination using the limit and offset operators. You can use these operators to control the number of rows returned and skip a certain number of rows.
Resources
| limit 10
| offset 5
If you exceed payload limits, you can paginate Azure Resource Graph query results with powershell:
$kqlQuery="policyResources | where type =~'Microsoft.Authorization/PolicySetDefinitions' or type =~'Microsoft.Authorization/PolicyDefinitions' | project definitionId = tolower(id), category = tostring(properties.metadata.category), definitionType = iff(type =~ 'Microsoft.Authorization/PolicysetDefinitions', 'initiative', 'policy'),PolicyDefinition=properties"$batchSize=5$skipResult=0[System.Collections.Generic.List[string]]$kqlResultwhile($true){if($skipResult-gt0){$graphResult=Search-AzGraph-Query$kqlQuery-First$batchSize-SkipToken$graphResult.SkipToken}else{$graphResult=Search-AzGraph-Query$kqlQuery-First$batchSize}$kqlResult+=$graphResult.dataif($graphResult.data.Count-lt$batchSize){break;}$skipResult+=$skipResult+$batchSize}
KQL is a potent tool for querying large datasets in Azure. Its SQL-like syntax makes it accessible for anyone familiar with SQL, and its rich set of features makes it a flexible solution for a variety of data processing needs. Practice writing KQL queries to uncover valuable insights from your Azure resources!
