What This Book Covers

This book is aligned with the revised syllabus of Exam AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals and comprises the following chapters.

Chapter 1, Introduction to Cloud Computing, introduces cloud computing, where it has evolved from, why cloud computing is used, and the target audience. It also takes a look at the delivery and service models of cloud computing, how they compare, and the shared responsibility model.

Chapter 2, Benefits of Using Cloud Services, discusses cloud computing as a digital transformation enabler and the cloud computing mindset, as well as the cloud computing operations model and the economics of cloud computing.

Chapter 3, Azure Core Architectural Components, outlines the Azure global infrastructure that comprises the Azure regions, geographies, and availability components. In addition, this chapter explores Azure resource management topics.

Chapter 4, Azure Core Resources, focuses on the Azure platform’s core building block resources of compute, network, and storage.

Chapter 5, Azure Identity and Access, explains the concepts of authentication and authorization and Identity and Access Management (IAM) and explores Microsoft Entra ID.

Chapter 6, Azure Security, discusses the threat landscape and explains the principles of security posture, zero trust, and Defense-in-Depth (DiD). In addition, the chapter explores cloud posture management and workload protection with Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Microsoft Sentinel security tooling.

Chapter 7, Azure Cost Management, explores cost management and the factors that influence costs, and it also explains the Azure pricing calculator and the Azure TCO calculator.

Chapter 8, Azure Governance and Compliance, explores Microsoft’s Purview in Azure, Azure Policy, resources locks, and tags, as well as the Azure service lifecycle, core security, privacy and security tenets, and the Microsoft Trust Center.

Chapter 9, Azure Resource Deployment and Management, introduces the Azure portal, as well as Azure PowerShell, the Azure CLI, and Azure Cloud Shell. The chapter also explains Azure Resource Manager templates and Azure Arc.

Chapter 10, Azure Monitoring and Tools, explores actionable insights into Azure environments, using tooling such as Azure Advisor, Azure Monitor, and Azure Service Health.

Appendix, Assessing AZ-900 Exam Skills, focuses on the skills measured by the certification and the potential topics the exam may cover. As you become competent in each skill area, this can help in tracking progress.