Microsoft Azure Certifications: Your Key to Cloud Computing Mastery
Microsoft Azure stands at the forefront of the Cloud revolution, offering a comprehensive suite of cloud services that empower organizations of all sizes to achieve unprecedented agility and scalability.
For tech professionals seeking to unlock the full potential of Azure and elevate their career prospects, pursuing Microsoft Azure certifications is a strategic move. These certifications validate your expertise in Azure’s vast capabilities and make you a highly sought-after asset in the job market.
Why Microsoft Azure Certifications Matter
Microsoft Azure has become the preferred cloud platform for businesses of all sizes, offering a range of benefits that include:
Unmatched Scalability: Microsoft Azure’s elastic infrastructure enables organizations to seamlessly scale their cloud resources up or down based on demand, ensuring optimal performance and cost-efficiency.
Enhanced Agility: Azure’s self-service portal and automation tools empower developers to rapidly deploy and manage applications, accelerating development cycles and time to market.
Unparalleled Security: Azure’s robust security features safeguard your sensitive data and applications, ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements.
Earning a Microsoft Azure certification signifies to potential employers that you possess the skills and knowledge necessary to harness the power of Azure and drive business transformation. With Azure certifications in your hand, you’ll open doors to exciting career opportunities and command a higher salary in the competitive tech industry.
Microsoft Azure Certification Levels
Microsoft Azure certifications are usually offered at three levels:
Fundamental: These introductory-level certifications are suitable for individuals who are new to Azure or want to gain a foundational understanding of cloud concepts. Example: Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900)
Associate: These intermediate-level certifications are designed for individuals with some experience in implementing Azure solutions. They validate their ability to manage and administer Azure infrastructure and services, develop Azure applications, design and implement Azure AI solutions, secure Azure environments and so on. Examples include:
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104)
Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate (AZ-204)
Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Engineer Associate (AI-102)
Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate (AZ-500)
Useful Resource Links:
For Azure Administrator (AZ-104):
- Learning path
- Practice exams: Whizlabs, Udemy
- Training courses: Pluralsight, Cloud Guru
For Azure Developer (AZ-204):
- Learning path
- Practice exams: Whizlabs, Udemy
- Training courses: Pluralsight, Cloud Guru
- Expert: These advanced-level certifications are designed for experienced cloud professionals who want to demonstrate their deep expertise in a specific area of Azure
Why AZ-104 is Your Starting Point?
The AZ-104 certification is an ideal starting point for tech professionals seeking to embark on their cloud computing journey. It provides a comprehensive foundation in Azure’s core concepts, equipping you with the essential skills to effectively manage and administer Azure solutions.
Key Skills and Benefits of AZ-104
Earning the AZ-104 certification unlocks a multitude of benefits, including:
- Validated Expertise: Demonstrate your proficiency in managing and administering Azure infrastructure and services, gaining recognition as a cloud computing expert
- Enhanced Career Prospects: Open doors to exciting career opportunities in the cloud computing industry, commanding higher salaries and gaining access to senior-level positions
- Increased Earning Potential: Position yourself for a significant boost in your earning potential, as cloud computing skills are in high demand and command top-tier compensation
- Continuous Learning: Embark on a continuous learning journey, staying at the forefront of cloud computing advancements and enhancing your skills as Azure evolves.
Our Comprehensive AZ-104 Certification Training Series
To empower tech professionals with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the AZ-104 exam, BDRSuite is offering an exclusive and comprehensive training series with our long-term Technology partner Brandon Lee.
Our AZ-104 certification training series meticulously aims to cover all the exam objectives, providing you with in-depth insights.
Below is the high-level syllabus and the related series of blogs published so far:
1. Manage Azure Identities and Governance (20-25%)
- Microsoft Entra Users and Groups:
- Create and manage users and groups
- Configure licenses and external user management
- Implement self-service password reset (SSPR)
Certificate Training blogs in the series:
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Create Microsoft Entra Users and Groups – Part 1
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Manage User and Group Properties
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 Managing Device Settings: Part 3
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Bulk updates in Microsoft Entra ID – Part 4
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Microsoft Entra ID Guest User Accounts – Part 5
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Manage Licenses in Microsoft Entra ID – Part 6
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Microsoft Entra Self Service Password Reset – Part 7
- Access to Azure Resources:
- Manage built-in Azure roles
- Assign roles at different scopes
- Interpret access assignments
Related blogs in the series:
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Microsoft Azure AD Join – Part 8
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Create Microsoft Entra ID Administrative Units – Part 9
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Microsoft Entra ID Role Based Access Control – Part 10
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Viewing Role and Access Assignments – Part 11
- Azure Subscriptions and Governance:
- Implement and manage Azure Policy
- Configure resource locks, tags, and resource groups
- Manage subscriptions and costs with alerts, budgets, and Advisor recommendations
- Configure management groups
Related blogs in the series:
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Azure Policy: What is it and how is it used – Part 12
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Azure Policy: Creating a new Azure Policy Definition and Initiative – Part 13
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Configuring Microsoft Azure Resource Lock
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Configure Azure Resource Tags – Part 15
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Managing Azure Resource Groups – Part 16
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Managing Azure Subscriptions – Part 17
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104: Manage Costs in Microsoft Azure – Part 18
Microsoft Azure Administrator: AZ-104 : Configure Azure Management groups – Part 19
2. Implement and Manage Storage (15-20%)
- Configure Access to Storage:
- Azure Storage firewalls, virtual networks, and SAS tokens
- Stored access policies and access key management
- Identity-based access for Azure Files
- Configure and Manage Storage Accounts:
- Create and configure storage accounts
- Configure redundancy, object replication, and encryption
- Manage data using Azure Storage Explorer and AzCopy
- Azure Files and Azure Blob Storage:
- Configure file shares, containers, and storage tiers
- Implement snapshots, soft delete, and blob lifecycle management
3. Deploy and Manage Azure Compute Resources (20-25%)
- Automate Deployment with ARM Templates or Bicep Files:
- Interpret and modify templates
- Deploy resources and export deployments
- Create and Configure Virtual Machines:
- Deploy, manage, and move virtual machines
- Configure Azure Disk Encryption and sizes
- Deploy to availability zones and sets, and configure Virtual Machine Scale Sets
- Provision and Manage Containers:
- Manage Azure container registry and Azure Container Instances
- Provision containers using Azure Container Apps
- Configure sizing, scaling, and Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets
- Create and Configure Azure App Service:
- Provision App Service plan and configure scaling
- Manage certificates, TLS, custom DNS names, and networking settings
- Configure backup and deployment slots
4. Implement and Manage Virtual Networking (15-20%)
- Configure and Manage Virtual Networks:
- Create and configure virtual networks, subnets, and peering
- Configure public IP addresses and network routes
- Troubleshoot network connectivity
- Secure Access to Virtual Networks:
- Configure network security groups (NSGs) and application security groups
- Implement Azure Bastion and service endpoints
- Configure private endpoints for Azure PaaS
- Configure Name Resolution and Load Balancing:
- Configure Azure DNS and load balancers
- Troubleshoot load balancing
5. Monitor and Maintain Azure Resources (10-15%)
- Monitor Resources in Azure:
- Interpret metrics and logs in Azure Monitor
- Set up alerts, action groups, and processing rules
- Use Azure Monitor Insights for virtual machines, storage accounts, and networks
- Utilize Azure Network Watcher and Connection Monitor
- Implement Backup and Recovery:
- Create Recovery Services vault and Azure Backup vault
- Configure backup policies and perform operations
- Configure Azure Site Recovery and interpret reports and alerts
Conclusion: Embark on Your Cloud Computing Journey Today
The AZ-104 certification is an investment in your future, opening doors to exciting career opportunities in the competitive tech industry. With the AZ-104 in your arsenal, you’ll be well-positioned to become a cloud computing expert, driving business transformation and innovation.
As we continue to expand our training resources, we are also planning to bring more certification training series on other popular Azure exams and even other key cloud platforms, further enhancing your cloud computing expertise.
Subscribe to our blog to stay up-to-date on the latest training and certification announcements.
We thank you for reading this blog post and we hope you found it informative. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment below.
Thank you for your interest in our Azure certification training series!
Feel free to explore our other series of blogs:
- Microsoft Azure Certifications: Your Pathway to a Rewarding IT Career
- Mastering Managed Services: A Comprehensive Guide to Success in Today’s Business Landscape – Your Ultimate MSP Series
- VMware for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide to Learn VMware and Boost Your Career
- Hyper-V Mastery: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners to Elevate Your IT Skills and Boost Your Career
- Microsoft 365 for Beginners: Your Comprehensive Guide to Cloud Productivity and Collaboration
- Mastering Microsoft Azure from Scratch: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners
- AWS Mastery for Beginners: Elevate Your IT Career with Our Comprehensive Series
- Virtualization Trends: Transforming IT Infrastructure and Redefining Innovation
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