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This guide shows the steps and key decisions when creating an Azure Front Door resource in the Azure portal. It covers the deployment flows, SKU choices, endpoint naming, and origins — so you can pick the right options for your application’s global entry point.

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Overview: what the portal asks for

When you start the Front Door creation workflow in the Azure portal you’ll see two deployment flows:
  • Quick create — uses sensible defaults and requires fewer inputs for fast provisioning.
  • Custom create — lets you fine-tune routing rules, health probes, WAF, custom domains, and all advanced settings.
You’ll also pick a SKU (Standard or Premium), provide a globally unique endpoint name (this becomes your frontend host), and define one or more origin backends (App Service, Application Gateway, Storage, public IPs, or load balancers).

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Quick vs Custom create — when to use each

  1. Quick create
    • Best for simple deployments and PoCs.
    • Requires minimal configuration: SKU, endpoint name, and a basic origin.
    • Fast provisioning with Microsoft-supplied defaults.
  2. Custom create
    • Use when you need custom routing rules, multiple origins, geo-routing, advanced health probes, Web Application Firewall (WAF), or custom domain and TLS configuration.
    • Allows detailed security and performance tuning.
Choose Quick create for simple scenarios or when you want a fast setup with defaults. Use Custom create when you need to configure routing rules, health probes, custom domains, WAF, or more advanced origin settings.
A slide titled "Create a Front Door in the Azure portal" showing the main setup steps (Deployment Method, Select SKU, Unique Endpoint Name, Configure Origin Type) with option buttons like Quick Create/Custom Create, Standard/Premium, and origin types (App Service, App Gateway, Storage). On the right is a screenshot of the Azure portal's "Compare offerings" panel highlighting the Quick create and Custom create options.

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Step-by-step: what to enter in the portal

  1. Start the Front Door creation workflow in the Azure portal (Marketplace → Azure Front Door).
  2. Choose the deployment method: Quick create or Custom create.
  3. Select the SKU:
    • Standard — core CDN and global load-balancing features.
    • Premium — adds enterprise features and advanced security capabilities (WAF policies, enhanced authentication, private link support for origins in some cases).
  4. Provide a globally unique endpoint name. This forms the frontend host (for example: myapp-frontdoor.azurefd.net).
  5. Configure origin(s): select type, add origin hostnames or IPs, and define origin settings such as priority, weight, and HTTP/HTTPS ports.
  6. (Custom create only) Define routing rules, health probes, caching behavior, custom domains, TLS settings, and WAF policies as required.
  7. Review and create — Azure provisions the Front Door and configures the global entry point.

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SKU comparison

SKUUse CaseKey Features
StandardGeneral-purpose global load balancing and CDNGlobal HTTP/HTTPS routing, caching, simple routing rules
PremiumEnterprise workloads with advanced security and routingWAF policies, private origin support, advanced routing & authentication
For more details, see the official Azure Front Door documentation: Azure Front Door overview.

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Supported origin types

Origin TypeTypical Use CaseExample
App ServiceHost web apps in Azuremyapp.azurewebsites.net
Application GatewayUse Front Door in front of regional application gatewaysPrivate/internal apps exposed via App Gateway
Storage account (static websites)Serve static contentmystorage.z20.web.core.windows.net
Public IP or VMCustom backend servicesVM-hosted web server
Load BalancerDistribute traffic to multiple VMs/servicesmy-loadbalancer

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Naming and endpoint guidance

  • Use a meaningful, human-readable endpoint name that reflects environment and app (e.g., prod-myapp-fd).
  • Endpoint names must be globally unique across Azure Front Door endpoints.
  • If you plan to use a custom domain, map the custom CNAME to the Front Door frontend host and validate domain ownership in the portal.

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Health probes, routing rules and WAF (Custom create)

  • Configure health probes to match your backend health endpoints so Front Door can failover traffic cleanly.
  • Use routing rules to define match conditions (path-based, header-based) and determine how traffic is forwarded (simple pass-through, rewrite, redirect).
  • Apply WAF policies to protect against common web vulnerabilities and to meet compliance/security requirements.

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Final notes

  • Quick create is ideal for getting started quickly; Custom create is necessary for production and complex architectures.
  • Consider Premium SKU if you need advanced security, tighter origin controls, or enterprise features.
  • Review pricing differences before provisioning; SKUs and features affect billing.
Useful references: So this is just the basic configuration. If you choose Quick create, you only need to provide a few basic settings (SKU, endpoint name, and a simple origin). I will use Custom create so you can see how to fine-tune a Front Door deployment and configure additional features like routing rules, health probes, and custom domains.

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