Module introduction

Administer Azure resources This module advances from Azure fundamentals — management groups, subscriptions, resource groups, and their hierarchy — into the administration phase: how to manage, configure, and automate Azure resources both before and after deployment. What you’ll learn in this module:

Configure Azure using administrator tools
- Compare administrator tools (Portal, Azure CLI, PowerShell, REST API) so you can choose the best tool for each task.
- Learn operational workflows for resource inspection, configuration, and role-based access control.
Configure resources with ARM templates and Bicep
- Understand Azure Resource Manager (ARM) as Azure’s deployment and management layer.
- Learn what ARM templates are and how they enable repeatable infrastructure deployments (infrastructure as code).
- Examine the ARM template structure so you can author templates as deployment blueprints.
- Learn Bicep, a concise domain-specific language (DSL) that simplifies authoring ARM templates and improves IaC workflows.

Note: The ARM template structure topic is optional for the exam, but I recommend learning the basics of writing ARM templates. They’re highly useful for administering resources and building practical skills beyond exam requirements.

Why this matters

Reliability: Automation (ARM/Bicep) reduces manual configuration drift and increases repeatability.
Speed: Choosing the right tool (Portal vs CLI vs PowerShell vs IaC) speeds common administrative tasks.
Compliance: Templates and policies ensure deployments meet organizational requirements.

Key topics and actionable outcomes

Topic	What you’ll be able to do	Example / Action
Administrator tools	Select and use the right tool for tasks (interactive vs automated)	Use Azure Portal for visual inspection and Azure CLI or PowerShell for scripted automation
Azure Resource Manager	Understand resource lifecycle and deployment model	Deploy, update, and delete resources consistently via ARM
ARM templates	Define infrastructure as JSON templates for repeatable deployments	Create an ARM template to deploy a storage account
Bicep	Author concise IaC files that compile to ARM templates	Write a Bicep file to provision a storage account and resource group

Quick ARM template and Bicep examples

Minimal ARM template skeleton (JSON)

{
  "$schema": "https://schema.management.azure.com/schemas/2019-04-01/deploymentTemplate.json#",
  "contentVersion": "1.0.0.0",
  "parameters": {},
  "variables": {},
  "resources": [],
  "outputs": {}
}

Simple ARM template snippet to deploy a Storage Account

{
  "$schema": "https://schema.management.azure.com/schemas/2019-04-01/deploymentTemplate.json#",
  "contentVersion": "1.0.0.0",
  "parameters": {
    "storageAccountName": {
      "type": "string",
      "defaultValue": "mystorageacct001"
    }
  },
  "resources": [
    {
      "type": "Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts",
      "apiVersion": "2022-09-01",
      "name": "[parameters('storageAccountName')]",
      "location": "[resourceGroup().location]",
      "sku": { "name": "Standard_LRS" },
      "kind": "StorageV2",
      "properties": {}
    }
  ]
}

Equivalent Bicep example (concise)

param storageAccountName string = 'mystorageacct001'
resource storage 'Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts@2022-09-01' = {
  name: storageAccountName
  location: resourceGroup().location
  sku: {
    name: 'Standard_LRS'
  }
  kind: 'StorageV2'
}

Recommended admin tools and usage patterns

Azure Portal — Visual management, quick diagnostics, role assignments.
Azure CLI — Cross-platform scripting, automation in pipelines, ad-hoc tasks.
Azure PowerShell — Rich cmdlets, preferred in Windows/PowerShell-heavy environments.
ARM templates — Declarative, machine-readable blueprints for repeatable deployments.
Bicep — Simplifies authoring compared to raw ARM JSON; compiles to ARM templates.

Links and references

A slide titled "Learning Objectives" with a vertical list of Azure topics, including configuring Azure resources with tools, comparing administrator tools, Azure Resource Manager and ARM templates, ARM template structure, and Bicep. The left side has a blue gradient panel with the heading, and colored numbered icons mark each objective.

Introduction

Administer Identity

Administer Governance and Compliance

Administer Azure Resources

Administer Virtual Networking

Administer Intersite Connectivity

Administer Network Traffic

Administer Azure Storage

Administer Azure Virtual Machines

Administer PaaS Compute Options

Administer Data Protection

Administer Monitoring

Module introduction

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