Description

Introduction of Virtual Machines in Azure Stack
Azure Stack extends Microsoft Azure services to on-premises data centers, enabling the creation of hybrid cloud environments. This course covers how to build, manage, and optimize Virtual Machines (VMs) in Azure Stack, providing administrators the skills needed to deploy scalable workloads and maintain a secure, efficient infrastructure. Participants will learn essential concepts for VM provisioning, performance tuning, and lifecycle management within the Azure Stack ecosystem.

Prerequisites

• Basic understanding of cloud computing and virtualization
• Familiarity with Microsoft Azure and its features
• Experience in system administration or IT infrastructure management

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1.1 Overview of Azure Stack Capabilities for Virtual Machines
1.2 Benefits and Use Cases of VMs in Hybrid Environments
1.3 Differences Between Azure and Azure Stack VMs

2. Planning and Preparing for Virtual Machine Deployment
2.1 Assessing Workload Requirements for VM Deployment
2.2 Sizing VMs: Compute, Memory, and Storage Requirements
2.3 Networking Considerations: Subnets, DNS, and IP Addressing

3. Deploying Virtual Machines in Azure Stack
3.1 Deploying VMs Using the Azure Stack Portal
3.2 VM Deployment with Azure Resource Manager (ARM) Templates
3.3 Automating VM Deployment Using PowerShell and CLI

4. Configuring and Managing Virtual Machines
4.1 Configuring VM Networking: NICs, Public and Private IPs
4.2 Managing Storage: Disks, Images, and Snapshots
4.3 Setting Up Operating Systems and Applications on VMs

5. Monitoring and Optimizing Virtual Machine Performance
5.1 Monitoring VM Health and Performance with Azure Stack Tools
5.2 Implementing Auto-scaling for VM Workloads
5.3 Tuning VM Resources for Optimal Performance

6. Security 
6.1 Configuring Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) for VMs
6.2 Securing VMs with Network Security Groups (NSGs)
6.3 Implementing Disk Encryption and Data Security

7. Troubleshooting Virtual Machines
7.1 Diagnosing and Resolving VM Issues: Tools and Techniques
7.2 Using Diagnostic Logs to Troubleshoot VMs
7.3 Restoring VMs and Using Backup Solutions(Ref: Azure Stack for IT Administrators: Managing and Configuring Resources)

8. Advanced Virtual Machine Management
8.1 Creating and Using Custom VM Images
8.2 Configuring Load Balancers for VM Scale Sets
8.3 Using Extensions for VM Configuration and Automation

9. Integration
9.1 Connecting VMs to Azure Stack Services and Resources
9.2 Hybrid Solutions: Integrating Azure Stack VMs with Azure Public Cloud
9.3 Using Azure Arc for Centralized VM Management

10. Disaster Recovery and High Availability for Virtual Machines
10.1 Implementing Backup Strategies for Azure Stack VMs
10.2 Setting Up Disaster Recovery for Critical Applications
10.3 Ensuring High Availability for Mission-Critical VMs

11. Cost Management and Resource Optimization
11.1 Understanding Azure Stack VM Pricing Models
11.2 Tracking Resource Usage and Costs for VMs
11.3 Optimizing VM Costs Through Efficient Resource Allocation

12. Real-World Case Studies
12.1 Virtual Machines for Enterprise Workloads in Azure Stack
12.2 Managing VM Infrastructure for Data-Intensive Applications
12.3 Optimizing Hybrid Cloud Operations with Azure Stack VMs

13. Future Trends in Virtualization and Azure Stack
13.1 Evolving Features for VM Management in Azure Stack
13.2 Leveraging AI and Automation for VM Lifecycle Management
13.3 Preparing for the Future of Hybrid Cloud and Virtualization

14. Conclusion
14.1 Recap of Key VM Management Best Practices in Azure Stack
14.2 Enhancing IT Efficiency with Azure Stack Virtual Machines
14.3 Ongoing Education and Learning Paths for IT Administrators

Conclusion
Successfully building and managing this equips administrators to create scalable, secure hybrid cloud environments. This course provides essential skills for optimizing VM workloads, ensuring high availability, and streamlining IT operations to meet business needs in a modern hybrid cloud infrastructure.

Reference