Microsoft Azure Fundamentals

Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform. It provides compute, storage, networking, database, identity, security, monitoring, and management services through a common control plane.

The useful mental model is not a list of product names. Azure is a hierarchy of scopes containing resources. An identity requests an action. Azure Resource Manager authenticates and authorizes the request. The selected resource provider then handles it. Governance, monitoring, and cost controls help you keep the result safe and visible.

This course gives you that map. It prepares you to explore Azure services and the Microsoft Learn material for Azure Fundamentals. It does not replace service-specific design, hands-on practice, or current pricing and availability checks.

Cloud choices come before Azure choices

Cloud computing gives you computing resources on demand instead of requiring you to own every physical server and datacenter. Public cloud services run on infrastructure owned by a cloud provider. A private cloud dedicates a cloud environment to one organization. A hybrid approach connects cloud and on-premises environments.

Service models change how much of the stack you operate:

• Infrastructure as a service gives you virtualized infrastructure. You manage operating systems, applications, and much of the configuration.
• Platform as a service gives you a managed application platform. You focus more on the application and less on operating systems.
• Software as a service gives you a complete application. You configure and use it without operating its platform.

The shared responsibility model follows these choices. Microsoft always operates the physical datacenter, physical network, physical hosts, and hypervisor. You always remain responsible for your data, identities, accounts, and access management. Your other responsibilities change with the service model.