Windows Azure Series Public lessons-lesson three: Creating Virtual machines (Basic)

The Windows Azure Microsoft Smart Cloud Platform offers four main types of services: Compute Services (Compute), Data Services, application services (app service), and network services. In this lesson we will focus on virtual machines in compute services (machines).

Cloud computing models and choices

In the previous lesson, we've already introduced that Windows Azure offers three main categories of cloud computing services: Infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and Software as a service (SaaS).

2. Next you need to configure the image. Note that the password is an important credential that you use to log on as the virtual machine administrator, so be sure to keep that in mind. For existing applications, you can migrate your existing workloads to the cloud, where the best option is IaaS.

4. For new custom applications, to better adapt to the architecture of cloud computing, you can choose to develop directly on a PAAs platform. Development directly on the PAAs platform can be more focused on business and development agility, and you can directly use the various interfaces or intermediate key services provided by the platform.

5. SaaS is a service that is placed in the cloud and packaged. On Azure we offer some already packaged Web services, such as blog sites, e-commerce sites, and so on.

   Of course, in practical use, you can mix and choose services according to your actual needs: for example, using IaaS to migrate and host your existing services, while choosing to develop new features and applications on the PAAs platform.

   Virtual machine services are a part of the IaaS, and we'll focus on them next.

   Initial contact with virtual machines

   A diverse virtual machine environment is available on Microsoft Azure. The most straightforward approach is that you can manage self-service through Azure's management portal, and for Microsoft's old friends, you can manage it with PowerShell scripting interface, and don't worry about multiple systems, and you can manage Windows,linux or Mac from the command line. For a large-scale hosting environment, you can use script management.

   We also offer a wide selection of images, including Centos,suse,windows server R2,WINDOWS8 server and Ubuntu.

   Experience virtual services for the first time

   First, please login to your Admin portal http://manage.windowsazure.cn via this link and log in to your account. On our website you will find detailed descriptions of the 5 different subscription methods and the corresponding configurations, payment methods and rates.

   In the setup options, you can manage user rights under different subscriptions as an administrator. On the left side of the menu bar you can access and configure all the services under your account. By clicking on a virtual machine, you can create and manage your virtual machine.                                                              The easiest way to do this is to choose Quick Create: Enter the DNS name in turn, create a username and password for your virtual machine to manage, and then click Create Virtual Machine. Next you need to configure the image.                                                                                                          Note that the password is an important credential that you use to log on as the virtual machine administrator, so be sure to keep that in mind. The computer will then automatically download an RDP file, double-click it, and enter the account information you have just set up to log on to the virtual machine.

After a short wait, you will successfully enter the virtual machine environment that is deployed on Azure.

Size and workload of virtual machines

Depending on the needs of the workload, the following classifications are available. Benchmark instances do not provide load balancing compared to the standard, and are therefore primarily used for testing. High-memory instances are suitable for high-spec loads with high memory requirements, and the corresponding prices are higher.

Platform-provided images

To list some compatible platform images for you, please note the version number. For more information, please refer to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2721672

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Windows Azure Series Public lessons-lesson three: Creating Virtual machines (Basic)