Happy New Year!!!!   For the New Year all of my IT Pro teammates across the country wanted to get together and talk about 31 things we love and want to teach about having Servers (VMs) in the Cloud.   Throughout this month we are going to be talking about Windows Azure IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service).  Windows Azure now offers a new feature currently in customer preview called Virtual Machines & Virtual Networks.  This new functionality provides Windows Azure with an IaaS (Cloud) platform for you to deploy your own virtual machines.  In Windows Azure IaaS you can easily deploy and run Windows Server and Linux virtual machines in Windows Azure.  In this 31 part series we will teach you most of what you need to know about cloud computing and Windows Azure Infrastructure As A Service. 

Do you have a New Years Resolution?  Will you keep it?  How about making one (or another one) with me.  Resolve to get your technical competence up on the latest technologies by reading at least one blog post per day.  Start with this series.  After this month, we (my team) will continue to post great content for you to consume this year.  In Future months we will be focusing on topics like Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, Microsoft Virtualization, Systems Management, System Center, Private Cloud and so much more.  What does it take?  A few minutes a day.  If you keep this up, you will be very, very knowledgeable on the latest Microsoft technologies in no time!  What do you have to lose?  You have MUCH to gain!

What is Windows Azure you ask?  Bob Hunt did a blog post on this exact topic and why this is so important for IT Pros to begin to learn more about Windows Azure.  In addition, I’ve outlined my top 3 Steps to get going with Windows Azure below.

  • STEP 1 – Sign up for FREE Windows Azure account and start your journey to learning
    • NOTE: Free Account requires a Credit Card during registration but you will NOT be billed if you do not manually change your account to a Production/Pay Account
  • STEP 2 – Sign up for a FREE Microsoft Virtual Academy eLearning account to take FREE TRAINING on Windows Azure at your own pace
  • STEP 3 - Bookmark this Index Page and/or  subscribe to my blog to get a reminder about all the great content coming up
  • STEP 4 – Read the below blog series on Windows Azure IaaS

31 Days of Servers (VMs) in the Cloud:

  1. Windows Azure IaaS and You (Part 1 of 31) - Matt Hester
  2. Building Free Lab VMs in the Microsoft Cloud (Part 2 of 31) - Tommy Patterson
  3. Supported Virtual Machine Operating Systems in the Microsoft Cloud (Part 3 of 31) - Tommy Patterson
  4. Servers Talking in the Cloud (Part 4 of 31) - Matt Hester
  5. Move a local VM to the Cloud (Part 5 of 31) - Kevin Remde
  6. Windows Azure Features Overview (Part 6 of 31) - Yung Chou
  7. Step-by-Step: Build a FREE SharePoint 2013 Lab in the Cloud with Windows Azure (Part 7 of 31) -Keith Mayer
  8. Setting up Management (8 of 31) - Brian Lewis
  9. Windows Azure and Virtual Networking–What it is (31 Days of Windows Servers (VMs) in the Cloud–Part 9 of 31) – Bob Hunt 
  10. Windows Azure and Virtual Networking – Getting Started–  (31 Days of Windows Servers (VMs) in the Cloud–Part 10 of 31) – Bob Hunt 
  11. Step-by-Step: Running FREE Linux Virtual Machines in the Cloud with Windows Azure - 31 Days of Servers in the Cloud - Part 11 of 31 – Keith Mayer

  12. Step-by-Step: Connecting System Center 2012 App Controller to Windows Azure (Part 12 of 31) – Kevin Remde
  13. Creating Azure Virtual Machines with App Controller (Part 13 of 31) – Kevin Remde

  14. How to Create an Azure VM with PowerShell (Part 14 of 31) - 31 Days of Servers in the Cloud Series – Brian Lewis
  15. What Does Windows Azure Cloud Computing REALLY Cost + How to SAVE (Part 15 of 31 Days IaaS) – Dan Stolts ITProGuru

  16. Consider This, Reasons for Using Windows Azure IaaS - Matt Hester
  17. Step-by-Step: Templating VMs in the Cloud with Windows Azure and PowerShell – Keith Mayer
  18. How to Delete .VHD files in Azure - Brian Lewis
  19. Create a Windows Azure Network using PowerShell - Kevin Remde
  20. Step-by-Step: Extending On-Premise Active Directory to the Cloud with Windows Azure – Keith Mayer
  21. Beyond IaaS for the IT Pro – Bill Wilder
  22. Coming tomorrow

  23. - 31 Coming Soon

 

Get Started Now - Create a free Windows Azure Account (NOTE: Free Account requires a Credit Card during registration but you will NOT be billed if you do not manually change your account to a Production/Pay Account)

If you missed any of the parts you can find the rest of the series here: 31 Days of Servers (VMs) in Cloud.

Also of interest: