Azure Development (AZ-204)

Duration: 5 days

Hands-on course for developers who build, secure, deploy, and operate Azure solutions. Comprehensively aligned with the official AZ-204T00 curriculum and designed to prepare you for the Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate certification exam (AZ-204), covering all relevant topics including compute, storage, security, integration, monitoring, and optimization on Azure.

Audience

• Developers with basic knowledge of cloud environments
• Engineers targeting the Azure Developer Associate certification
• Teams delivering services on App Service, Functions, containers, or Kubernetes

Prerequisites

• Proficient with C# or another Azure-supported language
• Comfortable with Azure SDKs, REST/HTTP, and JSON
• Able to use Azure CLI/PowerShell; have an Azure subscription for labs

Learning Goals

• Design and implement Azure App Service web apps with deployment strategies, scaling, and slot management
• Develop Azure Functions with triggers, bindings, and hosting options
• Work with Azure Blob Storage: lifecycle management, SDK operations, and data handling
• Implement solutions using Azure Cosmos DB: partitioning, consistency, and SDK integration
• Deploy and manage containerized solutions using Azure Container Registry, Container Instances, and Container Apps
• Implement authentication and authorization using Microsoft identity platform and MSAL
• Secure cloud solutions with Azure Key Vault, Managed Identity, and App Configuration
• Implement API Management for API gateway, policies, and security
• Integrate caching and content delivery using Azure Cache for Redis and Azure CDN
• Develop event-based and message-based solutions using Event Grid, Event Hubs, and Service Bus
• Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize Azure solutions with Application Insights and Azure Monitor
• Be fully prepared for the AZ-204 certification exam with comprehensive coverage of all exam domains

Course Outline

Day 1: Azure App Service and Azure Functions

Module 1: Implement Azure App Service Web Apps

• Explore Azure App Service: platform overview, supported languages and frameworks
• Configure web app settings: application configuration, app settings, connection strings
• Scale apps in Azure App Service: manual and automatic scaling strategies
• Deployment slots: creating slots, swapping, slot-specific settings
• Authentication and authorization for web apps

Module 2: Implement Azure Functions

• Creating and deploying Azure Functions
• Hosting options: consumption plan, premium plan, dedicated (App Service) plan
• Triggers and bindings: HTTP, timer, blob, queue, and event triggers
• Input and output bindings integration
• Durable Functions patterns: function chaining, fan-out/fan-in, monitoring

Hands-on Labs:

• Build and deploy a web application using Azure App Service with deployment slots
• Create Azure Functions with various triggers and bindings
• Implement Durable Functions orchestration patterns

Day 2: Azure Storage Solutions

Module 3: Develop Solutions That Use Blob Storage

• Explore Azure Blob Storage: architecture, container types, access tiers
• Manage Azure Blob Storage lifecycle: policies, archiving, and deletion
• Work with Azure Blob Storage using .NET SDK: upload, download, list, delete
• Blob storage security: shared access signatures (SAS), stored access policies
• Blob metadata and properties management

Module 4: Develop Solutions That Use Azure Cosmos DB

• Explore Azure Cosmos DB: APIs (SQL, MongoDB, Cassandra, Gremlin, Table)
• Global distribution and partitioning strategies
• Consistency levels and tradeoffs
• Work with Azure Cosmos DB SDK: CRUD operations, queries
• Data modeling and indexing policies
• Request units (RUs) and performance optimization

Hands-on Labs:

• Retrieve and manipulate Azure Storage resources and metadata using .NET SDK
• Build a solution that integrates Azure Cosmos DB with proper partitioning
• Implement lifecycle policies for blob storage

Day 3: Containers and Authentication

Module 5: Implement Containerized Solutions

• Manage container images in Azure Container Registry (ACR)
• Build and store container images
• Run container images in Azure Container Instances (ACI)
• Implement Azure Container Apps: deployment, scaling, and management
• Container orchestration basics with Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) overview

Module 6: Implement User Authentication and Authorization

• Microsoft identity platform fundamentals (Azure AD/Entra ID)
• OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect flows
• Implement authentication with Microsoft Authentication Library (MSAL)
• Application roles and claims-based authorization
• Implement shared access signatures (SAS) for limited resource access
• Use Microsoft Graph API for directory and resource access

Hands-on Labs:

• Deploy and manage containers using Container Registry and Container Instances
• Secure a web application using Azure AD authentication and MSAL
• Implement role-based access control with claims

Day 4: Security, API Management, and Caching

Module 7: Implement Secure Cloud Solutions

• Implement Azure Key Vault: creating vaults, storing secrets, keys, and certificates
• Access Key Vault from applications using SDK
• Managed identities for Azure resources: system-assigned and user-assigned
• Integrate managed identities with Key Vault and other Azure services
• Azure App Configuration: centralized configuration management and feature flags

Module 8: Implement API Management

• Explore Azure API Management: gateway, developer portal, management plane
• API policies: inbound, outbound, backend policies
• Create and publish APIs
• Securing APIs: subscription keys, OAuth, JWT validation
• API versioning and revisions
• Rate limiting and throttling policies

Module 9: Integrate Caching and Content Delivery

• Develop for Azure Cache for Redis: caching patterns and strategies
• Implementing cache-aside, write-through patterns
• Develop for storage on CDNs: Azure Content Delivery Network integration

Hands-on Labs:

• Secure application secrets using Azure Key Vault and managed identities
• Publish and secure an API using API Management with policies
• Enhance application performance using Azure Cache for Redis

Day 5: Event-Based Solutions, Monitoring, and Optimization

Module 10: Develop Event-Based and Message-Based Solutions

• Azure Event Grid: event-driven architecture, event schemas, subscriptions
• Create and handle custom events
• Azure Event Hubs: streaming data ingestion, partitions, consumer groups
• Azure Service Bus: queues and topics/subscriptions
• Message sessions, dead-letter queues, and duplicate detection
• Azure Queue Storage vs Service Bus vs Event Grid: choosing the right service

Module 11: Monitor, Troubleshoot, and Optimize Azure Solutions

• Implement Application Insights: instrumentation, telemetry collection
• Application Insights SDK integration
• Application Map, Live Metrics, and Performance profiling
• Logs and queries with Kusto Query Language (KQL)
• Alerts and action groups configuration
• Distributed tracing and dependency tracking
• Performance optimization strategies
• Cost optimization and resource right-sizing

AZ-204 Exam Preparation

• Review of all exam domains and objectives
• Practice assessments and sandbox exercises
• Exam tips and strategies
• Q&A and certification guidance

Hands-on Labs:

• Develop event-based messaging solutions using Event Grid and Service Bus
• Implement comprehensive monitoring with Application Insights
• Configure alerts and optimize application performance
• Build a complete end-to-end solution integrating multiple Azure services

Outcomes

• Comprehensive understanding of all Azure Developer services and capabilities
• Hands-on experience with Azure App Service, Functions, Storage, Cosmos DB, and containers
• Proficient in implementing security with Azure AD, Key Vault, and managed identities
• Skilled in developing event-based and message-based solutions
• Expert in monitoring, troubleshooting, and optimizing Azure applications
• Fully prepared to pass exam AZ-204 and earn the Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate certification
• Able to design and implement production-ready Azure solutions following best practices