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End-to-End Confidence in the Cloud A Walkthrough of Azure Playwright Testing (Preview)
If you’ve been using Playwright for your end-to-end testing, you know how powerful it is for browser automation. But running large test suites locally or in CI can be slow, flaky, and resource-hungry. That’s where Azure Playwright Testing (Preview) — also called Microsoft Playwright Testing — comes in. This walkthrough will show you how to go from a plain Playwright project to running tests at scale in the Azure cloud, complete with reporting, debugging, and parallel execution. https://dellenny.com/end-to-end-confidence-in-the-cloud-a-walkthrough-of-azure-playwright-testing-preview/
Azure automation feature, improvements and bugs
This is by no means meant as critic as i love the Azure Automation Account product and its current features but these are thing that i would love to see as an offering/fixed for the future. Source Control (I can only speak for Github as that is what i use): Bugs: Tags being overwritten / removed by source controll both on full sync but also on incremential syncs (Already reported in case #2508010040002105) Features: Runbooks in source control is not being deleted in automation account when they have been deleted in source control. Support for diffrent sync types other than PowerShell 5.1 (Personally we will not consider upgrading to a newer version before there is source control implemented) Support for syncing the full repository instead of only a specific folder. So recursive source control for easier organisation in repositories I know we can setup multiple source control in azure automation but that seems a bit redundant and more maintance as the source control integration expires after 1 year does not matter if your PAT token is set to never expires Add support for syncing synopsis / description for at least PowerShell scripts so it grabs it directly from the given script and inputs it into the description field. Just the output of get-help .\ScriptName.ps1 Logging: Bugs: From time to time we see that logs is being displayed twice after each other so lets say you get the first result of logs. For this example lets say the first 10 entries in the All log page and scroll down further then the same 10 entries are repeated again and again and again this can also be seen by the time stamp of the log entry. (No new network requests for logs is being made so i believe this might be a bug in a javascript without being 100% certain) The most often time we see this bug is when a runbook is still running so it might be the log output stream that messes this up. And just to provide a picture for refrence without exposing anything sensitive the bug can be seen based on timestamps here: PowerShell 7 and above log outputs seems to contain some non escaped ASCI characters which makes the logs harder to read and also makes a log object being split into multiple log entries in Azure automation Log outputs Seems to have been fixed since i last tested Features: Searching for a specific job id in the general job list. Currently there is a work arround by going into a specific runbook - go to jobs - Press "Find job" and then you can lookup a jobid globally but the UI is not being updated correctly as displayed here: Would love to see a button here or be able to search for a jobid Formatting log outputs so you can do multi line output in a single log output entry E.G. "Write-output "New´r´nLine" So the output entry contains multiple lines for easier human readable log outputs Runbook page: Bugs: Searching for runbook names seems a bit buggy as far as i have seen there is 3 diffrent results for the end user Base image intialy looking at all runbooks One option is that it is not able to find a runbook with that name I have not been able to replicate it to get a picture of it. Another is that it displays a list of runbooks none of which matches what you searched for Third is that when you have searched for something and remove your search it does not return the original view Features: Ability to go to a previous job and re-run it/restart it with the same parameters. Think a bit like the way you can restart a github action run Scheduling: Features: More of a feature request but adding the schedule for a runbook directly in the code is awesome. (This is something we currently do by adding a parameter that contains the scheduling information then we have a runbook going over all our runbooks every hour and looking for this parameter and then constructing a schedule if it does not exist and links the runbook to the schedule and finally we also add a tag mentioning If the schedule name is enabled or not (*back to the issue in source control removing the tag*)) Hybrid workers: Features: I personally would love the ability to pause a hybrid worker in a hybrid worker group - Why? - Well we currently have 4 hybrid workers all running windows and have monthly patch windows and if a job hits a hybrid worker that is in patch then the jobs would go into a suspended state and not be picked up again Now we could remove the hybrid worker from the group but that would also remove the extension which would be reinstalled when added and then we would hit this https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/extension-based-hybrid-runbook-worker#scenario-runbooks-go-into-a-suspended-state-on-a-hybrid-runbook-worker-when-using-a-custom-account-on-a-server-with-user-account-control-uac-enabled This is an issue we originally started experiencing when we migrated from agent-based hybrid workers to extension based due to the discontinuation of agent-based. Another great reason is when needing to troubleshoot something on a specific hybrid worker or even when needing to update modules on a specific hybrid worker as this can not be done while the hybrid worker is still running jobs unless you use force or hit a time that it is not running or by manually stopping the service and then again end up with suspended jobs that is not being picked up again. Additional features that i personally would love to see as an offering: A front end for azure automation for end users (Think self-service portal) as some kind of add-on feature allowing a specific group of people to start a given runbook but supplying a more user friendly front end for it while also including some more limitations for end user groupings. I know there is already third party solutions for this and tbh I almost created one my self on my last maternity leave but my company chose not to pursue it further as the statement is we have 1 self service platform being servicenow can be viewed https://github.com/Mynster9361/Self-Service-Frontend-Azure-Automation just to give some inspiration if needed RBAC permissions for individual runbooks (as far as i remember this can already be done through cli) A General overview management blade for managing webhooks and the associated runbooks Currently there is no way to know which runbooks has an active / inactive webhook assigned to them as the only way to see this is by going to a runbook go to the webhooks blade and look if there is one or not. Personally i would love to see a blade on the general overview called "Webhooks" that looks similar to this table maybe: RunbookNameExpirationLast triggeredStatusRunbook1 (Clickable to get directly to the runbook)Custom_name_for_this webhook02/01/2022 16:00 EnabledRunbook2webhook211/11/2026 16:00TodayDisabledRunbook3webhook311/11/2027 16:00TodayEnabled Instead of webhook being a gentleman agreemnet on when you can enable and when you shouldn't enable and naming and such you have 1 general overview of all webhooks which would give value in regards to security and easier management of webhooks The things i see as most critical or highest on my wish list: To list 2 things i would like to see sooner rather than later Source control definitely needs to be updated/revamped so it both supports other languages/versions and also does not remove tags. Another thing that would be nice to have is to force it to follow source control so if i delete something that is in source control it is also deleted in azure automation Hybrid workers in maintenance mode so it completes running jobs and you are able to work on the hybrid worker whether it be bugs or just regular updates.Azure AI Studio / Azure AI Foundry A Powerful Platform for Generative AI
In recent years, generative AI has moved rapidly from research labs to real-world applications. Microsoft’s offering in this space has evolved to meet demand: Azure AI Studio (also known under the broader banner Azure AI Foundry) is Microsoft’s integrated environment for creating, customizing, deploying, and managing AI models, agents, and applications. This blog explores what Azure AI Studio is, why it matters, what features it offers, its advantages and constraints, and how you might leverage it in your own projects. https://dellenny.com/azure-ai-studio-azure-ai-foundry-a-powerful-platform-for-generative-ai/Generative AI in Azure A Practical Guide to Getting Started
Generative AI has quickly become one of the most transformative technologies in the cloud era, enabling businesses to create content, enhance productivity, and unlock entirely new use cases. With Microsoft Azure’s AI services, developers and organizations can harness powerful generative AI capabilities without the need to build everything from scratch. In this blog, we’ll explore what generative AI in Azure looks like, the key services available, and how you can get started using them in your applications. https://dellenny.com/generative-ai-in-azure-a-practical-guide-to-getting-started/Burst / B series VMs
Hi everyone, in Cost Management reports I see a line item called “Windows Server Burst” associated with B-Series VMs. I’ve been trying to understand this for a while, but I haven’t been able to find any official Microsoft documentation that clearly explains what this charge covers. My assumption is that it refers to the Windows Server license cost for burstable VMs, and not an additional variable charge when the CPU actually goes into burst mode but I’d like to confirm. Has anyone found an official Microsoft reference or can provide clarification? Thanks a lot!Top 7 Azure Services You Didn’t Know You Needed
When most people think of Microsoft Azure, they immediately picture the big players: virtual machines, databases, and storage. But Azure is more than just the backbone of cloud computing—it’s a treasure chest of lesser-known services that can transform the way your business operates. Whether you’re a developer, IT leader, or entrepreneur, these hidden gems can unlock new possibilities, save time, and cut costs. Here are 7 Azure services you didn’t know you needed—until now. https://dellenny.com/top-7-azure-services-you-didnt-know-you-needed/Azure for Beginners How to Launch Your First Cloud Project in 30 Minutes
Cloud computing might sound intimidating if you’re just getting started, but launching your first project on Microsoft Azure can actually be quick and beginner-friendly. Whether you’re a student, a developer testing ideas, or an IT professional exploring the cloud, Azure provides all the tools you need to spin up resources in minutes. In this guide, we’ll walk through the basics and show you how to launch your first cloud project on Azure in about half an hour. https://dellenny.com/azure-for-beginners-how-to-launch-your-first-cloud-project-in-30-minutes/How to Cut Your Azure Bill in Half Without Losing Performance
Cloud services like Microsoft Azure give you the scalability and flexibility to run nearly any workload, but they also come with a downside: costs can spiral quickly if you’re not careful. The good news? With the right strategies, you can reduce your Azure bill by up to 50% without sacrificing performance. Let’s walk through some practical steps you can apply today. https://dellenny.com/how-to-cut-your-azure-bill-in-half-without-losing-performance/
How to update the proxyAddresses of a Cloud-only Entra ID user
I currently have a client with an Entra ID user (not migrated from on-premises) that is cloud-based, but has proxyAddresses values assigned. Now, I want to update the proxyAddresses through the Graph Explorer and have used this link as a guide: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/2280046/entra-connect-sync-blocking-user-creation-due-to-h. Now this guide is suggesting you can use the BETA model and this URL format... https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/%USERGUID% It states you can use that URL to do both 'GET' and 'PATCH' queries - the PATCH query being the one that will change the settings. You have to put forth a body for the proxyAddresses property in the PATCH query, which represents all of the addresses you want the user to utilise as proxy addresses. Now the GET query works... The PATCH query does not... Screenshot provided: Now, regarding the error message, I have applied ALL possible permissions in the 'Modify Permissions' tab. It is still erroring, Now I cannot use Exchange Online PowerShell, as the user does not have a mailbox! Aside from potentially using a license for Exchange Online or provisioning a mailbox for the user, and making the necessary changes, would the only other option be to delete/recreate the user?
