Guidance Needed: Using Azure Lab Services for AZ-104, AZ-700, AI & Cybersecurity Training
Hello everyone, I’m planning several upcoming training programs (AZ-104, AZ-700, and other AI and cybersecurity–related certifications), and I’m considering using Azure Lab Services for the student labs. I haven’t used Azure Lab Services before, so I’d really appreciate insights from anyone who has real experience with it. Specifically, I’d like to understand: - Does each student receive their own individual login and lab environment? - How much control does the instructor have over the virtual machines (start/stop, reset, limits, schedules)? Is Azure Lab Services limited to VMs only, or can students also work with other Azure resources such as load balancers, firewalls, VNets, etc.? - One of my key objectives is for students to learn how to build and deploy VMs themselves. Is this supported within Azure Lab Services, or is it more focused on pre-built lab environments? - Students also should work with Entra ID, So create and manage users with RBAC. Is it covered? From your experience, what is the approximate cost per student per month, and how manageable is cost control? Any additional guidance, best practices, or lessons learned would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to reply here or DM me if that’s easier. Thank you in advance for your support. Best regards, Ali M.
Azure Lab Services - lab plan outage - April 15, 2025
Hello, Azure Lab Services is currently experiencing an outage affecting customers using Lab Plans for their service. Customers using Lab Accounts are not affected. This issue impacts all operations across all regions. The root cause has been identified, and a hotfix is being rolled out. We expect service to be fully restored by the end of the business day (CDT) on April 15, 2025. We will provide updates about the outage in this blog post until the issue is fully resolved.
Azure Lab Services - Upcoming maintenance update on February 8, 2025
Hello all, On February 8, 2025, we will be updating Lab Account Service between 2:00 PM - 11:00 PM UTC. This maintenance will only affect the Lab Account Service not Lab Plan Service. Please expect downtime for most common operations like create/ update/ delete labs, start/stop virtual machines etc. The Lab Account service will be available after the update. Thank you for your patience. Refer to this blog post for the latest update on this maintenance. - Lab Services team.
Azure Lab Services - performance issues in UK South region - January 21, 2025
We are currently experiencing performance issues in the UK South region. That may cause some operations to take longer than usual to complete. This delay can result in certain virtual machines becoming stuck in the starting or stopping state. Our engineering team is actively working on mitigating the issue and has started rolling out several changes aimed at improving performance. We are also closely monitoring the region and unblocking affected virtual machines as soon as any issues are detected. For new labs, we recommend selecting a different region (other than UK South) until the issue is fully resolved. We will provide the next status update by January 24, 2025. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and deeply appreciate your understanding and patience as we work to restore optimal performance. Thank you for choosing our services.Cannot start VMs, template, or create a new lab
We are currently seeing an issue where we cannot start our VMs, we just see this message: "Virtual machine redeploy operation failed. Try redeploying the virtual machine. If the issue persists, consider reimaging it. For further assistance submit a support request." Redeploying does not make any difference, and we are reluctant to reimage as MS have acknowledged a bug whereby the SSD of the VM can shrink after a reimage: in any case we also cannot start our template. We cannot make a new lab: when we try we see the "gorilla holding a sign" indication that something has gone wrong on both the dashboard and template pages for that lab. Our lab plan is based in UK South. We are unable to create an alternative lab plan in another region as the portal says we are not allowed to due the retirement of ALS in 2027! Has anybody seen similar and has any suggestions?Azure Lab Services - Planned Outage - April 19, 2024
Hello Everyone, On April 19th, 2024, we will be updating our system between 1:00-10:00 pm UTC. Please expect downtime for most common operations like create/ update/ delete labs, start/stop virtual machines etc. The service will be available after the update. We will provide update on this post once the service update is complete. Thank you for your patience. - Lab Services team.Azure Fundamentals Demystified: Unveiling the Architecture and Services of Microsoft Azure
Hi everyone! I'm Mohammed Elshahat Ismail, a 21-year-old from Egypt :egypt: with experience in various roles such as Microsoft Certified Trainer, https://gdsc.community.dev/u/mbvdbj/#/about, NASA Space Apps Local Lead and Founder in Damietta, https://studentambassadors.microsoft.com/en-US/studentambassadors/profile/eecd1e4b-b456-421f-aeb4-76fbe98ba39e, and Hult Prize Campus Director and Founder. Today, I'm excited to dive into the world of Azure Fundamentals and explore the fascinating architecture and services offered by Microsoft Azure. The Microsoft Azure Fundamentals training comprises three learning paths, and in this article, we will focus on the second path: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals: Azure architecture and services. This learning path provides valuable insights into the architecture of Microsoft Azure and introduces some of the most commonly used services and resources within the platform. Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing platform, offers a vast range of services that enable organizations to build, deploy, and manage applications and services with ease. Understanding the underlying architecture and the various services available is essential for anyone looking to harness the power of Azure. Azure's architecture is built upon a global network of data centers managed by Microsoft. These data centers are strategically distributed worldwide, allowing users to deploy their applications and access their services with low latency and high availability. Azure's architecture follows a scalable and distributed model, ensuring resilience and redundancy across its infrastructure. Within Azure, resources are organized into regions, which are geographic areas containing multiple data centers. Each region is independent and comprises one or more availability zones. Availability zones are physically separate data centers within a region, providing fault tolerance and high availability. By deploying resources across availability zones, organizations can ensure their applications remain accessible even in the event of infrastructure failures. Now, let's explore some of the key services offered by Azure. Azure provides a comprehensive suite of services that cater to diverse business needs. These services can be categorized into compute, storage, networking, and databases. Compute services in Azure include virtual machines (VMs), which offer the flexibility to run various operating systems and applications in the cloud. Azure also provides container services for efficient application deployment and management, as well as serverless computing options that abstract away infrastructure management, allowing developers to focus solely on code execution. Azure's storage services offer scalable and secure storage solutions to meet different storage requirements. Azure Storage provides options such as Blob storage for unstructured data, File storage for file shares, and Queue and Table storage for messaging and NoSQL data storage, respectively. Additionally, Azure Disk Storage offers persistent and high-performance block storage for virtual machines. Networking services in Azure empower organizations to build secure and scalable architectures. Azure Virtual Network enables the creation of isolated networks and facilitates connectivity between resources. Azure Load Balancer and Azure Application Gateway distribute incoming network traffic to improve application performance and availability. Azure VPN Gateway allows secure connectivity between on-premises networks and Azure. Azure's database services cater to various data management needs. Azure SQL Database offers a fully managed, scalable, and secure relational database service. Azure Cosmos DB provides globally distributed, multi-model database capabilities. Azure also offers fully managed open-source database services for MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB. Additionally, Azure Redis Cache enables high-performance caching, while Azure Synapse Analytics offers powerful analytics and data integration capabilities. In conclusion, understanding Azure architecture and the wide array of services it provides is crucial for anyone venturing into the realm of Microsoft Azure. The Azure Fundamentals: Azure architecture and services learning path offers a valuable opportunity to explore the core concepts, architecture, and commonly used services within Azure. With this knowledge, individuals can leverage Azure's capabilities effectively and embark on a journey of innovation and digital transformation. So, let's dive into the exciting world of Azure architecture and services together! Happy learning and exploring Azure Fundamentals! Best regards, Mohammed Elshahat Ismail
VM stuck in starting state
I have in VM in my lab that has been stuck in a starting state since this morning. The machine is lab-cfbedd8e-9349-431a-b614-3c573a23bc5e.southcentralus.cloudapp.azure.com. The name of the lab is DEI_320D. I currently have 2 machines in the lab - the other can be stopped and started without an issue, and the template machine also seems to be fine. The VM got in this state when the professor trying to use it was adjusting display sizing and other settings in RDP - this may not have been the cause, but it was what was happening when the machine stopped. Then it got stuck in the starting state when he restarted it. Can someone force the machine into a stopped state so we can attempt to re-start it? Also, are there things the lab owner can do to deal with issues like this without having to contact support? It seems like my only option would be to delete and recreate the VM if it stays stuck in the starting state.
