Category: Certification

End of year celebration with a pass on Microsoft SOC exam

Hello, my friends!

I am sincerely wishing you all a Happy New Year!

As I always say this motto: The #cloudjourney and learning never stops ⛅❗🏃‍♂️ 🏃‍♀️

What is the Microsoft SOC exam?

I am happy to share that I was able to pass an Azure security certificate before the end of 2022!!!

As you might know, this certification belongs to an important Microsoft Security operations space. I am very glad to finish this year with this achievement. 

Thank you my dear #cloudfamily, #cloudmarathoner, and my co-workers at T-Rex Solutions, LLC for a strong and relentless learning culture and continued support!

Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst Associate

What skills did I learn?

Studying for this certification helped me gain the skills and knowledge required to reduce my organization’s risk by rapidly remediating active attacks on the environment, advising on improvements to threat protection practices, and referring violations of organizational policies to appropriate people and teams.

As an important part of the exam preparation, I did labs that investigate, respond to, and hunt for threats using Microsoft products, such as Azure Defender, Azure Sentinel, Microsoft 365 Defender, and other related security products.

Summary

Please, let me know if you are targeting this certification.
I would be more than glad to provide additional guidance for your preparations!

Thank you everyone for your greetings and wishes on social media.
I do really appreciate your continued support!!!

Post Build Table Topics: Your Cloud Certification Journey

Hello friends,

I hope you all enjoyed the Microsoft Build 2022 and had a chance to look into the Learning Zone and join the Cloud Skills Challenge.

If you did miss most of the Build then no worries, as it has recorded sessions that you can watch on your schedule.

Please, join me and Marcos today, if you missed certification and learning announcements during the Build event. We will address a very important topic: Cloud Certification Journey, and share tips & bits on getting yours started.

Post Build Table Topics: Your Cloud Certification Journey
Post Build Table Topics: Your Cloud Certification Journey

📌 Register for #free on meetup 👉 https://www.meetup.com/Microsoft-Reactor-Redmond/events/285992985/

What is the Digital Advertising Fundamentals & how to pass?

Hello Cloud Marathoners,

Two weeks ago, I have earned and shared a Microsoft Advertising badge. I got several request to provide information about the training material and my expereince with the exam.

What is the digital advertising?

Well, if you are you new to digital advertising, then these Microsoft courses will provide you an introduction to the digital marketing industry. You could start learning the foundations and then looking at search, shopping, and display advertising.

Digital Advertising Fundamentals

Earn the Badge

  • By complete the 4 courses in the Learning Path (in any order) you could earn a digital Badge. As you know, it can be shared and verified on LinkedIn or other social media platforms to demonstrate your new knowledge.
  • Keep in mind that each chapter has assessment questions
  • Finally, review all the material and get ready to pass the final assessment

Where you can start?

Checkout the Digital Advertising Fundamentals Learning Path 👉
https://lnkd.in/eu4ciw67 #sharingiscaring ❤

There are several more Learning paths that you can check below:
Choose a Learning Path or event to get started!

I hope you can get all the resources you need to start your own learning journey in Advert space. Good Luck and keep me posted on your progress!

Getting you ready for Azure Architect AZ-305 exam!

Hello Cloud Marathoners,

Thank you everyone who took a time from their busy schedule and attended my Global Azure 2022 session – Getting you ready for Azure Architect exam!

It was great pleasure to interact with each of you, and Thank You for great questions that you brought during the session.

Getting you ready for Azure Architect AZ-305 exam

In this session, I focused on a number of changes in Microsoft Azure Architect exam, as it might be troublesome to get ready for it with all the digital distractions around us.

However, in this lightning talk, I shared bits and tips on how to focus on the AZ-305 Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions exam objectives and help you to prepare for a big day.

A screenshot from the participants comments

As part of this presentation, I have shared free, official and community learning resources that will boost your knowledge, and hopefully help you pass this important exam with confidence.

A screenshot of an official practice exam reference

If you missed this session, no worries, you are covered, as this session was recorded. It is freely availiable on the #cloudmarathoner ⏯ 🖐 YouTube channel here.

The slides and as well as links to the recommended resources are posted on my 🖐 👨‍💻 GitHub repo here.

Please, feel free to check up this GitHub repo, share & fork it as you like 👍

Study Guide for AZ-305: Part 3 –Design a solution to log and monitor Azure resources

Hello friends!

This is the continuation (Part 3/12) of blog post series to help you get ready for the latest AZ-305 exam.

Feel free to check the previous posts listed below, if you did not look into them yet 🙂

Table of content (blog series)

What is the Monitoring ?

The monitoring is a skill and not a full-time job. In today’s world of cloud-based architectures that are implemented through DevOps projects, developers, SREs, and operations staff must collectively define an effective cloud monitoring and logging strategy. This strategy should focus on identifying when service-level objectives (SLOs) and service-level agreements (SLAs) are not being met, likely negatively affecting the user experience.

Cloud monitoring is a method of reviewing, observing, and managing the operational workflow in a cloud-based IT infrastructure. Manual or automated management techniques confirm the availability and performance of websites, servers, applications, and other cloud infrastructure.

Azure Monitor overview
Azure Monitor Overview

WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH logging and monitoring?

Azure Monitor helps you maximize the availability and performance of your applications and services. It delivers a comprehensive solution for collecting, analyzing, and acting on telemetry from your cloud and on-premises environments. This information helps you understand how your applications are performing and proactively identify issues affecting them and the resources they depend on.

Microsoft docs

The Azure Monitor collects the following sets of data:

  • ✔️ Application Monitoring data
  • ✔️ Guest OS monitoring data
  • ✔️ Azure resource monitoring data
  • ✔️ Azure subscription monitoring data
  • ✔️ Azure tenant monitoring data
Measuring Metrics: Log Analytics vs Azure Metrics - Part 1 Introduction - AdinErmie.com
Azure Monitoring and Log Analytics Overview

Part 3: Design a solution to log and monitor Azure resources

The references below are taken from official Microsoft docs and focused on designing logging and monitoring Azure solutions.

This collection of links are gathered with a focus toward the exam objectives of AZ-305 certification exam.

Analyze your Azure infrastructure by using Azure Monitor logs
Best practices for monitoring cloud applications
Cost Management tools in Azure
What are Azure Active Directory reports?

Overview of Log Analytics in Azure Monitor
Tutorial: Log Analytics
Monitor performance of virtual machines by using Azure Monitor VM Insights
Designing your Azure Monitor Logs deployment
Overview of Azure Monitor agents

Azure Monitor Frequently Asked Questions
Azure Monitor Workbooks
Application Insights overview
Azure Data Explorer

SUMMARY

Thank you for visiting the AZ-305 Study Guide and checking the Part 3 – Design a solution to log and monitor Azure resources.

The next blog post will cover the Part 4: Design a compute solution.

Study Guide for AZ-305: Part 2 – Design Authentication and Authorization Solutions

Hi Cloud Marathoners!

This is the continuation (Part 2/12) of blog post series to help you get ready for the latest AZ-305 exam. As title says – our focus will be on understanding and designing Authentication and Authorization Solutions in Microsoft Azure.

Feel free to check the previous post (Part 1/12) if you did not look into it yet 🙂

Table of content (blog series)

What is the Authentication and Authorization?

To put it in plain English language, authentication is the process of verifying who someone is, where as authorization is the process of verifying what specific applications, files, and data a user has access to.

To relate these concepts to a real-world scenarious, you may think about your airport access and on-boarding to the plane experience. Thus, when you go through the security in an airport, you are required to show your ID to authenticate your identity. Then, you proceed and arrive at the gate, you present your boarding pass to the flight attendant, so they can authorize you to board your flight and allow access to your assigned seat.

Authentication vs Authorization. Authentication vs. Authorization— These… | by Frank D'Amico | Medium

WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH Authentication and Authorization?

The authentication and authorization services are part of the Microsoft’s identity platform.

The Authentication sometimes shortened to ‘AuthN’.
The Microsoft identity platform uses the OpenID Connect protocol for handling authentication. On the other hand, Authorization sometimes shortened to ‘AuthZ‘. The Microsoft identity platform uses the OAuth 2.0 protocol for handling authorization.

In Microsoft Azure your authentication and authorization is delegated to Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). By using this centralized identity provider you can enable following secure workflows for your business:

  • Conditional Access policies – that require a user to be in a specific location.
  • The use of multi-factor authentication, which is sometimes called two-factor authentication or 2FA.
  • Enabling a user to sign in once and then be automatically signed in to all of the web apps that share the same centralized directory. This capability is called single sign-on (SSO).
From AD to Azure AD – Your Hybrid Identity Journey - New Signature

Part 2: Designing Authentication and Authorization solutions

The references below are taken from official Microsoft docs and focused on designing Azure Authentication and Authorization solutions. You could also find it helpful to check the Microsoft docs and learning paths with [Tutorials] below 🙂

This collection of links is gathered with a focus on the exam objectives of the AZ-305 certification exam.

Azure identity management security overview
Azure Identity Management and access control security best practices
Five steps to securing your identity infrastructure
What is Azure Active Directory?
Compare Active Directory to Azure Active Directory
Azure Active Directory B2B best practices
Overview: Cross-tenant access with Azure AD External Identities (Preview)
Identity Providers for External Identities
Authentication and Conditional Access for External Identities
What is Azure Active Directory B2C?
Technical and feature overview of Azure Active Directory B2C
What is Conditional Access?
Plan a Conditional Access deployment

[Tutorial]: Secure user sign-in events with Azure AD Multi-Factor Authentication
[Tutorial]: Enable users to unlock their account or reset passwords using Azure AD self-service password reset (SSPR)
[Tutorial]: Enable Azure Active Directory self-service password reset writeback to an on-premises environment

What is Identity Protection?
What is risk?
Azure Active Directory Identity Protection – Security overview
Identity Protection policies
What are Azure AD access reviews?
What are managed identities for Azure resources?
What is identity lifecycle management?

Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework – Security
Authenticate apps to Azure services by using service principals and managed identities for Azure resources
Application and service principal objects in Azure AD
Azure Key Vault basic concepts

Best practices for using Azure Key Vault
Azure Key Vault logging
Virtual network service endpoints for Azure Key Vault
Monitoring Key Vault with Azure Event Grid

SUMMARY

Thank you for visiting the AZ-305 Study Guide and checking the Part 2 – Designing Authentication and Authorization Solutions.

The next blog will cover the Part 3: Design a solution to log and monitor Azure resources.

Study Guide for AZ-305: Part 1 – Design a Governance Solution

Hello friends,

As you might already know, a new AZ-305 exam for Azure Architects has been officially released a few days ago!!!

I would like to take this opportunity and help all my students and followers with preparation for this important exam.

My plan is to create a blog post series that cover official and community learning materials in addition to the Microsoft Learn, self-paced learning modules.

Table of content (blog series)

This exam is focused on designing cloud and hybrid solutions on Microsoft #Azure, and was made with #architects in mind 😏


A list of helpful reference materials that will complement your four Microsoft Learn AZ-305: XXX learning paths on the official learning site are screenshotted below for your references 🙂

What is the Cloud Governance ?

The Cloud Governance is a framework that guides how end users make use of cloud services by defining and creating policies to control costs, minimize security risks, improve efficiency and accelerate deployment. It’s imperative to have good cloud governance because it’s a foundational element to your cloud practice that provides the ability to scale and be successful.

In short, the governance in Azure is one aspect of Azure Management. This includes the tasks and processes required to maintain your business applications and the resources that support them. Azure has many services and tools that work together to provide complete management. 

What you can do with Azure Governance?

  • Enforce and audit your policies for any Azure service
  • Create compliant environments using Azure Blueprints, including resources, policies, and role-access controls
  • Ensure that you’re compliant with external regulations by using built-in compliance controls
  • Monitor spend and encourage accountability across your entire organization

The references below are taken from official Microsoft docs and focused on designing Azure governance solutions.

Build Enterprise Agile Azure Governance Foundation

Part 1: Design a governance solution

The references below are taken from official Microsoft docs and focused on designing Governance solutions in Azure. You could also find it helpful to check the Microsoft docs and learning paths with [Tutorials] below 🙂

This collection of links is gathered with a focus on the exam objectives of the AZ-305 certification exam.

How to protect your resource hierarchy
Cloud governance guides
What are Azure management groups
Azure subscription and service limits, quotas, and constraints
What is Azure Resource Manager
Lock resources to prevent unexpected changes
Use tags to organize your Azure resources and management hierarchy

Azure Policy
What is Azure Policy?
Azure Policy built-in policy definitions
Azure Policy built-in initiative definitions
What is Azure role-based access control (Azure RBAC)?
Organize and manage multiple Azure subscriptions
Recommended policies for Azure services
What are Azure management groups?
[Tutorial] Describe core Azure architectural components
[Tutorial] Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure
Governance in the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure
Define your tagging strategy

Summary

Thank you for visiting the AZ-305 Study Guide and checking the Part 1 – Design a Governance solution.

The next one will be Part 2: Design Authentication and Authorization Solutions.

Welcoming the Microsoft Exam Simulator ✔️

Hi Cloud Marathoners!

It is pretty common for every new student to be worried about exam software ⚙️ and its user expereince, in addition to being prepared for the exam. However, this is not an issue anymore.

Microsoft Learn has introduced a demo exam simulator that looks, works and feels like you are having a real Microsoft exam. This news was just announced by Microsoft Learn Blog.

I believe this is an important help for all the #cloudmarathoners and friends who are just starting their Microsoft Azure journey.

Why is it helpful?

Well, using this new exam sandbox should better prepare you for the exam experience. This should also increase your familiarity with the user interface, how to navigate between exam sections, pages and Q&A.

This simulator also shows you what actions are required to answer each of the different question types, where information about the exam is located, how to mark questions for review and how to provide comments at the end of the exam.

Important

Keep in mind that a secure browser that will be launched during a real exam will block all third-party applications running on your computer. Thus, I would strongly advise you to install and run the exam provider’s (like, Pearson VUE or any other) simulator on your local computer a day or two before the actual exam date. This will be an additional peace of mind to have in your checklist for a pleasant exam experience.

Conclusion

I sincerely wish you Good Luck ❤️ in your upcoming exam(s) !

Are you ready to give it a try ?
Then check it out for #free >> https://aka.ms/examdemo

References: New to Microsoft certification exams?

Microsoft Ignite 2021 – Cloud Skills Challenge is back

Hello Cloud Marathoners,

As it was the case last year, Microsoft Ignite is back and held digitally free of charge, during Nov 2-4 🎉 🎇

Microsoft Ignite is a signature event and held virtually for a global audience across a variety of industries to experience the latest and greatest technologies. It is an event where you could get a sneak peek at new products and services that will be coming in the future.

image
Microsoft Ignite 2021 – Cloud Skills Challenge

Cloud Skills Challenge

This year you could choose from 12 tech challenges and select the one that is right for you. Once you complete that challenge you will earn a free Microsoft Certification exam that can be applied to your choice from a select list of options:

  • Azure Developer Challenge
  • Azure Admin Challenge
  • Identity + Information Protection Challenge
  • Teams Admin Challenge
  • Teams Voice Engineer Challenge
  • Azure Database Admin Challenge
  • Desktop and Device Management Challenge
  • Windows Server Hybrid Admin Challenge
  • Dynamics 365 Sales Consultant Challenge
  • Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Mgmt Challenge
  • Power Platform Developer Challenge
  • Security Operations Analyst Challenge

When does the challenge begin?

The listed challenges will begin on November 2, 2021 and end on November 30, 2021. You can start your registration here to join the challenge.

What happens when I complete my Cloud Skills challenge?

According to the guidelines from official Cloud Skills Challenge website:

If you complete your challenge before it ends, one Microsoft Certification exam will be associated with your Learn profile on December 7, 2021. You will be notified via email when it becomes available.

A Microsoft Ignite Cloud Skills Challenge character displays their awarded medals.

What are the Terms and Conditions?

Check out the Official rules; including Terms and Conditions with FAQ in this web page.

Summary

That’s it friends, buckle up to complete your challenge before Nov 30, 2021 to earn new skills and receive a complementary Azure exam award 🏆.

Good Luck 🤞 in your new Cloud Skills Challenge !