What this book covers
Chapter 1, Azure Containers – Pleased to Meet You, explains how enormous the container landscape on Azure is. Finding your way through it can be challenging. What container technologies are there, which ones can you leverage, and what tools do you need? In this chapter, we will discuss the technologies Microsoft Azure provides when it comes to container technologies, the popular and common use cases for them, and the tools you need to get started.
Chapter 2, Azure App Services – Running a Container Was Never That Difficult, highlights the capabilities of Azure App Services to run containerized solutions. We will discuss the pros and cons and use cases for it and explain how someone would get started with hosting their first container on Azure App Services. Using the samples provided (GitHub-hosted), we will explain how to run a stable and reliable configuration on Microsoft Azure.
Chapter 3, Deploying Containers to Azure Functions, highlights the capabilities of Azure Functions to run containerized solutions. As in the previous chapter, we will discuss the pros and cons, the use cases for it, and get started with hosting your first container on Azure Functions. Finally, we will discuss how to run a stable and reliable configuration on Microsoft Azure.
Chapter 4, Azure Container Instances for Serverless Containers, discusses the capabilities of Azure Container Instances to run containerized solutions. Similar to the previous chapters, we will cover the advantages and disadvantages, the use cases and then get started with hosting their first container on Azure Container Instances. You will also learn how to run a reliable configuration on Microsoft Azure.
Chapter 5, Azure Container Apps for Serverless Kubernetes, covers the capabilities of Azure Container Apps to run containerized solutions. We will discuss its pros, cons, and a few use cases, following which we will get started with hosting your first container on Azure Container Apps. Using the samples provided on GitHub, we will explain how to run a stable configuration on Microsoft Azure.
Chapter 6, Azure Kubernetes Service for Kubernetes in the Cloud, highlights the capabilities of Azure Kubernetes Service to run containerized solutions. Like in the previous chapters, we will discuss the pros and cons and the use cases for it and explain how someone would get started with hosting their first container on Azure Kubernetes Service. We will also explain how to run a stable and reliable configuration on Microsoft Azure using the samples provided on GitHub.
Chapter 7, The Single Container Use Case, will dig into the details. Let’s say you have a solution that runs on a single container (a single image). Whether it is because you only require a single container or because you are just getting started in the world of containers, you will need to deploy and run this thing. Maybe you’re even coming from a different technology and you want to modernize it using container technologies. In this chapter, we will dive into what that requires, which of the technologies discussed in Part 1 will fit your requirements, and how you can leverage them successfully.
Chapter 8, Deciding the Best-Fitting Azure Technologies for Multiple Containers, will then discuss what you can do when your requirements call for more than just one container. Maybe your solution consists of multiple containers. Different technologies on Microsoft Azure support different configurations. In this chapter, we will explain multiple scenarios that require multiple containers to run and which Microsoft Azure technologies are the best fit for these scenarios.
Chapter 9, Container Technologies for Startups, takes you a step further. You’ve experimented with the technologies, so you know whether you want to run a single-container solution or a multiple-container solution. Let’s map this to the real world. You’re a start-up and you want to run your solution on Microsoft Azure. As a start-up, your company has particular requirements in terms of costs, ease of use, scalability, and availability. Which technologies will be the best fit for you as a start-up? How can you leverage these technologies on Microsoft Azure to quickly get started building your start-up?
Chapter 10, Container Technologies for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, goes even further than the previous chapter. You’ve outgrown the start-up phase, you have customers with certain requirements, you have your own business requirements, and, let’s be clear, your business has matured. Every new era involves a degree of upheaval. During this chapter, we will dive into the different solutions for small and medium-sized businesses, what it means to move from a “start-up solution” to a more advanced one, and which technologies will be the best fit for small and medium-sized businesses. Going from being a start-up to a small or medium-sized business means that you need to reconsider the decisions you made before, which isn’t such a bad thing.
Chapter 11, Container Technologies for Enterprises, will discuss a scenario in which you’ve become really successful, you’re growing fast, and your business is starting to look like an enterprise. That means new requirements, which might require different technologies. The big difference between start-ups and enterprises is having stricter requirements from customers in the latter case, but you also have more financial momentum. During this chapter, we will look into these new requirements and what that means for the container technologies you can use on Azure. We’ll think about compliance, security, scalability, and minimizing overhead.
Chapter 12, Migrating Between Container Technologies, applies to when you have deployed your container solution on an Azure technology but it doesn’t fit the use case anymore. Businesses change and therefore requirements change. In this chapter, we will recap what we have implemented based on our use cases so far and summarize the technical constraints we have introduced while doing so.
Chapter 13, Azure Container Instances – I Like the Scalability, But I Need More, explores what you can do when you’re using Azure Container Instances to run your container(s). As we established in Part 2 of this book, requirements will change over time. What will the next step be when Azure Container Instances no longer fits your requirements, and what will the migration path to different technologies look like?
Chapter 14, Beyond Azure Container Apps, builds on your need to use Azure Container Apps to run your container(s). We now know for certain that requirements will change over time. What will the next step be when Azure Container Apps no longer fits your requirements and what will that migration path to different technologies look like?
Chapter 15, Azure Kubernetes Service – The Next Steps, will take things to the next level. You now use AKS to run your container(s). What will the next step be? You have already migrated to AKS, so is there anything else? Of course, there is! Once you have successfully deployed to AKS, the wider world of integrating with other Azure and open source technologies has opened up! There are many things to explore here, which we will discuss in this chapter. We’ll discuss the cloud-native landscape, how you keep track of everything that approaches, and how you go about fitting that into your business.
Chapter 16, What’s Next – Diving into Future Trends and More, will look at what we consider the future trends for containers running on Microsoft Azure. We will provide you with information on where you can go to keep up to date with what’s coming and where you can go to learn more about each technology and even get certifications for using them.