Decide if Azure CLI is the appropriate tool for your tasks

  • 5 minutes

Imagine you must select a tool to deploy and manage the Azure resources for your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. For testing, you need to create resource groups and virtual machines (VMs) for each test iteration.

You seek a tool that's easy for administrators to learn, yet powerful enough to automate the installation and configuration of multiple virtual machines. With several tools available, your goal is to find the best one for your administrators to efficiently script the deployment of the entire cloud infrastructure.

What tools are available?

Azure offers three administration tools:

  • Azure portal
  • Azure PowerShell
  • Azure CLI

These tools provide the same deployment and configuration capabilities, allowing you to perform any task with any of the three. All are available on Windows, Linux, and macOS. However, they differ in syntax, setup requirements, and support for automation.

The rest of this unit describes each of these tools and offers guidance on how to choose the best one for your needs.

Azure portal

The Azure portal is a web-based interface that allows you to create, configure, and manage the resources in your Azure subscription. As a Graphical User Interface (GUI), it offers a user-friendly way to locate and manage resources, with wizards and tooltips to assist you through complex management tasks.

However, Azure portal lacks automation capabilities for repetitive tasks. For instance, if you need to set up 15 VMs, you must create each one individually, completing the wizard for each VM. This approach can be time-consuming and error-prone for more complex tasks.

Azure CLI

The Azure CLI is a cross-platform command-line tool that enables you to manage Azure resources. For instance, you can create a virtual machine using the following command (this example uses Bash line continuation characters):

az vm create \
    --resource-group CrmTestingResourceGroup \
    --name CrmUnitTestVm \
    --image Ubuntu2204

The Azure CLI is also available in two ways: inside a browser via Azure Cloud Shell or through a local installation on Windows, Linux, or macOS. You can use it interactively by launching a shell (such as Bash, PowerShell, or cmd.exe) and entering commands at the prompt. Alternatively, you can automate repetitive tasks by assembling the commands into a shell script using the syntax of your chosen shell.

Azure PowerShell

Azure PowerShell is a collection of modules that provide PowerShell cmdlets for managing Azure resources. It requires PowerShell and a scripting language.

For example, Azure PowerShell provides the New-AzVM cmdlet to create a virtual machine in your Azure subscription. To use it, launch PowerShell and execute the following command:

$azVmParams = @{
    ResourceGroupName = 'CrmTestingResourceGroup'
    Name              = 'CrmUnitTestVm'
    Image             = 'Ubuntu2204'
}
New-AzVm @azVmParams

Azure PowerShell is available in two ways: inside a browser via Azure Cloud Shell or through a local installation on Windows, Linux, or macOS. You can use PowerShell interactively, running Azure PowerShell commands from PowerShell, or you can create and execute scripts that consist of multiple commands.

How to choose a management tool

With few exceptions, any task you can perform in the Azure portal can also be accomplished using the Azure CLI or Azure PowerShell. Here are some factors to consider when choosing the most appropriate tool for your needs:

  • Automation: Do you need to automate complex or repetitive tasks? Azure PowerShell and the Azure CLI support automation, whereas the Azure portal doesn't.

  • Learning curve: Do you need to complete a task quickly without learning new commands or syntax? The Azure portal is user-friendly and doesn't require learning commands or syntax. In contrast, Azure PowerShell and the Azure CLI require an understanding of command shell syntax and the specific requirements for each command.

  • Team skill set: Does your team have existing expertise? For instance, if your team is already using PowerShell to manage other products like Windows, Exchange Server, or Microsoft 365, they might find Azure PowerShell to be a more comfortable and efficient choice. If your team has strong Bash skills, the Azure CLI is a good choice.

Example

Let's revisit the scenario of choosing an administrative tool to deploy and test your CRM application. Your administrators have two specific Azure tasks to complete:

  1. Create one resource group for each category of testing (unit, integration, and acceptance).
  2. Create multiple VMs in each resource group before each round of testing.

The Azure portal is a reasonable choice for creating resource groups. Since these tasks are one-off, you don't need scripts to create them.

Most administrators first experience Azure through the Azure portal. The portal provides a well-organized graphical interface for managing Azure resources, making it an excellent starting point. However, the portal doesn't support automation, which is essential for repetitive tasks like creating multiple VMs several times a week.

For automation in Azure, you have two options:

  • Azure PowerShell
  • Azure CLI

Both tools meet your needs, but Azure CLI might be the best choice if your team has existing Bash knowledge.

In practice, businesses typically perform a mix of one-off and repetitive tasks, often using both the Azure portal and a scripting solution. In your CRM example, creating resource groups using the Azure portal and automating VM creation with Azure CLI is a reasonable approach.

The remainder of this module assumes Azure CLI is your choice for an automation tool.