Author: Chief Contributor

Azure Spring Clean 2024 – Integrate testing process into your Azure Bicep code

Hello Cloud Marathoners!

Hope you are all doing great and excited about this year’s Azure Spring Clean 2024 event!

In this episode, I will share our new #AzureBicep session with amazing community members like you and my partner in crime, Microsoft Azure MVP Kasun Rajapakse.

🎯 Teaser description of what you could expect:

Embrace the power of comprehensive testing by integrating it seamlessly into your Azure Bicep code!
In this session, we will experiment with some testing strategies that allow you to weave testing processes effectively into your Azure Bicep infrastructure-as-code (IaC) development.

We’ll explore the pivotal role of testing in ensuring the reliability, scalability, and security of your Azure deployments. You will learn how to get started with Bicep-specific unit testing frameworks that complement your Bicep code, enabling you to detect and rectify potential issues at an early stage of development.

Please, feel free to each this session below:

Do you have a feedback?

Please, submit your comments on our LinkedIn post here.

Top 3% active speaker recognition from sessionize

Good morning friends!

I am excited to share another great recognition of our contributions to the Sessionize sessions in 2023. I am also thrilled to make it to the top 3% of active speakers.

Looking back to 2023, I am grateful to everyone for providing an opportunity to share my #cloud sessions with the community 💪

Here is the list of events where I got an opportunity to present and help learners in 2023:

  • Festive Tech Calendar 2023
  • Azure Back to School 2023
  • Gira Online Speakers Latam 2023
  • Gimme-Cloud-Talks-Global-Azure-2023
  • Azure Spring Clean 2023
  • Come Cloud with Us
  • Cloud Lunch and Learn


Thank you again for your support and continues encouragements to keep our #CloudMarathoner movement alive and thriving.

📌 Check out my public Sessionize profile and feel free to contact 👉 https://lnkd.in/eUcQ2tWS #sharingiscaring 💓

📌 Please, check out an associated LinkedIn post announcement and feel free to reach back if you have any suggestion or question. Thanks!

Awesome-Azure-Bicep repo 💪 release #7 is out!

Hello Cloud Marathiner friends,

You are all welcome to check our latest release #7 which comes with 10X new contributions from four members 👉 Release #7 details

Bug Fixes

I also teamed up with John Lokerse to troubleshoot and fix the link checkmark build in this release. In addition, our core member and Microsoft MVP, Luke Murray, has updated several links on his Bicep blog posts, as his URLs have been changed.

Summary

Thank you all for your continued support and stay tuned for upcoming contributions from the #CloudMarahoner #community.

Please, subscribe to #cloudmarathoner LinkedIn #tag and follow us 🔥

Starting the 2024 season with an Azure Welsh user group event 🎉

Hello, my dear Cloud marathoner friends,

Are you interested how to get started with Azure 🚀 Architect exam in 2024 ⁉ 🤔
Well, I was honored to present this session to the Welsh Azure User Group just a few days ago.

In this session, I discussed the most recent changes in the Microsoft Azure Architects Exam AZ-305. This will be super helpful if you are looking forward to taking that exam within the next few weeks/months.

What are the session details?

Did you know that the Microsoft Azure Architect exam gets updated 1-2 times a year? Thus, it might be troublesome to get ready for this exam with all the digital distractions and updates.

However, in this lightning talk below, I shared bits and tips on how to focus on the AZ-305 Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions exam objectives and help you prepare with the latest information.

Have a question?

Have a comment or suggestion about my latest AZ-305 session?
Great, please check out the associated LinkedIn post and share your feedback. Thank you.

Celebrating MCT Regional Lead announcements

Hello, my dear Cloud Marathoners!

As a #cloudmarathoner, I am excited 😍 to share with you 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 an awesome news that I have been selected as MCT Regional Lead for the year 2024 from the USA 🎉

I would like to thank everyone, including my MCT (Microsoft Certified Trainer) colleagues who nominated me for this important role to help our community of MCTs.

Special thanks 🙏 go to Dwayne Natwick, 🎼Brian Gorman, Jared Bell, Jason Keplinger, and Microsoft MCT leadership for recognizing my #community contributions and continued support👏

🤔 Well, who are the MCT Regional Leads ❓

MCT Regional Leads are a group of experienced MCTs committed to providing community connection and support to MCTs at the regional level. The Regional Leads promote MCT career opportunities, mentor new trainers, and continue to advocate for programs and resources meeting MCT needs.

I am truly thrilled to meet, collaborate, and contribute with fellow MCT Regional Leads and the MCT community from all around the world 🌍 🌐

📞 Need help from MCT Regional Lead then let’s connect 😉

Check out my LinkedIn post on this matter an feel free to ask questions in comments section.

Happy New Year dear #CloudMarathoner community !!!

Hello dear Cloud Marathoners!

I would like to “Thank You” ALL the community members in the #cloudmarathoner for their support and continued contributions in 2023 🙌 🎉 🎈

Your continued dedication to learning, sharing, and excelling at cloud knowledge has a great impact on everyone.

The #CloudMarathoner hashtag followers on the LinkedIn platform

Our community is growing

Thank you again for your continued feedback and support!
Our community has grown to 1800+ members and we can reach and empower more people now than ever before 💪.

Again and again, “HUGE THANK YOU!” to everyone who has #shared and contributed to the #CloudMarathoner posts on social media.

We are having “GREAT” progress that will continue to provide the power of #knowledge to empower and elevate the people.

IN SUMMARY

Thank you for being a true “trailblazer of the cloud” by being the #cloudmarathoner!

Please, actively check our #CloudMarathoner #tag on LinkedIn. Share and tag information with the community.

Festive Tech Calendar session – Unboxing the Festive Design patterns with Santa

Hello Cloud Marathoner friends,

I was thrilled that my both sessions have been accepted for the Festive Tech Calendar 2023 events. The first session has been already announced and posted with a #cloudmarathoner community member and contributor, Kasun which is referenced below.

  1. Dec 23 session with Kasun Rajapakse: “The 12 Bicep 💪 Tips of Christmas”
  2. Dec 28th session: “Unboxing the Festive Design Patterns with Santa”

Today’s post is dedicated to the second session where we will embark on a cloud journey with Santa. Santa will be helping us to understand something about clouds, but not the fluffy white ones in the sky – we’re talking about those special computer clouds!

Here is the festive description of the session:

So, imagine all the important things that people do with their computers, like making games, apps, and websites. These things need a special place to live so they can work properly. That special place is like a magical cloud where you can keep all those important things safe and make them work really well.

Now, the clever grown-ups who help with these computer things are learning more about how to use this cloud in the best way. They want to make sure everything in the cloud works just right. To do this, they plan carefully and design everything perfectly, like how we plan Santa’s route on Christmas Eve to deliver presents.

In a special meeting, they will talk about something called “design patterns.” These are like tricks and plans to help make sure everything in the computer cloud is super safe, works really well, and can grow if more people use it. It’s a bit like Santa’s workshop, where we have special patterns for making toys.

So, you see, just like Santa prepares for Christmas, these clever people are getting ready to make the computer cloud a better and safer place for everyone. It’s like their own magical holiday season for computers! 🎅🌟🖥️

Festive Tech Calendar 2023 session

So, if you are intrigued with it then please check my recorded session to learn about the Festive Cloud design patterns > https://youtu.be/Yj-lXf1l1ng?t=17

Wish you all Happy Holidays and Happy New Year !!!

Resolving “git fetch” SSL certificate problem on windows machine

Hi Cloud Marathoner friends,

A few days ago, I got the following error when attempting to run a Git command:

Problem

“fatal: unable to access ‘https://github.com/ElYusubov/Learn-Bicep.git/‘: SSL certificate problem: unable to get local issuer certificate”

This issue originated from the fact that git by default uses the “Linux” crypto backend.

However, there is a simple solution, from the beginning of version Git on Windows 2.14, you can configure Git to use SChannel. This is a built-in Windows networking layer as the crypto backend. In other words, the Windows networking layer will be used with the Windows certificate storage mechanism and you are not required to configure the curl CA storage mechanism.

If you would like to dig into more technical details, then here is the full article on this topic: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa380123(v=vs.85).aspx

Solution

Fortunately, you don’t have to change anything in your Windows environment, just run the following Git command: “git config –global http.sslbackend schannel”.

Let me know if that helped with your problem and keep me in the loop if you had a similar problem.

[Book Review] What you need to know about Kubernetes Best Practices: Blueprints for Building Successful Applications on Kubernetes, 2nd edition ⁉ 🤔

Hello friends,

A few weeks ago, I received a book from Microsoft – “Kubernetes Best Practices: Blueprints for Building Successful Applications on Kubernetes”, authored by Brendan Burns, Edward Villalba, David Strebel and Lachlan Evenson, and in this post, I will review and share my observations and impressions with the #cloud#community.

The key strength of Kubernetes lies in its modularity and versatility. Virtually any type of application you aim to deploy can be accommodated within the Kubernetes framework, and it can handle a wide range of adjustments or optimizations to meet your specific requirements.

However, this adaptability and generality do come with a trade-off – a moderate level of complexity. It’s essential to have a solid grasp of how Kubernetes’ APIs and components function to unlock its full potential for simplifying application development, management, and deployment. Equally critical is understanding how to seamlessly integrate Kubernetes with various external systems, such as on-premise databases and continuous delivery pipelines, to make it a practical solution in real-world scenarios.

Throughout this book, authors strived to offer insights based on real-world experience, covering topics that are likely to be encountered by cloud engineers and developers, whether they are new to Kubernetes or seasoned administrators. Whether you’re exploring a new area to become an expert or seeking a refresher on familiar challenges, authors aim is to facilitate your learning journey.

By following these best practices, you can tap into authors’ collective experience to avoid common pitfalls, enhance performance and security, and gain the confidence to maximize the benefits of Kubernetes.

Thank you for reading my short review of the book, as it looks like a solid resource for real-world endeavors of cloud engineering and development!

Did you read any related book recently that made an impact on you❓
Please, share your feedback in the comments 💬

Please, check my LinkedIn post to share your feedback. Thanks.

[Book Review] What you need to know about Cloud Native Software 🔐 Security Handbook ⁉ 🤔

Hello, Cloud Marathoners!

A couple of days ago, I received a book from Packt – “Cloud Native Software Security Handbook”, authored by Mihir Shah and in this post, I will review and share my observations and impressions with the #cloud#community.

This book starts covering the Foundations of Cloud Native by exploring the tools and platforms offered by CNCF while providing a high-level stage for the rest of the book. Subsequently, the author dives into explaining AppSec culture and how to approach security implementation in cloud-native environments primarily using toolings like K8S, Calico, K9s, Falco, OPA Gateway, and others which I will be mentioning below.

I liked the Cloud Security Operation chapter where open-source tooling sets like Elasticsearch, Fluentd, Kibana, Prometheus, Helm, and K8S have been used to streamline security operations with automation playbooks to minimize human interventions and errors.

In addition, this book covers legal, compliance, and vendor management aspects of cloud-native software security by emphasizing its hidden cost and importance as important as mastering technical skills.

This book also provides code samples, available for online access which is a big plus.

My suggestion would be the addition of more advanced use cases and code samples in the second edition of this book.

Did you read any related book recently that made an impact on you❓
Please, share your feedback in the comments 💬

Please, check my LinkedIn post to share your feedback. Thanks!