Deploying Azure Servers from Azure Cloud Shell: Why Every Sysadmin Should Learn Azure CLI

One of the most powerful features in Microsoft Azure isn’t found in the Azure Portal at all. It’s Azure Cloud Shell.

If you’re still deploying virtual machines by clicking through wizards, selecting drop-down menus, and manually entering network settings, you’re probably spending far more time than necessary.

As infrastructure professionals, we automate repetitive tasks whenever possible. That’s exactly where Azure CLI and Azure Cloud Shell shine.

What Is Azure Cloud Shell?

Azure Cloud Shell is a browser-based command-line environment hosted by Microsoft that comes preconfigured with Azure tools and authenticated to your Azure account.

In simple terms:

No software to install
No Azure CLI setup required
No workstation dependencies
Available from any web browser

Open Azure Cloud Shell and start building infrastructure immediately.

Why I Prefer Azure CLI Over the Azure Portal

Don’t get me wrong.

The Azure Portal is excellent for learning, troubleshooting, and exploring resources.

However, after deploying dozens or hundreds of servers, the portal becomes slow and repetitive.

Every VM deployment requires:

Resource Groups
Virtual Networks
Subnets
Network Security Groups
Storage
User Accounts
VM Sizing
Disk Configuration

That’s a lot of clicking.

Using Azure CLI, you can deploy the exact same infrastructure repeatedly with predictable results.

Benefits of Azure CLI

Faster Deployments

Instead of spending 10-15 minutes clicking through screens, deployments can occur in seconds.

Consistency

Every server is built using the same standards and configuration.

Repeatability

Need ten identical servers? Run the script ten times.

Documentation

Your scripts become living documentation.

Automation

Infrastructure deployments can become part of:

CI/CD Pipelines
Azure DevOps
GitHub Actions
Disaster Recovery Planning
Infrastructure as Code Initiatives

What Can Be Automated?

The short answer: nearly everything.

Azure CLI can create and manage:

Resource Groups
Virtual Networks
Subnets
Network Security Groups (NSGs)
Storage Accounts
Managed Disks
Virtual Machines
Azure User Accounts
Role Assignments
Load Balancers
Availability Sets
Virtual Machine Scale Sets

Once you begin deploying infrastructure through code, it’s difficult to go back to manually creating resources through the portal.

A Real-World Example

Imagine a project manager asks for:

“I need a Windows Server with 4 CPU cores, 16 GB RAM, 128 GB of storage, and RDP access.”

A junior administrator might spend several minutes navigating the Azure Portal and filling out deployment screens.

An experienced infrastructure engineer can deploy the entire environment from Azure Cloud Shell in minutes.

Azure Cloud Shell Script Example

The following script creates:

Resource Group
Virtual Network
Subnet
Network Security Group
Windows Server 2022 VM
Public IP Address
RDP Access Rule

The VM uses Standard_D4s_v5, which provides:

4 vCPUs
16 GB RAM
128 GB OS Disk

Important: Replace the password before running in production.

# Variables
LOCATION="eastus"
RESOURCEGROUP="RG-SysAdminFAQ"
VMNAME="VM-SYSADMINFAQ-01"
ADMINUSER="localadmin"
PASSWORD="ReplaceWithAStrongPassword123!"

# Create Resource Group
az group create \
  --name $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --location $LOCATION

# Create Virtual Network
az network vnet create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --name VNET-SYSADMINFAQ \
  --address-prefix 10.10.0.0/16 \
  --subnet-name SERVERS \
  --subnet-prefix 10.10.1.0/24

# Create Network Security Group
az network nsg create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --name NSG-SERVERS

# Allow RDP Access
az network nsg rule create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --nsg-name NSG-SERVERS \
  --name Allow-RDP \
  --priority 1000 \
  --direction Inbound \
  --access Allow \
  --protocol Tcp \
  --destination-port-ranges 3389

# Associate NSG with Subnet
az network vnet subnet update \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --vnet-name VNET-SYSADMINFAQ \
  --name SERVERS \
  --network-security-group NSG-SERVERS

# Deploy Windows Server 2022
az vm create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --name $VMNAME \
  --image Win2022Datacenter \
  --size Standard_D4s_v5 \
  --admin-username $ADMINUSER \
  --admin-password $PASSWORD \
  --vnet-name VNET-SYSADMINFAQ \
  --subnet SERVERS \
  --os-disk-size-gb 128 \
  --public-ip-sku Standard

Why This Matters

The true power of Azure Cloud Shell isn’t deploying one server.

The true value comes when you need to deploy:

5 Domain Controllers
20 Application Servers
50 Web Servers
100 Virtual Machines

Instead of hours of repetitive clicking, everything can be standardized and automated.

You’ll spend less time creating infrastructure and more time improving it.

How Modern Infrastructure Teams Use Azure CLI

Many organizations use Azure CLI for:

Build Automation
Disaster Recovery Testing
Server Standardization
Lab Environments
Dev/Test Deployments
Azure DevOps Pipelines
GitHub Actions Workflows
Infrastructure as Code Projects

Automation helps eliminate inconsistencies while dramatically speeding up deployment times.

What Comes Next?

After becoming comfortable with Azure CLI, many administrators eventually move into more advanced Infrastructure as Code solutions such as:

Terraform
Bicep
ARM Templates
Azure DevOps
GitHub Actions

However, Azure CLI remains one of the best ways to learn Azure resource creation and understand how different services connect together.

My Advice

If you’re a systems administrator looking to modernize your skillset, start using Azure Cloud Shell today.

Don’t begin with Terraform.

Don’t overcomplicate things.

Start by deploying:

One Resource Group
One Virtual Network
One Network Security Group
One Virtual Machine

Then build from there.

Before long, you’ll discover you’re deploying environments faster, more consistently, and with fewer mistakes than ever before.

And that is exactly why automation has become one of the most valuable skills for today’s cloud and infrastructure professionals.

What About You?

Are you still deploying Azure resources through the portal, or have you started automating your infrastructure using Azure CLI and Azure Cloud Shell?

Leave a comment below and share your favorite Azure automation tips with the SysAdminFAQ community.

SysAdmin FAQ

Practical Lessons in Systems Administration, Cloud, Networking, and AI.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply