In many organisations, there is a need to map Azure Files shares to Windows virtual machines without deploying a traditional file server or a fully-fledged Entra Domain Services (Azure AD Domain Services) environment. One efficient and secure method is to use the system-assigned managed identity on your Azure VM. This approach eliminates the need to store credentials on the VM and ensures that access to your storage account is governed through Azure RBAC roles rather than static credentials. This guide will walk you through: This solution is especially useful for scenarios like FSLogix profile containers utilising Cloud Cache. By setting…
Tag: Azure
Assign Microsoft Graph permissions to Azure Managed Identity
I have a user assigned managed managed identity in Azure called ‘TestMI‘. I want to give this managed identity permissions to run Microsoft Graph PowerShell cmdlets. As a managed identity in Azure, this appears under enterprise applications in Entra. Normally with the old service principals, as these appeared under app registrations, you’d simply go into the Azure portal and navigate to API permissions, where you can assign the necessary Microsoft Graph permissions. But, managed identities in Azure are slightly different and fall under enterprise applications. As such, we don’t have the option in the Azure portal to assign API permissions…
Navigating Azure Savings Plans and Reserved Instances – Cost Optimisation
The Azure billing landscape is a labyrinthine one, with its share of twists, turns, and, occasionally, dead ends. For the uninitiated, the path through this maze is fraught with confusion, especially when it comes to optimising costs with Azure Savings Plans and Reserved Instances (RIs). This post aims to clear the fog and elucidate the sequence and strategy for applying these cost-saving mechanisms. Understanding the Lay of the Land At the heart of the matter is understanding how Azure Savings Plans and RIs reduce costs. Azure Savings Plans offer a reduced rate in exchange for committing to a consistent usage…
Marc Kean 