Introduction to Azure Storage

1. Introduction to Azure Storage

Hi, everyone! Welcome to Develop for Azure Storage!

2. Azure Storage

Azure Storage is one of the essential building blocks of any cloud application, as apps require a secure and scalable place to store data.

3. Digital backpack

Think of it as your digital backpack, secure, scalable, and always available to store everything your app needs. Just as a hiker relies on their backpack to carry essentials without slowing them down, developers rely on Azure Storage to manage application data without worrying about infrastructure, letting them focus on building features instead of managing servers.

4. Cipher Coffee needs your help

In this course, we'll follow Cipher Coffee, a growing cafe business using Azure to manage its data: from daily sales to customer loyalty and internal operations. Azure Storage gives Cipher Coffee a reliable foundation to organize, protect, and access data efficiently, just like any modern company needs. And the best part? These are the same skills you'll use in real-world development and for the AZ-204 certification.

5. Course overview

You’ll explore the main Azure storage services and learn how to choose the right one for every situation. Let’s briefly go over each storage type. We'll dive deeper into them throughout the course. Blob storage is ideal for storing large, unstructured data, like images, videos, or documents. Cipher Coffee uses it to store website photos and digital invoices.

6. Table storage

Table Storage is a NoSQL key-value store for structured data that needs to scale quickly, but unlike relational databases, it's schemaless, so each record can have different properties. Cipher Coffee stores customer loyalty records here for fast lookups.

7. Queue storage

Queue Storage manages short-lived messages between components for asynchronous processing, these aren't stored long-term but are consumed and removed once processed. When customers order online, messages in the queue trigger order fulfillment without slowing the site.

8. File storage

File Storage provides shared file access over SMB (Server Message Block), much like a network drive. While Blob Storage is ideal for applications accessing unstructured data via APIs, File Storage shines when users or legacy applications need to mount a familiar network drive. Cipher Coffee's HR and accounting teams use it to share payroll and policy files securely.

9. Cosmos DB and storage

You might wonder, where does Azure Cosmos DB fit into storage? Cosmos DB is a globally distributed NoSQL database service that supports multiple APIs, offers predictable performance, and enables rich queries. While services like Blob and Table Storage are great for general-purpose or lightweight data storage, Cosmos DB is designed for high-performance, globally scaled applications that demand low latency, strong consistency, and the ability to handle complex queries. We'll be working with Cosmos DB: creating databases, containers, and performing CRUD operations.

10. Before you begin

You'll get the most out of this course if you already understand the basics of the Azure Portal and how cloud applications are built. If you haven't yet, check out Understanding Microsoft Azure Architecture and Services, especially the part on Azure Storage. It will give you a strong foundation.

11. Meet the instructor

A little bit about me! I’m Shahzad, a content developer at DataCamp and a former Cloud Engineer. I'll guide you through this course as we explore how Azure Storage powers Cipher Coffee, and your own cloud solutions.

12. Let's practice!

Ready to get started? Let's dive in!

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