Add the Azure VM agent to existing Virtual Machines

Here is a quick rundown of how to add the base VM agent to existing Azure VMs: Find all your VMs that currently do not have the agent installed: Get-AzureVM  | where { $_.GuestAgentStatus -eq $null } or this variation if you only want to get the VMs that are actually running: Get-AzureVM  | where …

How to install the Azure Operational Insights agent on an Azure VM using PowerShell

Most of the Azure VM extensions have their own specialized PowerShell cmdlets to configure them, e.g. Set-AzureAccessExtension, Set-AzureVMBGInfoExtension, Set-AzureVMMicrosoftAntimalwareExtension etc. But you can also, to some extent, use the generic Set-AzureVMExtension. The example below show how to use it to install and configure the Operational Insights agent/extension in your Azure VM: Get-AzureVM -ServiceName <cloud service …

Manage Azure Active Directory without an Azure subscription (sort of)

Introduction to Azure Active Directory Azure Active Directory is Microsoft’s cloud identity platform and the identity provider for all the services in the Microsoft Cloud ecosystem. It is a multi tenant global identity platform, available in all the Azure regions. If you have Office 365, Windows Intune or Microsoft Azure; you also have Azure Active …

Azure and RFC3927 IP Addresses

RFC3927’s title is Dynamic Configuration of IPv4 Link-Local Addresses, and it describes how a host can automatically configure itself with an IPv4 address to communicate with other hosts on the same local link, when no statically configured IP address or DHCP server is available. The IPv4 address space set aside for this is 169.254.0.0/16. Just …

Quick and dirty DirSync install automation

Here are the steps required to do an automated vanilla install of the latest DirSync tool: Download the DirSync bits using BITS (the URL always points to the latest version): Start-BitsTransfer -Source http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=278924 -Destination c:Tempdirsync.exe Install the required .NET 3.5 bits: Add-WindowsFeature -Name NET-Framework-Core Install DirSync unattended: .DirSync.exe /quiet UPDATE: Regarding AADSync Unfortunately this does not …

Azure Files and IaaS Domain Controllers

Probably on of the very first VMs you deploy in your Microsoft Azure IaaS deployment are Windows Server Active Directory Domain Controllers. The Active Directory Domain Service is the foundation for pretty much every Windows server application out there, from Exchange to System Center. Running DCs in Azure IaaS works great, just remember that bit …

Issue with using Windows Server 2012 RRAS as a local VPN device with Microsoft Azure when WAN interface has DHCP assigned IP address

In my personal lab I use a Windows Server 2012 R2 VM running on a local Hyper-V server as my VPN device to connect to a Microsoft Azure Virtual Network gateway. This setup has been working fine for quite some time, and is indeed a supported configuration. Recently though I could not make it connect. …

Debugging unattended domain join on Windows Azure VMs

Introduction One great thing about Windows Azure PowerShell is the ability to join a VM to an Active Directory domain during provisioning, this ability is not available in the portal. Joining a domain during Windows setup is nothing new, and it is accomplished by using the normal Windows unattended setup mechanism; namely unattend.xml. In unattend.xml …

Will it run? How to run your favorite legacy OS in a Windows Azure VM

Introduction Old OSs are very popular, at least judging by the number of, for want of a better word, “legacy” servers I find in customer data centers. The old workhorses Windows Server 2003/2003 R2, Windows 2000 and even good old Windows NT pop up in disturbing numbers. With them, the question “Will Windows X, run …

Microsoft Product Use Rights (PUR) document update; great news for Windows Azure and hosters

What is Product use Rights (PUR)? from microsoft.com: “When you purchase a software license through a Microsoft Volume Licensing program, the terms and conditions for how you can use the software are defined in the Volume Licensing Product Use Rights (PUR) document, Product List document, and program agreement. The PUR is updated quarterly.” The change …