I recently passed the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) exam — a solid milestone in my cloud learning journey. While I already hold the AWS Solutions Architect Associate certification, I wanted to broaden my skill set to better support multi-cloud environments, which are increasingly common across enterprises today.
Why Azure?
Many organizations are no longer relying on just one cloud provider. Hybrid and multi-cloud strategies are becoming the norm, and having a working knowledge of both AWS and Azure gives me a strategic edge when designing resilient, flexible infrastructure solutions. This motivated me to dive into Azure and start with AZ-900 to ensure I understood the foundational concepts.
Study Resources I Used
To prepare for the exam, I followed a structured and practical approach using:
- CBT Nuggets: Their AZ-900 course was my primary learning tool. The video content was clear and engaging, making it easy to digest the basics of cloud computing from the Azure perspective.
- Tutorials Dojo Practice Exams: These helped me benchmark my readiness and exposed me to a variety of question styles and scenarios.
- Microsoft Learn: I supplemented my learning with Microsoft’s official training paths and hands-on labs, which added a lot of context and clarity.
Getting Hands-On with Azure
Nothing beats hands-on experience. To reinforce what I was learning, I set up and explored several services in a test Azure environment:
- Deployed Virtual Machines
- Created users and API keys using Microsoft Entra ID (previously Azure AD)
- Navigated the Azure Portal and experimented with Azure CLI for resource provisioning
These exercises gave me a real feel for how Azure services are structured and managed.
What’s Next: AZ-700 – Azure Networking
Now that I’ve built a strong foundation, my next goal is to tackle AZ-700: Designing and Implementing Microsoft Azure Networking Solutions. This exam focuses on:
- Connectivity between on-premises and Azure
- Inter-region virtual networking
- Network security and routing strategies
Given my professional background in network design, I’m excited to dig into how Azure handles networking at scale and how to integrate it effectively in hybrid cloud environments.
Final Thoughts
AZ-900 was a great entry point and has already started to pay off by improving my ability to engage in Azure-related projects. My recommendation? Mix video training, official documentation, practice exams, and hands-on labs for the best outcome.
This journey is part of a bigger plan: becoming confident and certified across major cloud platforms to architect solutions that are vendor-agnostic, scalable, and future-ready.
Onward to AZ-700!
Byteblueprint 
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