Introduction

This is an example of how to create a VM with a Custom Script Extension to install Nginx in Azure using Bicep.

Getting Started

To deploy, you need the Azure CLI installed and logged in. You also need the Bicep extensions.

Versions used for this project: Az CLI: 2.37.0 Az Bicep: 0.7.4

Settings

The executeDeploy.sh bash script has the following variables:

• DEPLOY_ENV - the environment name used in all resource names
• DEPLOY_LOC - Azure region (e.g. westeurope, westus3, etc.)
• RG_NAME - Resource group name (will be created if not already existing). Defaults to "rg-vmtest-$DEPLOY_ENV-$DEPLOY_LOC"
• ADMIN_USER - Admin username for the VM. Defaults to current user.
• ADMIN_SSH_KEY - Admin SSH key. Defaults to the public key in ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub
• IP_WHITELIST_RANGE - IP address range to whitelist to access SSH port 22 on the VM. Defaults to the current external IP when run.

Naming Conventions

Resource names are created based on the environment and location and follow the CAF suggested naming best practice and with consideration of the naming rules and restrictions for Azure resources.

Template

[resource-type]-[environment]-[region]-[instance|unique id]

Naming Examples

VNET

vnet-dev-westus3

Public IP Address

vm-dev-westus3-001

Custom Script Extension

The Custom Script Extension allows for running commands or full scripts on the VM on first boot. You can in-line scripts or download them from Azure Storage. For this example, I simply in-lined the following:

apt-get update && apt-get install nginx -y && sed -i "s/Welcome to nginx/Welcome to nginx from ${vmName}/g" /var/www/html/index.nginx-debian.html

This will install nginx and then update the index page to include the name of the VM.

Running the sample

Ensure you are logged into the proper subscription (e.g. az login) and then you can then run the BASH script: ./executeDeploy.sh

This script first does a test run and shows what will be changed. To proceed, type 'y'. Any other character will stop the script.

Output

Once everything is deployed the script will output the public IP address of the VM. You can then use this IP address in a web browser to see the nginx welcome page with the VM name.