The Azure DevOps Complete Project Guide follows a single real-world scenario from start to finish: the Ahmed-App portal — an Nginx frontend and Node.js API backend running on Rocky Linux 10. Rather than isolated exercises, every sprint builds on the last. By Sprint 5, students have a fully operational DevOps pipeline: boards provisioned as code, commits linked to work items, a self-hosted CI agent validating every change, a multi-stage CD pipeline deploying through approval gates, infrastructure spun up via Bicep, secrets managed in Key Vault, vulnerabilities caught by Trivy, and live telemetry streaming into Application Insights.
📋
Azure Boards & Source Control
CLI-provisioned Epic → Feature → User Story hierarchy, GitFlow branching, AB# commit linking, branch policies, and pull requests — all from the terminal.
⚙️
CI Pipeline & Self-Hosted Agent
YAML CI pipeline with file validation, nav-link checks, and Nginx config testing. Self-hosted agent pool on ro10. Build validation policy with a deliberate break-the-build exercise.
🚀
Multi-Stage CD & Approval Gates
Dedicated staging Nginx server, Azure DevOps Environments with manual approval gates, and a full multi-stage CD pipeline deploying from build through to production.
🏗️
Bicep Infrastructure as Code
Bicep file authoring, local validation, Azure service connection setup, and a 5-stage pipeline that provisions cloud infrastructure before every deployment.
🔐
Security — Trivy & Key Vault
Trivy security scanner integrated into CI to block vulnerable builds. Azure Key Vault for secret management, variable group linking, and pipeline-native secret injection.
📊
Test Plans & Application Insights
Azure Test Plans with suites and cases linked to work items. Application Insights resource, portal telemetry integration, availability alerts, and live monitoring dashboards.
S1
Sprint 1
Azure Boards & Source Control Foundations
Part 1 — Meet Your Environment
Part 2 — Provision Boards with CLI
Part 3 — Git on Rocky Linux
Part 4 — Connect to Azure Repos
S2
Sprint 2
CI Pipeline — Continuous Integration
Part 5 — First CI YAML Pipeline
Part 6 — Self-Hosted Agent on ro10
Part 7 — Build Validation & Quality Gates
S3
Sprint 3
CD Pipeline — Continuous Deployment
Part 8 — Nginx Staging Server
Part 9 — Environments & Approval Gates
Part 10 — Multi-Stage CD Pipeline
S4
Sprint 4
Infrastructure as Code with Bicep
Part 11 — Bicep IaC Authoring
Part 12 — Service Connection
Part 13 — 5-Stage Pipeline with Bicep
S5
Sprint 5
Security, Testing & Monitoring
Part 16 — Trivy Security Scanning
Part 17 — Azure Key Vault
Part 18 — Azure Test Plans
Part 19 — Application Insights
01Meet Your Environment — Ahmed-App Architecture & What We’ll BuildS1
02Provision Azure Boards as Code — Epic → Feature → User Story via CLIS1
03Git on Rocky Linux — Install, Configure, Init & First Commit with AB#S1
04Connect to Azure Repos — PAT, Remote Origin & Branch PoliciesS1
05First CI YAML Pipeline — File Validation, Nav Links & Nginx Config CheckS2
06Self-Hosted Agent — Pool Creation, Install & Registration on ro10S2
07Build Validation Policy — Enforce CI on Every PR, Break & Fix the BuildS2
08Nginx Staging Server — Separate Port Config for Pre-ProductionS3
09DevOps Environments — Staging & Production with Approval GatesS3
10Multi-Stage CD Pipeline YAML — Build → Staging → ProductionS3
11Bicep IaC — Author, Validate & Commit Infrastructure DefinitionS4
12Azure Service Connection — Authorise Pipeline to Provision ResourcesS4
135-Stage Pipeline with Bicep — IaC Before Every DeploymentS4
16Trivy Security Scanning — Local Test & CI Block on VulnerabilitiesS5
17Azure Key Vault — Create Secrets & Link Variable Group to PipelineS5
18Azure Test Plans — Suites, Cases & Work Item LinkingS5
19Application Insights — Telemetry, Availability Alerts & Live DashboardS5
Rocky Linux 10
Azure DevOps
Azure Pipelines (YAML)
Bicep IaC
Git & GitFlow
Nginx
Node.js 22 LTS
Trivy
Azure Key Vault
Azure Artifacts
Application Insights
Azure Test Plans
🎓
AZ-400 Candidates
Engineers preparing for the DevOps Engineer Expert exam who need structured, end-to-end hands-on practice beyond slides.
⚙️
DevOps Engineers
Practitioners building or maturing CI/CD pipelines on Azure who want a scenario-driven, real-environment reference guide.
🐧
Linux-First Teams
Infrastructure engineers on Rocky Linux or RHEL integrating Azure DevOps into existing Linux-based workflows.
Format5-Sprint Project Guide
·
ExamAZ-400
·
OSRocky Linux 10
·
ProjectAhmed-App
·
Parts17 Labs
·
AuthorAhmed Abdelwahed
Download the Complete Guide
Five sprints, one real project — the complete Azure DevOps Engineer Expert curriculum from Boards to Application Insights, free to download.
