Azure Tools

1. Azure App Service: (🖐️) A fully managed Platform as a Service (PaaS) for hosting web apps, REST APIs, and mobile backends. It handles infrastructure maintenance, patching, and scaling, allowing developers to focus solely on their application code.  

2. Azure Container Instances (ACI)A simple, serverless solution to run individual Docker containers on-demand without managing an entire container orchestration platform (like Kubernetes). It's great for simple tasks, development/testing, or short-lived jobs. 

3. Azure Functions: (🖐️) Azure's primary serverless compute offering, allowing you to run small, event-driven pieces of code ("functions") without managing infrastructure. This is ideal for automating tasks, processing data in real-time, or implementing microservices efficiently and cost-effectively. 

4. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS, K8s) / Docker: (🖐️) A managed Kubernetes service for deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications (ex: USAF Target App across the Intelligence Community: CIA, NSA, NASIC, Navy, Army, NATO) . 

5. Azure VM: (🖐️🖐️) Provides Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), letting you provision Windows or Linux VMs in seconds. VMs are essential for workloads requiring OS-level control, like legacy applications or lift-and-shift migrations from on-premises servers. 

1. Azure AI Foundry / Azure AI: [RAG: Create Pipelines] To create customized, augmented, and deploy and mange Generative AI apps and "AI Agents" using Azure OpenAI's LLM (The "Brain" GPT-3.5 or GPT-4) or 3rd Party LLM. 

   • -- Core Components: (1) A Brain: a LLM, (2) Memory, & (3) Integrated Tools.

2. Azure AI Search: (🖐️) [RAG: Retrieves proprietary data via DB] A "search-as-a-service" that indexes content from various sources, making it immediately searchable and retrievable. This is the core retrieval component, acting as the enterprise vector database and search engine that indexes and retrieves relevant information from your proprietary data. Design to host and retrieve info from your documents, content, and URL, or external Azure storage sources: Azure Blob Storage, Azure SQL Database, Azure Cosmos DB, SharePoint. 

   • -- Use Case: At HHS, built an AI Agent (pipeline) to extract proprietary content (HHS Info & CISA ZTMM) to provide ZT solutions via a prompt agent. 

   • -- Use Case: at USAF Target App, to extract extract proprietary for content across TS/SCI servers. 

3. Azure AI Document Intelligence:  (🖐️) [RAG: Process / Augment: Improve] Used to parse, chunk, and extract (improve) content from complex, unstructured documents (PDFs, images, Word docs). It ensures the text sent to the embedding model for indexing is high-quality, structured, and semantically consistent, which is crucial for high-quality retrieval.   

4. Azure Data Explorer (ADX): Data ingestion, high-speed querying, and advanced analysis of structured (Azure SQL DB), semi-structured (Azure Cosmos DB=No SQL), and unstructured (Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 / Azure Blob Storage) data.

5. Azure ML: (🖐️) To manage the entire lifecycle of ML projects. It helps users to build, train, deploy, and manage predictive AI models at scale, for "Demand Forecasting" and resource optimization. 

   • -- Use Case: USAF Target App to forecast situational awareness, noting is it a forecast and not factual data.

6. Azure OpenAI Service: (🖐️🖐️) [RAG: LLM] Provides direct, managed access to OpenAI's powerful LLMs (like ChatGPT-4 and ChatGPT) with Azure security and enterprise-grade capabilities. It allows organizations to build applications using state-of-the-art generative AI. -- See "Azure AI Services"

7. MS Purview / Azure AI Content Safety: (🖐️) A dedicated API service (Azure AI Content Safety) and a broader governance tool (Microsoft Purview) that detects harmful content in text and images (AI- or user-generated content). It ensures compliance and ethical deployment of AI. 

   • -- Use Case: USAF, To support Azure ML Use Case.

8. RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation): Azure uses 3 tools for this solution (1) Azure Open AI (for the LLM); (2) Azure AI Search (to retrieve the specific info from a vector database), and (3) Azure AI Foundry / Azure ML (to build the prompt and RAG workflow/pipelines). 

9. VectorShift: Building "Vibe Black Belt" concept. URL: https://app.vectorshift.ai/agents // VibeZT-Federal: https://app.vectorshift.ai/agents/6908d108998acf1e6629de24?vw=run 

https://marketingassets.microsoft.com/gdc/gdcLSn5HE/original?ocid=eml_pg496765_gdc_comm_az&mkt_tok=MTU3LUdRRS0zODIAAAGdbaDkENp0ve3GibbUoLEbvTbqKX4_ygJ5NrslDvOiAmOf5mp_-HM5J3Q7_YwxdhHPbs96WyrWxgKjpW0518j9xbxl26AjNCz6osxQ_v9Q3AV1c5P0G61doNc 

1. Azure API Center A service used for the unified inventory, governance, and cataloging of all APIs across an organization. It helps promote developer adoption by making APIs easily discoverable.

2. Azure API Management (APIM): A platform for publishing, managing, securing, and analyzing APIs, acting as a secure gateway to backend services. It is used to centralize API governance, security, and enforce policies like rate limiting and caching.

3. Azure App Service: (🖐️) Managed hosting for web apps and APIs. -- Use Case: USAF Target App.

4. MS Defender for APIs: (🖐️) A security tool focused on threat protection for APIs, used to implement enterprise-grade security controls and protect data from threats. -- Use Case: USAF Target App.

1. Power Automate: (🖐️🖐️) To create automated workflows between various apps and services cloud and on-premises. It's used to synchronize files, collect data, and automate repetitive business process tasks. -- Use Case: At State Dept., created a Roadmap-Dashboard based on datasets (Excel) displaying T/S, Duration (Start-End dates), Dependencies, Critical Paths, and Application Rationalization.

2. Azure Bicep / Terraform: Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools used to automate the deployment of Azure resources. Bicep is a declarative language for Azure, and Terraform is a multi-cloud tool for managing infrastructure. 

3. Azure DevOps / Azure Pipelines: (🖐️) A suite of services for continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) that automates the software build, test, and deployment process. Azure Pipelines is the specific orchestration engine for running automated checks and deployments. -- Use Case: USAF, data delivery into the USAF Target App.

4. Azure Functions: (🖐️) A serverless compute service that runs event-triggered code snippets (microservices). It is often used for automation by reacting to events (e.g., a file upload) to process data or trigger a workflow. -- -- Use Case: USAF, used "snippets of code" to service the USAF Target App.

5. GitHub Actions A feature that automates software development workflows, including CI/CD, directly within a GitHub repository. It allows you to build, test, and deploy code, often with integrated security checks, ensuring continuous security integration.

The 4 Architectural Domains:

1. Business Architecture (BA): This domain focuses on how the business operates. It includes the organizational structure, processes, and business strategy (VMGO). -- Goal: To ensure that technology aligns with the organization's business goals.

   1. Security Architecture (SA): Align security with business goals and risk mgmt.

   2. Cloud Architecture (CA): Facilitates agility, scalability.

2. Data Architecture (DA): This domain deals with the data structures used by the business and its applications. It covers how data is stored, managed, and used, including data governance, data models, and data warehousing. -- The DA designs the "blueprint" (the CI, the SIPOC) and the "data engineer" builds it.

   1. Information Architecture (IA): Focuses on the user-facing structure of the data: How the raw data is organized, classified, and presented as meaningful information (metadata, content organization, taxonomies, search functionality) for end-users to find and understand.

   2. Security Architecture (SA): Encryption, access controls, & data loss prevention (DLP).

   3. Cloud Architecture (CA): Offers scalable databases, data warehouses, and analytic platforms that enable big data and ML initiatives.

3. Application Architecture (AA): This domain is concerned with the software applications a company uses. It includes the design of individual apps and how they integrate and work together, like Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). This domain also considers application portfolios and integration patterns. 

   1. Security Architecture (SA): To implement secure coding practices, using secure-by-design patterns, and integrating security controls like authentication, authorization, and auditing directly into the application's functionality. 

   2. Cloud Architecture (CA): Enables cloud-native applications and architectures like microservices (Azure Service Fabric), serverless (Azure Functions), and containers (Azure Container Instances).

   3. Application Portfolio Management & Optimization(APM/APO): The continuous evaluation of an organization's software applications to ensure they are aligned with business goals.

4. Technology Architecture (TA): This domain focuses on the hardware, software, and network infrastructure that supports the applications and data. Includes everything from servers and operating systems to cloud (Azure) and security protocols.

   1. Security Architecture (SA): Designing the network security (firewalls, intrusion detection systems), endpoint security (antivirus, device management), and cloud security (IAM, NSG-Network Security Groups). It's about building a robust and resilient technical foundation. -- Security Protocols are: 

      • Transport Layer: (1) SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) / TLS (Transport Layer Security): to encrypt data transferred (2) HTTPS: Secures web traffic handling sensitive info.

      • Network Layer: (1) IPsec (Internet Protocol Security): Secures internet communication by authenticating and encrypting each data packet. Commonly used to create VPNs.     

      • Application Layer: (1) SSH (Secure Shell): A cryptographic network protocol used to secure operate network services over an unsecured network. Used for remote login. (2) SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol): An extension of SSH. Provides a secure way to transfer files between computers. It encrypts both the command and data, protecting against data interception during file transfers.

   2. Cloud Architecture (CA): CA resides in TA!! To design the underlying IT infrastructure that supports applications and data. Selecting cloud providers (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP), designing networking, security protocols, and managing the physical and virtual hardware. The cloud architect ensures the technology stack is robust, resilient, and cost-effective.

1. AUDITS: 

   • DoD Vulnerability Management System:

   • CCRI execution in:

     1. Vulnerability assessments

     2. Security auditing of networks, applications, and IT frameworks.

     3. Penetration testing

   • Command Cyber Readiness Inspection (Audits): 

     1. * IAM (Azure Entra ID: MFA, Conditional Access, Least Privilege, SSO, etc.)

     2. Tenable scan analysis (Nessus, SCCM) 

     3. * Operating Systems (Azure Entra ID: Windows, Unix)

     4. * Boundary defense (Azure Entra ID, Azure Policy: network policy, router, firewall)

     5. Internal defense (L2 switch, L3 switch)

     6. * DNS (VMs) (Azure Entra ID, Azure Policy: Policy, BIND/Windows)

     7. HBSS (remote console, AV, ABM, PA, HIPS, ePO)

     8. Traditional security (Common, Basic, NCV, SCV)

     9. Wireless communications (BES, handhelds)

2. Azure Well-Architected Framework (WAF): Set of guiding tenets for architectural excellence to evaluate the quality of specific workload or app after it has been adopted. -- 5 key pillars: (1) Reliability (2) Security (3) Cost Optimization (4) Operational Excellence, and (5) Performance Efficiency. -- See "MS CAF."

3. CMMC Level 2 (Advanced): Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). To design, implement, and secure the Azure and M365 GCC High environment to meet the NIST SP 800-171 controls. Architecting for Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) isolation. -- Tools: Azure Policy & Azure Blueprints, to ensure IAM.

   • Level 1 Foundation -- Federal Contract Information (FCI). This is information provided by or generated for the Government under a contract. 15 security practices drawn from the FAR 52.204-21 (Basic Safeguarding of Covered Contractor Information Systems). Annual Self-Assessment. 

   • Level 2 (Advanced) -- Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). 110 security controls from NIST SP 800-171. Self-Assessment or Third-Party Assessment (C3PAO) every 3 years. 

   • Level 3 (Expert) -- Highly Sensitive CUI (Protection against Advanced Persistent Threats). 110 controls from Level 2 + 24 controls from NIST SP 800-172. Government-Led Assessment every 3 years. 

4. DFARS: Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS). A set of regulations that apply to all contracts and subcontracts with the DoD. -- VALUE: To ensure that the DoD receives quality supplies and services at fair prices while protecting national security and sensitive defense information. 

5. MS Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF): [Cloud Adoption w/ Azure WAF] A collection of documentation, guidance, best practices, and tools designed to help businesses create and implement the business and technology strategies for cloud adoption. -- Lifecycle (4): (1) Strategy/Guidance Plan. (2) Foundation Readiness: Prep Azure Landing Zones (pre-configured environment). (3) Adoption & Innovation: Deploy workloads, Migrate & Modernize. (4) Ongoing Governance & Management: Est. policies; Implement Security, Define and manage the operating model (cloud or hybrid).  

6. NIST SP 800-171: To protect CUI (Controlled Unclassified Information) in Non-federal Systems and Organizations.  

7. USE CASE:

   • CMMC -to- CSSP/MSP Team's NOC/SOC -- (1) Have the proper documents in place, System Security Plan (SSP), SOP for monitoring and incident response, and a Configuration Management Plan. (2) Ensure Azure monitoring tools are in place, Azure Sentinel (for SOC) and Azure Monitor (for NOC/Engineering), fully configured and alerting policies are tuned before final sign-off. 

   • Design a Cloud Solution (ex: for DIB client to CMMC) -- Align with Azure WAF. The architecture must be flexible, use modular services (small, indie-components: microservices. API, SOA, K8s) and configuration-as-code (CaC), to adapt to CMMC updates. -- To get CaC, use Azure App Configuration (app settings), Azure Policy (enforce PaC rules), and Azure Blueprints (template package w/ IaC, PaC, & CaC inside a package)    

1. Azure Container Apps (ACA): A serverless microservices hosting platform designed to host and deploy containerized applications and microservices. It is suitable for applications that require dynamic scaling, often utilizing KEDA-supported autoscaling.

2. Azure Container Registry (ACR): (🖐️) A private, managed registry service for storing and managing your Docker container images and related artifacts securely. It is the secure repository that stores the application's container image, which both ACA and AKS pull from to perform the deployment. -- Use Case: USAF Target App, AKS pulls data from ACR to deploy. 

3. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) / Docker: (🖐️) A fully managed Kubernetes service that simplifies the deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications using the open-source Kubernetes system. It is the ideal orchestrator for modern, scalable microservices architectures. -- Use Case: USAF, to deploy the whole app across the Intelligence Community to work in independent environments. The data is pulled from ACR. 

• AV-2:

  1. Customer Data: Database; Cloud; Log Files; and Backups. -- How to Protect Data: (1) Minimize Use (2) Conduct privacy assessments (3) Use tokens (4) De-identify info (5) Anonymize info (no trace).

  2. PII (Personal Identifiable Info) -- Name, Address, Email, SSN, Drive Lic.; Bank Info, Phone#, Fingerprint, etc. -- PHI (Personal Health Info).

  3. Privacy by Design -- Putting privacy before things go wrong. -- 7 Steps: (1) Proactive not reactive; preventive not remedial. (2) Privacy as the default. (3) Privacy embedded into design. (4) Full functionality – positive-sum, not zero-sum. (5) End-to-end security – full lifecycle protection. (6) Visibility and transparency – keep it open. (7) Respect for user privacy – keep it user-centric.

  4. States of Data: In Use; In Transit, and At Rest.

• Azure Cosmos DB (No SQL): (Semi-Structured) A globally distributed, multi-model NoSQL database service that provides high availability and guaranteed low-latency access to data anywhere. It is essential for highly scalable applications like personalized recommendation engines.

• Azure Databricks: (🖐️) A fast, Apache Spark-based analytics platform optimized for the cloud, providing a collaborative environment for large-scale data engineering. It performs heavy-duty work like cleansing, transforming, and structuring raw data.

• Azure Data Factory: (🖐️) For building and orchestrating complex data integration pipelines (ETL/ELT). It moves and transforms data between various sources and destinations for analysis. 

  1. -- Use Case: USAF Target App: ETL (Extract-Transfer-Load) data from various TS/SCI servers for the USAF Target App.

  2. Extract: Copying or collecting raw data from its source system (e.g., databases, files, applications).

  3. Transform: Cleaning, structuring, and manipulating the raw data according to business rules. Removing duplicates/errors), formatting, and aggregating the data to make it consistent and suitable for analysis.

  4. Load: Writing the transformed data into the final target system, where it will be stored and used for business intelligence, reporting, and analytics.

• (S) Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 / Azure Blob Storage: (Unstructured) Storage for files in their native format (images, videos, PDFs, raw logs). ADLS Gen2 is optimized for big data analytics.

• Azure SQL Database: (Structured) A fully managed, relational database service in Azure. It is used to host structured data and provides built-in capabilities for high availability, patching, and backups. 

• Azure Stream Analytics: A real-time, serverless analytics engine that processes high volumes of fast-moving data. It is key for analyzing and acting on incoming data streams for immediate decision-making. 

• Azure Synapse Analytics An integrated analytics service that brings together data warehousing and big data processing. It is used to analyze vast amounts of data quickly to drive data-driven insights.

• Canonical Data Model (CDM): (1) A design pattern used in Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) and data architecture. (2) It is a single, agreed-upon data model that defines core business entities (like Customer, Order, or Product) with a common set of attributes, data types, and relationships. -- Use Case: In Excel, using the right columns. 

• MS Purview (Microsoft Purview) A unified data governance solution that helps you manage and govern your data across on-premises, multi-cloud, and SaaS. It provides data cataloging, lineage, and audit trails to ensure compliance and security.

1. Azure Bicep / Terraform: Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools used to automate the deployment of Azure resources. Bicep is a declarative language for Azure, and Terraform is a multi-cloud tool.

2. Azure DevOps / Azure Pipelines A suite of services for continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) that automates the software build, test, and deployment process. Azure Pipelines is the orchestration engine for running automated checks and deployments.

3. Azure Key Vault A service for centralized secrets management. It allows applications to retrieve secrets at runtime, preventing hard-coding of sensitive data into the source code.

4. Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates: The native deployment and management service for Azure. It allows you to create, update, and delete Azure resources in a single, coordinated operation using declarative templates. 

5. Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets: Used to deploy and manage a set of identical Virtual Machines (VMs) that can automatically increase or decrease based on load. This is used for traditional scaled-out Applications on an IaaS platform. 

6. GitHub Advanced Security Provides native Static Application Security Testing (SAST), secret scanning, and dependency scanning for code repositories, integrating security early into the development process ("shift-left").

7. MS Defender for DevOps A centralized dashboard for tracking security findings and posture across CI/CD pipelines.

1. Azure Key Vault A cloud service for securely storing and managing access to secrets, such as cryptographic keys, certificates, and API keys. It prevents sensitive information from being hardcoded in applications and enforces security controls.

2. Azure Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) A system that manages access "specific" to Azure resources by assigning roles to users, groups, and applications. It enforces the principle of "least privilege," ensuring entities only have the permissions necessary for their specific tasks.

3. MS Entra ID: (formerly Azure AD) Microsoft's cloud-based Identity and Access Management (IAM) service. It manages access to resources for users and applications, enabling security features like Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) and Single Sign-On (SSO).

4. MS Entra Conditional Access: A policy engine that evaluates user attributes and security risks before granting access to resources. It helps enforce strong security controls by requiring extra authentication steps under specific conditions. 

5. MS Entra ID PIM (Privileged Identity Management) A service that manages and controls access to privileged roles. It implements a least-privilege access model by providing just-in-time (JIT) access that expires after a defined time. 

Review -- ICAM, IAM, IDAM, PAM, etc.

1. Azure Data Factory: (🖐️) For building and orchestrating data integration pipelines (ETL/ELT: Extract, Transform, Load). Moves and transforms data between various sources and destinations for analysis. -- Use Case: USAF Target App: ETL data from various TS/SCI servers for the USAF Target App.

   • Extract: Copying or collecting raw data from its source system (e.g., databases, files, applications).

   • Transform: Cleaning, structuring, and manipulating the raw data according to business rules. Removing duplicates/errors), formatting, and aggregating the data to make it consistent and suitable for analysis.

   • Load: Writing the transformed data into the final target system, where it will be stored and used for business intelligence, reporting, and analytics.

2. Azure App Service A fully managed Platform as a Service (PaaS) offering for quickly building, deploying, and scaling web applications, REST APIs, and mobile backends. It handles infrastructure management, letting developers focus on their code.

3. Azure Cosmos DB A globally distributed, multi-model NoSQL database service that provides high availability and guaranteed low-latency access to data anywhere. It is used for highly scalable applications like personalized recommendation engines and real-time data ingestion.

4. Azure Event Hubs: A highly scalable data streaming platform and event ingestion service. It can capture millions of events per second from various sources, making it essential for processing real-time data from IoT devices and applications. 

5. Azure Functions A serverless compute service that runs small, event-triggered code snippets (microservices) without provisioning or managing infrastructure. It's ideal for automating tasks and integrating systems by only running code when needed.

6. Azure Front Door A global, scalable entry-point that uses the Microsoft edge network to create fast, secure, and widely scalable web applications. It provides traffic routing, caching to improve performance, and Web Application Firewall (WAF) capabilities.

7. Azure Migrate A centralized hub for assessing, planning, and executing the migration of on-premises workloads (servers, databases, web apps) to Azure. It provides tools to help recommend a strategic approach (Rehost, Refactor, Rearchitect).

8. Azure OpenAI: Use in streamlining AI development and native Azure integration. 

9. Azure Redis Cache: A secure, dedicated cache service based on the popular open-source Redis. It is used to store frequently accessed data in memory, significantly improving the performance and reducing the load on databases. 

10. Azure Service Bus: A reliable cloud messaging service that enables asynchronous communication between decoupled applications and microservices. It is used to handle transactional messaging and ensure order delivery for reliability. 

11. Azure Synapse Analytics An integrated analytics service that brings together data warehousing, big data processing, and unified insights. It is used to analyze vast amounts of data quickly to drive data-driven insights and innovation.

1. Azure Application Gateway: (🖐️🖐️) Layer 7 (Application Layer, HTTP/HTTPS). Manages apps & microservices inbound web traffic services like (More than a LB, a Global LB w/ Web App Firewall (WAF), Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), Caching/Acceleration, & Intelligent Routing) capabilities, SSL termination / offloading, and cookie-based session for web traffic. -- Use Case: [D] USAF Target App to IC.

2. Azure Front Door: (🖐️) [External Global LB / Number of servers?] A global, scalable entry-point that uses the Microsoft edge network. It provides global HTTP/HTTPS load balancing and site acceleration to distribute web traffic across multiple regions for optimal performance and high availability. 

3. Azure Load Balancer: (🖐️🖐️) [Int/Ext Public LB] This is a Layer 4 (Transport Layer) Distributes incoming traffic across resources within the same Azure region and within a single virtual network. It is used for high-performance and low-latency scenarios at the network level.

4. Azure Traffic Manager: (🖐️🖐️) [Internal Global DNS LB / Number of servers?] DNS-based load balancing that directs user traffic to the nearest endpoint based on performance, priority, or geographic location.

1. Azure Container Apps A serverless platform designed to host containerized applications and microservices for dynamic scaling, often utilizing KEDA-supported autoscaling.

2. Azure Functions: (🖐️) A serverless compute service for running small, event-triggered code snippets (microservices) without provisioning or managing the underlying infrastructure. It's used for real-time data processing and automating tasks, only running code when needed.

3. Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) / Docker: (🖐️) A fully managed Kubernetes (K8s) service that simplifies the deployment, scaling, and management of containerized app using the open-source K8 system. An orchestrator for modern, scalable microservices architectures. -- Use Case: Distribute / Deploy USAF Target app to the IC (CIA, NSA, NASIC, Navy, Army, NATO).

1. Azure Database Migration Service (DMS): (🖐️) A specialized tool for simplifying and automating the process of migrating various database sources to Azure data platforms (like Azure SQL Database) with minimal downtime. 

2. Azure Data Box: A physical device for large-scale data transfers, ideal for moving extensive datasets to Azure when bandwidth is a limitation. 

3. Azure Migrate: (🖐️🖐️)  A centralized hub for assessing, planning, and executing the migration of on-premises workloads (servers, databases, web apps) to Azure. It helps with the strategic evaluation and Rationalization of the application portfolio. -- Use Case: Navy, migrate workloads from on-prim to Azure.

4. Azure Site Recovery: A service that manages and orchestrates disaster recovery for your apps and workloads. Used for SRE, it is often part of a Migration strategy to "Lift-and-Shift" with built-in resiliency.

5. Azure Storage Migration Service: (🖐️) Migrating data from on-premises storage to Azure Blob storage, ensuring data integrity and security during the transfer. 

6. USE CASE:

   • CMMC -to- CSSP/MSP Team's NOC/SOC -- (1) Have the proper documents in place, System Security Plan (SSP), SOP for monitoring and incident response, and a Configuration Management Plan. (2) Ensure Azure monitoring tools are in place, Azure Sentinel (for SOC) and Azure Monitor (for NOC/Engineering), fully configured and alerting policies are tuned before final sign-off. 

   • FCI -to- CUI -- Use of a segregated cloud enclave within Azure Government (GCC High) for CUI storage and processing. Use Azure VNets, Azure Network Security Groups (NSGs), and leverage MS Information Protection (MIP) to classify and protect CUI wherever it resides, and ensure DFARS compliance. -- FCI (Federal Contract Info=Not Public), CUI (Controlled Unclass Info).

   • Migrate to the Cloud GCC High (Gov. Community Cloud High) -- See "Network" Category

   • M365 Commercial Tenant -to- M365 GCC (High) -- Ensure a design where all data and services processing CUI are within the boundary of the GCC environment, adjust licenses, app integration, and Azure services selection.

Migrate from "On-Premises" to "Azuer Cloud."

• BLUF:

• Tools to Consider:

  1. Azure Entra ID (Azure AD): Manage user access via IAM, MFA, SSO, Least Previlage.

  2. Azure Backup: Backup and restore data in Azure.

  3. Azure Security Center: Enhance security posture and compliance.

• STEPS: (10)

  1. Assessment and Planning -- (Evaluate Workloads & Applications before Migrating)

     • Evaluate current workloads and applications.

     • Use Azure Migrate: Centralized hub for assessing and planning migration.

  2. Inventory and Rationalization -- (Inventory -- AppRat)

     • Create an inventory of applications and databases.

     • Use Azure Migrate: Helps rationalize application portfolio.

  3. Prepare the Environment -- (Accounts -- Resources)

     • Set up Azure accounts and resource groups.

     • Use Azure Entra ID, aka Azure AD): Manage resources in Azure: Instances, Subscriptions, VNet, VM, Load Balancing, Storage, etc.

  4. Data Migration Strategy -- (Database Transfer)

     • Choose the right method for data transfer.

     • Use Azure Database Migration Service (DMS): Automates database migration with minimal downtime.

  5. Large-Scale Data Transfer -- (Large Data Transfer)

     • For extensive datasets, consider physical transfer.

     • Use Azure Data Box: Physical device for large data transfers.

  6. Application Migration -- (Migrate Applications -- Disaster Recover)

     • Migrate applications using a "Lift-and-Shift" approach.

     • Use Azure Site Recovery: Orchestrates disaster recovery and migration.

  7. Storage Migration (Migrate Storage)

     • Move on-premises data to Azure Blob storage.

     • Use Azure Storage Migration Service: Ensures secure data transfer.

  8. Testing and Validation -- (Monitor & Test)

     • Test migrated applications and data for integrity.

     • Use Azure Monitor: Monitor performance and health.

  9. Go Live -- (Validation)

     • Switch over to the Azure environment.

     • Ensure all services are operational.

  10. Post-Migration Optimization -- (Cost & Performance)

      • Optimize costs and performance in Azure.

      • Use Azure Cost Management: Manage and optimize spending.

• GOVERNANCE:

  1. Microsoft Purview: (🤓) A unified data governance solution that helps you manage and govern your on-premises, multi-cloud, and SaaS data. It enables data mapping, document discovery, and document classification to ensure data governance and security controls are in place for these items.

• MONITORING:

• Continuously monitor network performance using (🖐️🖐️) (1) Azure Monitor (The central hub for all observability. It collects, analyzes, and acts on metrics, logs, and traces from all your Azure resources (VMs, apps, networks, etc.). and (1.1) Azure Network Watcher (for monitoring, diagnosing, and gain insights into your Azure network infrastructure). (1.2) Azure Monitor Network Insights (a feature within Azure Monitor that pulls everything together.) 

• OBSERVABILITY:

  1. USE CASE:

     • Ensure Observability & Security -- (1) Use Azure Monitor (for logging and monitoring) (2) Azure Sentinel (to centralize all security logs). -- VALUE: This provides the SOC team with threat detection and the NOC/Engineering team with operational metrics, ensuring all logs meet the retention and protection requirements of CMMC. 

1. Data On-Premises into Azure (Know the Needs).

   • -- Express Route: Keep data off the internet.

   • -- Site2Site VPN: Put data in the Internet, low budget.  

2. >> Start << Azure Virtual Networks (VNets):

   • Isolate resources using VNets to enhance security and organization.

   • Justification: This allows for controlled communication between resources and external networks.

3. Subnets (Implement):

   • Divide VNets into subnets to segment resources based on their roles (e.g., web, application, database).

   • Justification: This improves management, security, and traffic flow.

4. Azure Network Security Groups (NSGs):

   • Apply NSGs to control inbound/outbound traffic at the subnet and network interface level.

   • Justification: Helps enforce least privilege access and protect resources from unauthorized access.

5. Azure Firewall & Azure VPN Gateway:

   • Use Azure Firewall for centralized network security and Azure VPN Gateway for secure connections to on-premises networks. -- Justification: Ensures secure communication channels and protects against threats.

6. Azure Bastion (Consider):

   • Implement Azure Bastion for secure RDP/SSH access to VMs without exposing them to the internet.

   • Justification: Enhances security by eliminating the need for public IPs on VMs. -- AV-1:  RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol, TCP Port 3389; SSH (Secure Shell, TCP Port 22)

7. Design for High Availability & Fault Tolerance:

   • Use Azure Availability Zones (pre-config data center resources) and Azure Load Balancers to distribute traffic and ensure service continuity. -- Justification: Mitigates the impact of potential failures and improves resilience.

8. >> STOP << Monitor and Optimize:

   • Continuously monitor network performance using (1) Azure Monitor (The central hub for all observability. It collects, analyzes, and acts on metrics, logs, and traces from all your Azure resources (VMs, apps, networks, etc.). and (1.1) Azure Network Watcher (for monitoring, diagnosing, and gain insights into your Azure network infrastructure). (1.2) Azure Monitor Network Insights (a feature within Azure Monitor that pulls everything together.) -- 

   • Justification: Helps identify bottlenecks and optimize configurations for better performance.

9. DoD Cloud Impact Levels (IL):

• IL2 -- Non-Controlled Unclassified Information -- Accommodates public or non-critical mission information that is approved for public release or requires a minimal level of access control. -- FedRAMP Moderate. 

• IL4 -- Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) -- Protects CUI, Non-CUI, and Non-National Security Systems (NSS). CUI here requires protection from unauthorized disclosure that would cause serious adverse effects to a mission. -- FedRAMP Moderate + DoD Overlays.

• IL5 -- Higher-Sensitivity CUI & NSS -- Designed for higher-sensitivity CUI, Mission-Critical Information, and Unclassified National Security Systems (NSS). Requires stricter controls, including stronger tenant separation and U.S. person access controls. -- FedRAMP High + DoD Overlays.

• IL6 -- Classified Information -- Reserved for classified information up to the Secret level. This level requires the most stringent security measures, including physical isolation of the environment. -- Dedicated DoD Controls.

1. Azure Container Apps Although a container service, it operates on a serverless model. It automatically scales based on HTTP traffic or events (KEDA-supported autoscaling).

2. Azure Event Grid A fully managed pub/sub messaging service used to implement asynchronous, event-driven communication patterns. It decouples services to enhance resilience and allows components to react in near real-time.

3. Azure Functions A serverless compute service that runs small, event-triggered code snippets, perfect for automating small, repetitive tasks. It provides automatic, real-time scaling.

4. Azure Logic Apps A low-code/no-code service to create automated, serverless workflows integrating applications, data, and services across cloud and on-premises systems.

5. Azure Stream Analytics: A real-time, serverless analytics engine that processes high volumes of fast-moving data from sources like IoT devices and event hubs. It's used for real-time dashboarding and alerting in operational scenarios. 

1. Azure Availability Zones (AZ) Physically separate data centers within an Azure region that provide high availability and fault tolerance for applications and data.

2. Azure Monitor: (🖐️🖐️) The main tool for Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), providing a comprehensive solution for collecting, analyzing, and acting on telemetry data (metrics and logs). It is used to set up alerts and visualize system health (SLOs: Service Level Objectives).

   • Azure Log Analytics / Azure Workbooks / Azure Dashboards: Components of Azure Monitor used for specific SRE tasks: Log Analytics for querying logs, Workbooks for flexible data analysis & reporting, and Dashboards for visualizing key metrics (SLOs/SLIs: Service Level Indicators).

   • Azure Monitor for Application Insights A feature of Azure Monitor that provides application performance management (APM) for web applications, offering a comprehensive view of the user experience.

3. Azure Site Recovery: A service to manage and orchestrate disaster recovery for your applications and workloads. It ensures business continuity by replicating VMs and keeping business apps running during major outages.

1. Azure Backup A service to store the archived data in Geo-Redundant Storage (GRS) for long-term, tamper-proof retention. It ensures the data is safe and secure to meet legal and compliance requirements.

2. Azure Blob Storage: [Unstructured] A general-purpose, scalable object storage solution for unstructured data like text or binary files. It offers different Tiers (Hot, Cool, Archive) that can be used to optimize storage costs based on data access frequency. ~ BLOB (Binary Large Objects)

3. (DB) Azure Cosmos DB (No SQL): (Semi-Structured) A globally distributed, multi-model NoSQL database service that provides high availability and guaranteed low-latency access to data anywhere. It is essential for highly scalable applications like personalized recommendation engines.

4. Azure Data Box: A service that provides purpose-built appliances to securely transfer large amounts of data to Azure without using the internet. It is ideal for large-scale, one-time data ingestion or initial backup transfers. 

5. Azure Data Lake Storage (ADLS) Gen2: [Unstructured] A unified, highly scalable storage repository (images, videos, PDFs, raw logs, etc.) optimized for big data analytics workloads.

6. Azure Files Provides simple, secure, and fully managed file shares in the cloud that are accessible via the standard Server Message Block (SMB) protocol.

7. Azure File Sync: A solution that centralizes your organization's file shares in Azure Files while keeping the flexibility, performance, and compatibility of an on-premises file server. It enables hybrid-cloud caching and disaster recovery. 

8. Azure NetApp Files An enterprise-grade, high-performance file storage service, used for demanding workloads like SAP and high-performance computing.

9. (DB) Azure SQL Database: (Structured) A fully managed, relational database service in Azure. It is used to host structured data and provides built-in capabilities for high availability, patching, and backups. 

10. Azure Storage Actions: A feature used to automate lifecycle management for data in Azure Storage Accounts. It is used to automatically move older data to cooler or archive tiers to optimize cost. 

1. Azure Firewall: (🖐️) Provides threat intelligence and filtering for all cloud workloads. It is used to centrally create, enforce, and log application and network connectivity policies. 

2. Azure Information Protection: (🖐️) Classifies, labels, and protects documents and emails. It allows for persistent protection that stays with the data, regardless of where it is stored or shared. 

3. Azure Landing Zone (ALZ): Pre-configured solution with specific foundation for scale, security, governance, networking, and IAM (DinD). 

4. Azure Network Security Group (NSG): OSI Layers 3 & 4 (Network & Transport). Acts as a virtual firewall for controlling traffic at the subnet or VM/network interface level. Enforces "Least Privilege" principle. Port 80 for HTTP, Port 22 for SSH. Protocol TCP, UDP, ICMP. Traffic is Inbound or outbound. Actions are Allow or Deny.   

5. Azure Policy: (🖐️) To create, assign, and manage policies to enforce organizational standards and compliance. It prevents the creation of resources that do not meet your required security or regulatory baselines.

6. Azure Private Link: (🖐️) Giving to access to Azure PaaS services (like Storage or Key Vault) and Azure-hosted services over a private endpoint in your virtual network. This keeps traffic off the public internet for enhanced security. -- Use Case: External stakeholders access to the USAF Target App.

7. Azure Site Recovery: (🖐️) Manages and orchestrates disaster recovery for your applications and workloads. It ensures business continuity by replicating VMs and keeping business apps running during major outages.

8. Azure Virtual Network (VNet): (🖐️) A private network in Azure, providing an isolated network boundary. It enables Azure resources to securely communicate with each other, the internet, and on-premises networks. -- Use Case: The USAF Target App is n a private network (VNet).

9. GCC (High): Government Community Cloud (High) is a highly specialized, isolated, and tightly controlled cloud environment provided by Microsoft. -- For highly sensitive data, like Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) -- Use Case: Used in the creating of the USAF Target App. 

   • -- Tools (Foundation): MS Entra ID (MFA, Conditional Access, Role Based Access Control=RBAC), Azure VMs, Azure Storage (Blobs, Files, Queues, Tables), Azure VNet, VPN Gateway, ExpressRoute (for compliant network connectivity) 

   • -- Tools (Standard/M365 G5/E5 for GCC High): MS Entra ID P2: Advanced identity protection, Privileged Identity Management (PIM), Identity Protection. Azure Information Protection (AIP) Used for classifying and protecting (encrypting) sensitive data like CUI using sensitivity labels. MS Defender for Endpoint: Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) for devices in the GCC High boundary. MS Defender for O365 P2: Advanced threat protection for email (phishing, safe links/attachments). MS Defender for Cloud Apps (MCAS): Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) to manage and monitor access and activities in cloud apps. MS Purview Compliance Suite: Tools like Data Loss Prevention (DLP), Advanced eDiscovery, and Insider Risk Management, all configured to meet the stringent CMMC and DFARS requirements.    

10. Microsoft Defender for APIs: A focused security tool for threat protection and enterprise-grade security controls for your application programming interfaces (APIs). It monitors traffic and detects anomalous behavior to protect data and backend services. 

11. Microsoft Defender for Cloud (formerly Azure Security Center) A unified security posture management and threat protection service for workloads running in Azure, on-premises, and other clouds. It helps strengthen your security posture by providing a secure score and actionable recommendations.

12. Microsoft Purview: (🖐️) A unified data governance solution that helps you manage and govern your on-premises, multi-cloud, and SaaS data. It enables data mapping, document discovery, and document classification to ensure data governance and security controls are in place for these items.

13. Microsoft Sentinel: (🖐️🖐️) (formerly Azure Sentinel) A cloud-native Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) and SOAR (Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response) solution. It uses AI to detect and investigate threats across your enterprise and automate security responses.

14. USE CASE:

    • CMMC -to- CSSP/MSP Team's NOC/SOC -- (1) Have the proper documents in place, System Security Plan (SSP), SOP for monitoring and incident response, and a Configuration Management Plan. (2) Ensure Azure monitoring tools are in place, Azure Sentinel (for SOC) and Azure Monitor (for NOC/Engineering), fully configured and alerting policies are tuned before final sign-off. 

    • FCI -to- CUI -- Use of a segregated cloud enclave within Azure Government (GCC High) for CUI storage and processing. Use Azure VNets, Azure Network Security Groups (NSGs), and leverage MS Information Protection (MIP) to classify and protect CUI wherever it resides, and ensure DFARS compliance. -- FCI (Federal Contract Info); CUI (Controlled Unclass Info).

    • Secure a Web App --  Use a pre-configured Azure Landing Zone (ALZ) with a Hub-Spoke VNet topology in GCC High. The web app would be secured behind an Azure Application Gateway (WAF) and Azure Firewall (Hub). Azure Key Vault would manage secrets, and Azure Security Center (Azure Defender for Cloud) would provide continuous monitoring... and align with NIST controls. 

Security Layers (Defense-in-Depth: Protect Everything in the Cloud). (6) 

-- BLUF: Protecting Network (Secured), Apps/Websites (Protected), Data (Info Encrypted), and Storage (Files & Documents Locked).

1. Layer 1 -- (Network) -- First line of defense - Blocks bad traffic before it enters your network.

   • DDoS Attack Shield: (Protects: Network) -- Stops massive floods of fake traffic that try to crash the website. -- Azure DDoS Protection (Distributed Denial of Service).

   • Main Security Gate (Protects: Network) -- A security checkpoint - inspects everything coming in and blocks suspicious activity -- Azure Firewall.

   • Website Bodyguard (Protects: Application) -- Protects websites from hackers trying common attacks like SQL injection. -- Azure Web Application Firewall (WAF).

2. Layer 2 -- (Applications & Data) -- Controls who can access applications and data.

   • Identity Checker (Protects: Applications and Data) -- Verifies users with passwords plus text codes (2-factor authentication) to prove they are who they say they are. -- IAM, MS Entra ID (MFA). 

   • Secret Vault (Protects: Applications) -- Secure safe for passwords, API keys, and certificates - nothing stored in code where hackers can find it. -- Azure Key Vault.

3. Layer 3 -- (Network & Applications) -- Inside, everything is separated & controlled.

   • Admin Only Door (Protects: Network & Applications) -- Secure entrance for IT staff only - no public access allowed. -- MS Entra ID Privileged Identity Management (PIM) and Conditional Access. 

   • Private Tunnel (Protects: Network) -- Encrypted connection from the office to Azure - like a private highway. -- Azure ExpressRoute or Azure VPN Gateway (Site-to-Site VPN, Hybrid Connection). 

   • Traffic Rules (Protects: Network & Applications) -- Controls which parts of the system can talk to each other - limits damage if one part is compromised. -- Network Security Groups (NSGs: For Micro-segmentation) and Azure Firewall. 

4. Layer 4 -- (Applications) -- The software runs in protected environments.

   • Website Platform (Protects: Applications) -- Secure hosting with automatic security updates and SSL certificates for HTTPS. -- Azure App Service (for web apps). 

   • Business Logic Platform (Protects: Applications) -- Isolated environment where the business applications run safely. -- Azure App Service Environment (ASE) or Isolated/VNet-integrated App Service Plan. 

   • App Health Monitor (Protects: Applications) -- Watches for crashes, slow performance, or suspicious behavior in the apps. -- Azure Monitor (especially Application Insights).

5. Layer 5 -- (Data & Storage) -- Sensitive information is encrypted and locked.

   • Encrypted Database (Protects: Data) -- Customer information is scrambled so even if stolen, it is unreadable. -- Azure SQL Database w/ Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) and Always Encrypted. 

   • Encrypted File Storage (Protects: Storage) -- All files encrypted with your own special key - Microsoft cannot even read them. -- Azure Storage Service Encryption with Customer-Managed Keys (CMK), using Azure Key Vault). 

   • Private Connection (Protects: Data & Storage) -- Keeps database connections private inside Azure - never touches the public internet. -- Azure Private Link (using Private Endpoints). 

6. Layer 6 -- (Everything is Protected) -- Always watching for threats and ensuring compliance.

   • Threat Detection (Protects: Everything) -- Scans for vulnerabilities and alerts about security issues. -- MS Defender for Cloud (specifically its Vulnerability Assessment w/ CSPM (Cloud Security Posture Mgmt: The "Inspector" to Monitor, Compliance, Remediation), CWPP (The "Bodyguard" Cloud Workload Protection Platform: Protects from Malware, Vulnerability Mgmt, Mico-segmentation). 

   • Security Brain (Protects: Everything) -- AI-powered system that detects and responds to threats attacks automatically. -- MS Sentinel (SecInfoEventMgmt/Security Orchestration (SIEM/SOAR), Automation, and Response) and Microsoft Defender XDR. 

   • Performance Watcher (Protects: Everything) -- Tracks system health and alerts when something goes wrong. -- Azure Monitor (with Metrics and Alerts) and Azure Network Watcher. 

   • Rule Enforcer (Protects: Everything) -- Ensures security rules are followed and nothing gets deployed without encryption. -- Azure Policy and Azure DevOps/GitHub Actions (as part of a secure deployment pipeline).