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Azure Managed Identities

Managed identities can be used to manage Azure resources without using hardcoded credentials - removing the need to enter credentials from a VM (or other resources such as Azure Functions) that are accessing resources the managed identity has been given access to. There are two types of managed identities - User Assigned and System Assigned. User assigned can be used by multiple resources and system assigned is tied to one specific VM (resource). User assigned is created as a Managed Identity that can be assigned to multiple VMs.

tip

System-assigned managed identities are ideal for scenarios where one resource is involved and the identity is not required long-term. For example, if the resource is deleted, the managed identity would follow the lifecycle of that resource and be deleted along with it. User-assigned managed identities are ideal for scenarios that involve managing multiple resources and in cases where the identity needs to outlive the resource(s).

Creating a System Assigned managed identity​

  1. Navigate to Home > Virtual Machines > VM > Identity.
  2. Under the System assigned tab, toggle Status to On.
  1. Navigate to Home > Resource Groups > [ Resource group ] > Access control (IAM)
  2. + Add > Add role assignment
  3. Select a Role, select members (managed identity), Review + assign.
  4. Use RDP (Remote Desktop) to connect to the VM.
  5. Open PowerShell (Admin) and type the following command to automatically connect (without manually entering credentials) to the Azure resources the VM has access to via System managed identity with the following command: az login --identity
  6. Type az group list to verify access to the resource group.

Creating a User Assigned managed identity​

  1. Navigate to Home > Managed Identities.
  2. Select + Create, fill out the necessary information.
  1. Select Review + Create > Create.
  2. Repeat the following steps for each VM that will be configured with User assigned managed identity.
    1. Navigate to Home > Virtual Machines > VM > Identity.
    2. Under the User assigned tab, select + Add. Select the previously created managed identity.
    1. Select Add.
  3. Navigate to Home > Resource Groups > [ Resource group ] > Access control (IAM).
  4. + Add > Add role assignment.
  5. Select a Role, select members (managed identity), Review + assign.
  6. Use RDP (Remote Desktop) to connect to the VM.
  7. Open PowerShell (Admin) and type the following command to automatically connect (without manually entering credentials) to the Azure resources the VM has access to via System managed identity with the following command: az login --identity.