Getting started with Azure DevOps

By Chris Walden, Editor for TechNet UK

03/08/2021

An illustration of a cloud made of puzzle pieces, with a drawing of Bit the Raccoon to the right of the image.

Many believe that it’s difficult to get started with Azure DevOps, but that’s really not the case.

First of all, it’s any code, any platform. Azure DevOps can deploy to any cloud on-premise, and you can bring any code to our tooling. This means it’s not just for Windows developers, or .NET developers, but for everyone – be it multi-platform, open source, or your on-premise environment.

One thing it’s really great for is CICD – or Continuous Integration, Continuous Delivery – and it does this with automation. So things like infrastructure code, using third-party tools like Terraform, or deploying ARM templates into Azure, can all be done automatically. You can even look at automating your actual code with your developers using Azure pipelines.

Azure DevOps can also manage projects and tasks. It’s great for project managers to know what tasks exist, when they’re being assigned to each person, and when they’ve been completed. It’s also possible to see which tasks are creating blockers, so you can manage your workflow more effectively.

You can also maintain your project source code with Azure DevOps. You could host it in Azure Repos, which hosts it more locally in the cloud but as a local distribution, or you could use a central distribution model like GitHub. Whatever you choose, you can bring in your existing source as it is today and work with it within Azure DevOps.

Get started with Azure DevOps

With Microsoft Learn, you can kick off your journey into Microsoft DevOps with easy to understand training – and best of all, it’s free! This is the perfect way to work through new software.

Learn more about Azure DevOps

Already using Azure DevOps and want to go further? Whether it’s learning something new within Azure DevOps or becoming certified, there’s plenty more to explore and discover.