What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
iTechGuides is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more
The Azure Cloud Resume Challenge turns Azure Fundamentals knowledge into a practical portfolio project: build a public resume website, add an API-backed visitor counter, and automate deployment. AZ-900 is the certification starting point—not a course that teaches you how to complete the project. The challenge provides a learning path, but its checklist is not proof that any particular builder deployed or tested the listed services.
What the Azure Cloud Resume Challenge asks you to build
The Azure edition starts with a resume written in HTML and styled with CSS, hosted as an Azure Storage static website. It then adds HTTPS delivery through Azure CDN and a custom domain whose DNS points to the CDN endpoint. The interactive element is a JavaScript visitor counter backed by a database, with an API between the browser and the database.
The challenge suggests Cosmos DB Table API for storage and Azure Functions with an HTTP trigger for the API. It then extends the project with a Python function, tests, ARM-template infrastructure as code, separate repositories for the site and backend, GitHub Actions deployment workflows for both, and a blog post describing what you learned. These are prescribed steps and suggested services, not evidence of a specific completed implementation. See the official Azure challenge instructions.
Free tools Windows power users keep installed
One-click scans. No signup required.
How the architecture fits together
The sequence moves from a simple public page to a small serverless application. Each layer has a distinct job:
#1 Best Overall
- Static website: HTML, CSS, and browser-side JavaScript make up the resume experience, served from Azure Storage static website hosting.
- HTTPS and domain: Azure CDN provides the delivery layer, while DNS for a custom domain is configured to point to the CDN endpoint. The challenge permits Azure DNS or another DNS provider.
- HTTP API: The page requests the visitor count from an Azure Function using an HTTP trigger. The browser talks to the API rather than connecting directly to the database.
- Persistence: The function reads or updates the count in a database; the challenge suggests Cosmos DB Table API.
- Tests and automation: Python implementation and tests make the backend behavior more repeatable, while an ARM template and GitHub Actions workflows address infrastructure and deployment.
Keeping the database behind the API is an important boundary: browser code is public, so it should not contain database credentials or be given direct database access. The official challenge specifies the API intermediary; decisions about exact permissions, secret handling, and implementation details depend on the deployed design.
What AZ-900 contributes—and what it does not
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals is a beginner credential covering cloud concepts, core Azure services, and Azure management and governance. Microsoft describes it as a common starting point for an Azure career. The certification can provide useful vocabulary for understanding cloud services, but passing the exam does not complete the challenge’s coding, testing, networking, or deployment work.
Microsoft lists the exam as 45 minutes and says its price depends on the country or region where it is taken. The Microsoft Learn certification page, updated July 20, 2026, provides the AZ-900 certification details, study guide, and practice assessment. The challenge’s own wording requires the AZ-900 certification on the resume; that is a project requirement, not a claim that the credential alone demonstrates the full project skill set.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →What you can demonstrate by completing it
The project can give you concrete material to discuss in a portfolio or interview: how a static frontend calls an API, how that API accesses persistent data, and how tests and deployment automation support changes. The Cloud Resume Challenge FAQ identifies broader learning areas including version control, infrastructure as code, automation, continuous integration and delivery, cloud services, serverless, application security, and networking.
Rank #3
The FAQ also makes clear that the challenge does not guarantee employment. Treat the finished project as evidence of applied learning and a source of interview examples—not as a substitute for the certification, work experience, or a hiring commitment. The official FAQ says the core challenge is free to access. Its optional guidebook offers additional guidance, but is not required to follow the steps.
Choosing services and keeping costs in perspective
The Azure instructions describe a suggested architecture, not the only valid way to meet the learning objectives. The FAQ allows builders to use different providers or tools when they achieve each step’s objective. When adapting the design, compare the equivalent services, the security boundary between browser, API, and database, the control or abstraction you need, and whether the project demonstrates skills relevant to your target role.
The challenge page characterizes low-use serverless storage and functions as free or close to free, and says a domain usually costs about ten dollars to register. Those are rough descriptions, not a current quote or a measured project bill. Actual charges vary with region, usage, configuration, and current service terms; estimate your own deployment against the provider’s current pricing before publishing it.
A useful way to approach the build
Work through the dependencies in order: get the resume page working, establish HTTPS and domain routing, add the API and database interaction, write tests, then automate infrastructure and deployments. Keep notes as you go on the services you actually chose, the permissions and secrets you configured, test coverage, failures you corrected, and the costs you observed. That record makes the final project description specific and distinguishes your implementation from the official checklist.
Best Value
The challenge page links an optional Azure guidebook edition alongside its free instructions. Microsoft’s study materials are separate: use the AZ-900 study guide and practice assessment to prepare for the certification, and use the challenge steps to build the portfolio project.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
