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If you have no computer science degree and no cloud experience to put on your résumé, start by building one: a small résumé website that you deploy and improve in stages. The Cloud Resume Challenge turns an abstract goal—learning Azure—into a project you can show, explain, and extend. It cannot guarantee an interview, but it gives you a concrete first step and a way to demonstrate practical skills.
Why this is a useful first project
In the original article, published on DEV Community and identified there as originally published at CAMPUX, the author Victor describes moving from helicopter flying into enterprise IT and later Azure work. That is his account of his own path, not a promise that one project will produce the same outcome for someone else.
The project is useful because it connects several cloud concepts in a single, visible result. You can start with a static page and gradually add hosting, a serverless API, persistent storage, browser-to-API communication, and automated deployment. Each stage gives you something functional to discuss instead of requiring you to learn every service before you begin. Victor’s Cloud Resume Challenge article
Build it in stages, starting with the résumé
- Create a simple résumé site. Write the content in HTML and style it with CSS. Keep the first version small: contact details you are comfortable publishing, a concise summary, relevant experience, and skills. Commit the work to version control so you can show how it developed.
- Deploy the static site. Put it on Azure Static Web Apps and make sure the public page works before adding more services. The Free plan supports custom domains and automatically renewing TLS certificates, according to Microsoft’s plan documentation. It has limits and no SLA, so treat it as a personal-project option rather than a production guarantee. Microsoft’s Azure Static Web Apps plans
- Connect a domain and check HTTPS. A custom address makes the project easier to share. Verify that the domain resolves and the site loads over HTTPS. “Free” describes a possible Azure configuration, not every cost: buying a domain costs money, and usage or optional services can add charges. Microsoft also documents the Free plan’s features and limits in its Azure Static Web Apps FAQ.
- Add a visitor counter API. Build a small HTTP-triggered function, first testing it locally, then deploy it. A counter is a practical way to learn how a webpage calls a serverless endpoint, but a count that increments on each page load is not a reliable tally of unique human visitors. Bots, repeat visits, and refreshing the page can all increase it.
- Persist the count. Connect the function to storage so the count survives function restarts and deployments. This is the point where you can explain how the browser, API, and database fit together, rather than presenting a counter that resets whenever its in-memory state disappears.
- Call the API from the webpage. Fetch the counter from the browser and display the result. If the page and API have different origins, configure Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) appropriately; browsers restrict cross-origin requests unless the API permits them.
- Automate deployment. Add a CI/CD workflow so changes can be built and deployed consistently. Victor recommends using federated identity through OpenID Connect (OIDC) rather than embedding a long-lived client secret in the workflow. That reduces reliance on a static secret, but you still need to configure identity and permissions correctly. The challenge sequence and author’s recommendations
- Consider infrastructure as code afterward. Once you understand the working resources, you can recreate them with Bicep or Terraform. This is a suggested learning progression, not a requirement for completing a useful first version.
Choose hosting with the domain and certificate path in mind
For a personal résumé project, Azure Static Web Apps Free is a relatively direct route to a hosted static site with custom-domain support and automatically renewing TLS certificates. The plan’s limits and lack of an SLA matter if you are considering a service that must meet availability commitments. Check current quotas and pricing before deployment; do not assume that a free plan makes the entire setup free.
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Be careful when following older tutorials that use Azure Storage static website hosting with a custom domain and HTTPS through a CDN. Azure CDN Standard from Microsoft (classic) no longer supports new domain onboarding or managed certificates. Microsoft lists September 30, 2027 as that product’s retirement date; the restrictions on onboarding and managed certificates are distinct from the retirement date. Microsoft’s CDN comparison and Microsoft’s CDN TLS documentation describe the lifecycle details.
Azure Front Door is another possible route, but it can change the economics of a small portfolio site. Microsoft’s example pricing lists a $35 monthly base fee for Azure Front Door Standard; that is not a guaranteed total bill. Region-specific pricing, requests, and data transfer can affect the cost. Check the current price for your region and estimate your usage with Microsoft’s Azure Front Door pricing documentation before choosing it.
Keep the project inexpensive and safe to leave running
Plan for a low-cost configuration, but verify the actual services and meters you enable. Check quotas and pricing, set a budget alert, and inspect optional telemetry or log ingestion charges rather than leaving them unexamined. The free-tier label alone does not establish that every component or usage pattern will cost nothing. Victor’s article also recommends keeping an eye on costs as you build.
Make the project easy to evaluate
A working page is only part of the portfolio. Make it straightforward for another person to understand what you built and how to inspect it:
- Write a short README describing the architecture and deployment steps.
- Keep the repository organized so the site, function, workflow, and infrastructure are easy to find.
- Explain what the counter measures. Do not label page-load increments as unique visitors.
- Include the choices you made and the issues you solved, especially around storage, CORS, identity, and deployment.
- Remove secrets and private information from the repository and public résumé.
The sequence teaches useful portfolio skills—hosting, serverless APIs, storage, CORS, and deployment automation. Completing it is evidence of a project you can discuss, not a measured employment outcome or a guarantee of an interview.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to build first
Build the smallest complete version: a résumé page, deployed to Static Web Apps, with a custom domain and HTTPS if those fit your budget and needs. Then add the function, persistence, browser integration, and automated deployment one step at a time. This keeps the first milestone achievable while leaving room to demonstrate progressively deeper Azure skills.
For a guided walkthrough, Victor’s article points readers to CAMPUX’s free bootcamp and longer explanation: the Cloud Resume Challenge article on DEV Community. Treat it as a learning resource, and check Microsoft’s current service documentation for changing features, limits, and prices.
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