Microsoft Azure is a cloud platform that offers everything you need to build, host, automate, and scale your applications. Whether you’re starting a new project or modernising an existing system, Azure provides powerful services that cover the full lifecycle — from development and deployment to storage and background processing.
In this article, we’ll walk through the key Azure services like App Services, DevOps, Databsases, Storage, Functions, and more — and show how they fit together in a real-world application example.
Key Azure Services to Build Your Full Infrastructure
1. Azure App Services
What it does: Fully managed platform for running web apps, APIs, and backend services.
Use case: Host your main website and your API endpoints.
Example: Host a React front-end alongside a C# (.NET) Web API for handling user requests.
2. Azure DevOps
What it does: Provides CI/CD pipelines, Git repos, project boards, test plans, and artifact storage.
Use case: Build, test, and deploy your applications automatically.
Example: When a developer pushes a new update, Azure Pipelines automatically builds the C# API and deploys it to App Services.
3. Azure Tables (Table Storage)
What it does: A NoSQL key-value store that is simple, scalable, and cost-effective.
Use case: Store flexible, structured data that doesn’t need relational joins.
Example: Store user preferences, app settings, or lightweight user session logs.
4. Azure Queues (Queue Storage)
What it does: A simple messaging system for decoupling components.
Use case: Allow background jobs to process tasks without slowing down the main application.
Example: After a user uploads a photo, a message is queued to kick off background processing.
5. Azure Functions
What it does: A serverless compute service that runs small pieces of code on demand.
Use case: Perform background tasks, lightweight APIs, or event-driven processing.
Example: A function automatically resizes images after they are uploaded.
6. MongoDB (Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB API)
What it does: Azure provides fully managed MongoDB databases, allowing you to work with familiar Mongo APIs while leveraging Azure’s scalability.
Use case: Handle more complex, hierarchical, or relational-like data structures.
Example: Store user accounts, posts, comments, and relationships in a flexible schema.
7. Azure Application Insights
What it does: Deep application performance monitoring, alerting, and logging.
Use case: Track server response times, exceptions, and user behavior.
Example: Diagnose why your API is slow under certain loads and find performance bottlenecks.
9. Azure AD B2C (Authentication)
What it does: A highly customisable identity and access management service for your applications.
Use case: Provide secure authentication and user management for both customer-facing and internal apps.
Example:
When a user tries to access the app, they are redirected to Azure AD B2C to log in or sign up.
After successful authentication, the user is issued a JWT token.
The Web App and C# API validate the JWT to ensure only authenticated users access protected resources.
User profile details (e.g., email, username) are stored in MongoDB for use within the application.
Example App: Photo Sharing Platform – “SnapSpace”
Imagine you’re building SnapSpace, a simple but scalable photo-sharing app where users can upload images, comment, and like posts. Here’s how you could structure it entirely on Azure:
Web App and API
The front-end (React, Angular, etc.) is hosted in Azure App Services.
The backend is a C# Web API, also hosted on App Services.
Both integrate with Azure AD B2C for user authentication.
CI/CD with Azure DevOps
Developers commit code to Azure Repos.
Azure Pipelines builds the C# Web API and deploys it to production automatically.
Unit and integration tests run automatically during builds.
Data Storage
MongoDB is used to store users, posts, and comments in flexible JSON documents.
Azure Table Storage is used for fast-access, lightweight data such as user settings and activity logs.
Message Queuing and Background Jobs
When a user uploads a photo:
Metadata (user ID, file path) is stored in MongoDB.
The image itself is uploaded to Azure Blob Storage.
A message is placed into an Azure Queue indicating a new image needs processing.
Azure Functions:
Listen to the Queue.
Resize images for thumbnails.
Check for inappropriate content (using Cognitive Services if needed).
Update the MongoDB document once processing is complete.
Monitoring and Security
Azure Application Insights:
Tracks performance metrics, failures, request rates, and diagnostics.
Azure Key Vault:
Stores MongoDB credentials, Azure AD B2C secrets, and other sensitive settings securely.
Benefits of This Architecture
Scalability: App Services and Functions can auto-scale to meet traffic spikes.
Resilience: Queues decouple heavy tasks, preventing front-end timeouts.
Maintainability: CI/CD pipelines ensure rapid, safe deployments.
Security: Authentication is handled via Azure AD B2C, and secrets are centrally managed.
Cost-Effectiveness: Pay-as-you-go pricing ensures low costs for startups and flexibility for scaling.
Final Thoughts
Running an entire application stack on Azure is not only possible — it’s often the best choice for speed, scalability, and operational efficiency. By combining App Services, DevOps, MongoDB, Table Storage, Queues, Functions, Azure AD B2C, Application Insights, and Key Vault, you can build robust, cloud-native apps quickly and securely.
The real power of Azure comes from how these services integrate seamlessly, allowing you to focus on innovating your product instead of worrying about infrastructure.
Why Digital Republic is Your Azure Partner
At Digital Republic, we don’t just use Azure — we build on it, innovate with it, and push it to its full potential.
Our teams have deep, hands-on experience creating scalable, high-performance applications entirely within the Azure ecosystem. From dynamic front-end platforms and robust APIs to serverless processing, secure authentication, and intelligent monitoring — we know how to weave Azure’s services together to create seamless, future-proof solutions.
Whether you’re launching a new idea, scaling your operations, or modernising legacy systems, Digital Republic brings:
Proven expertise across the full Azure stack.
A track record of successful cloud-native project delivery.
A focus on security, scalability, and performance from day one.
Ready to build smarter, faster, and stronger with Azure?
Digital Republic is here to make it happen.