Lab 09: Implement Web Apps

Objective: This lab introduces Azure Web Apps. You'll create a web app, deploy a simple "Hello World" application from GitHub, configure a staging slot, swap slots, and configure autoscaling.

Scenario: Your organization is migrating on-premises websites to Azure. You'll explore using Azure Web Apps (part of Azure App Service) to host a PHP-based website, replacing aging on-premises hardware.

Key Concepts:

Azure Web Apps: A fully managed platform-as-a-service (PaaS) for hosting web applications. Supports various languages and frameworks (e.g., .NET, PHP, Node.js, Java, Python).
App Service Plan: Defines the compute resources (VM size, number of instances) allocated to your web app. Determines pricing and scaling capabilities.
Deployment Slots: Separate environments (e.g., staging, production) within a single web app. Allow you to test changes before deploying them to production.
Deployment Center: Manages deployments to your web app, supporting various sources like GitHub, Azure Repos, and local Git.
Autoscaling: Automatically adjusts the number of instances in your App Service plan based on demand (e.g., CPU usage).
Swapping Slots: A zero-downtime deployment technique. Traffic is redirected from one slot (e.g., staging) to another (e.g., production) with minimal interruption.

Lab Tasks

Task 1: Create and Configure an Azure Web App (5 minutes)

Sign In: Log in to the Azure portal (https://portal.azure.com).
Create Web App: Search for and select "App Services" and click "+ Create" -> "Web App."
- Basics:
  - Name: WebApp48965394 (or a unique name) - This will be part of your web app's URL.
  - Publish: Code
  - Runtime stack: PHP 8.2
  - Operating System: Linux
  - Pricing plan: Premium V3 P1v3 (This is important for autoscaling later)
  - Zone Redundancy: accept the defaults.
- Click "Review + create," then "Create."

Go to Resource: Once deployed, click "Go to resource."

If the deployment failed, use another region. (e.g. Canada Central!)

Test Default Page: On the web app's "Overview" blade, click the "Default domain" link. You should see the default Azure App Service welcome page. Close the new browser tab.

Task 2: Create a Deployment Slot

Add Staging Slot:
- In your web app's resource, under "Deployment," select "Deployment slots."
- Click "Add slot."
  - Name: staging
  - Clone settings from: Do not clone settings
- Click "Add."
Verify Staging Slot URL: Click on the newly created staging slot. Note that it has a different URL than the production slot (it will include -staging in the name).

Task 3: Configure Web App Deployment Settings (5 minutes)

Deployment Center (Staging Slot):
- Important: Make sure you are on the staging slot's blade (not the production slot). You can verify by checking the URL or the name at the top of the blade.
- Under "Deployment," select "Deployment Center."
- Settings:
  - Source: External Git
  - Repository: https://github.com/Azure-Samples/php-docs-hello-world
  - Branch: master
- Click "Save."

Test Staging Slot:
- Go to the "Overview" blade of the staging slot.
- Click the "Default domain" link. You should see the "Hello World" application. This may take a minute or two to deploy; refresh the page if needed.

Task 4: Swap Deployment Slots

Swap Slots:
- Navigate back to the main web app's resource (not the staging slot). The easiest way is to use the breadcrumbs at the top of the portal.
- Under "Deployment," select "Deployment slots."
- Click "Swap."
- Verify that the Source is staging and the Target is production.
- Click "Start Swap."

Test Production Slot:
- Go to the "Overview" blade of the main web app (not the staging slot).
- Click the "Default domain" link. You should now see the "Hello World" application on the productionURL. The swap is complete.
- Copy the default domain URL - you will need it for load testing.

Task 5: Configure and Test Autoscaling

Configure Autoscaling:
- Go to the main web app's resource (not the staging slot).
- Under "Settings," select "Scale out (App Service plan)."
- Choose Automatic. Note the Rules Based option.
- Set the maximum burst field to 2 and cliock on save. ("maximum burst" refers to the maximum number of instances that an App Service Plan can scale out to during periods of high demand.)

Create a Load Test:
- In the left pane, select Diagnose and solve problems.
- In the "Load Test your App" box, select "Create Load Test."
- Click "+ Create" and give your load test a unique name.
- Select Review + create and then Create.
- Wait for the test to be created, select Go to resource.

Add HTTP Request to Load Test
- From the Overview | Add HTTP requests, select Create.
- On the "Test plan" tab, click "Add request."
- In the "URL" field, paste your "Default domain" URL (from Task 4, Step 2). Ensure it begins with https://.
- Click "Review + create," then "Create." (This may take a couple of minutes.)

Observe Test Results (Briefly):
- Review the test results, looking at "Virtual users," "Response time," and "Requests/sec."
- Click "Stop" to end the test. You don't need to wait for the full test to complete for the purposes of this lab. The goal is to initiate a load test, not to fully analyze its results.

Lab 09: Implement Web Apps

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Task 1: Create and Configure an Azure Web App (5 minutes)

Task 2: Create a Deployment Slot

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Task 4: Swap Deployment Slots

Task 5: Configure and Test Autoscaling

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Task 1: Create and Configure an Azure Web App (5 minutes)

Task 2: Create a Deployment Slot

Task 3: Configure Web App Deployment Settings (5 minutes)

Task 4: Swap Deployment Slots

Task 5: Configure and Test Autoscaling