Hands-on – Create and deploy Azure App Service Plan and set the Scaling options

Creating and deploying an App Service Plan in Azure involves setting up the environment where your web app will run.

This includes selecting the hosting infrastructure (e.g., region, pricing tier) and configuring scaling options to handle your application's load.

Here's a step-by-step guide to create and deploy an App Service Plan along with setting scaling options.

Step 1: Create an App Service Plan

1. Sign in to Azure Portal

2. Navigate to "App Service Plans"

   • In the left-hand navigation pane, search for and select "App Service Plans".

3. Create a New App Service Plan

   • Click on + Add to create a new App Service Plan.

4. Configure the App Service Plan Settings

   • Subscription: Choose the Azure subscription you want to use.

   • Resource Group: Either create a new resource group or select an existing one.

   • Name: Provide a name for your App Service Plan.

   • Region: Choose the region where your app will be hosted (make sure it's close to your target audience).

   • Pricing Tier: Choose the pricing tier for your App Service Plan.

     • This determines the resources allocated to your app (e.g., Standard, Premium, or Consumption tier).

     • Each tier provides different features, performance, and scaling options.

5. Configure Scaling Options In the "Scaling" section, you can define the scaling rules for your App Service Plan:

   • Scaling Type: Choose between Vertical Scaling (changing the tier of the service) or Horizontal Scaling (changing the number of instances).

   • Instance Count: Choose the number of instances for your app.

     • This controls how many copies of your app will run simultaneously.

   • Autoscale: Configure autoscaling based on metrics such as CPU usage or memory usage (optional).

6. Review and Create

   • Review all your configurations.

   • Click on Create to deploy your App Service Plan.

Step 2: Create an App and Assign to the App Service Plan

Once your App Service Plan is created, the next step is to create a web app that will be hosted on this plan.

1. Create a Web App

   In the Azure portal, search for "App Services" and click + Add.

   Fill in the required details:

   • Subscription and Resource Group: Choose the same subscription and resource group as the App Service Plan.

   • Name: Provide a name for the web app (this will be part of the URL).

   • Publish: Select Code or Docker Container, depending on your deployment method.

   • Runtime Stack: Choose your web app's runtime stack (e.g., .NET, Node.js, Python).

   • Region: Choose the region that matches your App Service Plan.

2. Select the App Service Plan

   • In the App Service Plan dropdown, select the App Service Plan you created earlier.

3. Create the Web App

   • Click on Review + Create and then Create once everything looks good.

Step 3: Set Up Scaling Options

Scaling options allow you to automatically adjust the resources your application uses based on demand.

You can scale vertically (upgrade/downgrade the pricing tier) or horizontally (adjust the number of instances).

Horizontal Scaling (Scaling by Instance Count)

1. Navigate to the App Service Plan

   • Go to your App Service Plan in the Azure portal.

2. Configure Autoscaling

   • Under the Scaling section of the App Service Plan settings, click on Scale Out (App Service Plan).

   • You can either:

     • Manually set the instance count by specifying the number of instances.

     • Enable Autoscale: Configure autoscaling rules based on metrics like CPU usage, memory usage, or request count.

3. Configure Autoscale Settings

   • Click Enable Autoscale and define your scaling rules:

     • Scale In/Out by Metric: Select the metric (e.g., CPU, memory, HTTP request count) to trigger scaling.

     • Scaling Parameters: Set the range of scaling (e.g., minimum and maximum instance count) and thresholds for scaling up/down.

4. Save Autoscale Configuration

   • Click on Save to apply your autoscaling rules.

Vertical Scaling (Scaling by Pricing Tier)

If your app needs more power (e.g., more CPU, memory, or storage), you can scale vertically by changing the pricing tier.

1. Navigate to the App Service Plan

   • Go to your App Service Plan in the Azure portal.

2. Change Pricing Tier

   • In the Pricing tier section, click on Change size.

   • Choose a different pricing tier based on the scale of resources you need.

   • Click on Apply.

Step 4: Monitor the App and Scaling Behavior

To ensure that your scaling options are working correctly, you can monitor the performance of your web app:

1. Monitor Metrics

   • Navigate to the Metrics section under your web app in the Azure portal.

   • Track metrics like CPU usage, Memory usage, and HTTP requests to see if autoscaling is functioning properly.

2. Adjust Scaling Rules

   • If your app isn't scaling as expected, adjust your scaling rules to make them more aggressive or more conservative, depending on your needs.

Step 5: Deploy Your Web App

You can now deploy your web app to Azure App Service, using any of the following methods:

1. GitHub Actions or Azure DevOps Pipelines for CI/CD.

2. Azure CLI or Azure PowerShell for command-line deployments.

3. FTP/FTPS for manual deployments.

Summary of Scaling Options

1. Vertical Scaling: Change the tier of your App Service Plan for more resources (CPU, RAM, storage).

2. Horizontal Scaling: Increase or decrease the number of instances based on demand, or use autoscaling to automatically adjust the instance count.

3. Autoscale: Configure autoscaling based on metrics like CPU, memory, or request count to automatically add/remove instances.

By following these steps, you can create an App Service Plan, deploy a web app, and configure it to scale dynamically based on demand, ensuring it remains performant and cost-effective under varying traffic loads.