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Azure Noob
Real cost optimization and governance strategies for enterprise Azure environments managing 31,000+ assets.
The harsh truth: Microsoft's native cost tools are designed for visibility, not action. Azure Cost Management shows you what you spent—but it doesn't tell you why you're spending it or how to fix it at scale.
After managing 31,000 Azure resources at a regional bank, I've learned that successful FinOps requires three things Microsoft doesn't give you:
This hub contains the strategies, KQL queries, and governance frameworks I've built to make Azure FinOps actually work in production. No theory. Just battle-tested solutions.
Start here: how Azure billing actually works and why your reports are wrong.
2025-12-10
Azure FinOps guide for 31,000+ resource environments: tag governance that survives 18 months, chargeback models business units accept, and cost visibility at application level (not subscription). Includes real banking industry implementation.
2025-09-24
Azure Cost Management often conflicts with how businesses track spend. Here's why your cost reports never align and how to fix it at scale.
2025-10-11
Azure bills at the subscription level—but the business thinks in terms of applications. Here's how to realign cost models for reality.
2024-01-01
Azure Cost Management has too many blades, scopes, and exports. Learn the core workflows you actually need to make FinOps sustainable.
Tag strategies, policies, and automation for enterprise Azure.
2025-09-23
Azure tagging best practices for 2025 - Enterprise guide to tag governance, cost allocation, Azure Policy enforcement, and preventing the 247 variations problem at scale.
2025-10-16
A chargeback/showback model built on tags that finance, app owners, and cloud teams can all live with—without 47 competing cost spreadsheets.
2025-10-31
How to turn Azure tags from 'nice to have' into enforceable governance using Azure Policy, deny/modify effects, and remediation so teams can’t slip around your standards.
2025-11-30
One tag key. 247 different spellings. $2.3M in cost allocation failures. Real lessons from enterprise Azure tag governance: why Azure Policy isn't enough and the automation that finally stopped tag chaos across 31,000 resources.
2025-11-24
What happens when an enterprise ends up with 100,000+ tag variations, why it happens in the real world, and how to systematically clean it up without breaking production.
Join cost data with resource metadata and tags using KQL and Azure Resource Graph.
2025-01-15
Complete KQL reference for Azure admins: 51 production-tested queries for VM inventory, cost analysis, security audits, and compliance reporting. Includes joins, operators, performance tips, and Resource Graph examples. Free PDF download with syntax highlighting.
2025-09-23
Azure VM inventory workbook with copy-paste KQL: track 200+ resource types across 40+ subscriptions in one view. Includes Update Manager compatibility check, Intune separation, and Databricks exclusion. Free workbook template.
How to talk about Azure spend with finance and executives.
2024-01-01
Executives don’t care about vCores or storage accounts. Learn how to translate Azure costs into a business narrative leaders actually understand.
2025-11-25
Azure OpenAI pricing reality: $2 demo becomes $4,000/month in production. Complete 2025 pricing ($0.002-$0.06 per 1K tokens), hidden $1,836/mo hosting fees, token calculator, and cost optimization strategies Microsoft's calculator doesn't show.
Production-ready code and tools
Download the Azure Integration Assessment Framework
Excel template • Instant download
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