Cloud computing
Using computing resources like servers, storage, databases, networking, and software over the internet instead of owning and managing everything yourself.
Cloud glossary
Cloud terms without the vendor fog.
Cloud exams often feel harder because the vocabulary is unfamiliar. This glossary explains common Azure and cloud concepts in plain English so the words start matching real scenarios.
How to use this glossary
Learn terms as pairs, not isolated flashcards.
For AZ-900 and other cloud fundamentals exams, many questions test whether you can tell similar terms apart. Pay special attention to pairs like IaaS vs. PaaS, scalability vs. elasticity, authentication vs. authorization, and region vs. availability zone.
Glossary
Cloud basics
Public cloud
Cloud services offered by a provider like Microsoft Azure and shared across many customers while keeping each customer logically separated.
Private cloud
Cloud-style infrastructure dedicated to one organization, often used when control, compliance, or legacy requirements are strict.
Hybrid cloud
A setup that connects on-premises systems, private cloud, and public cloud resources so they can work together.
Multicloud
Using cloud services from more than one provider, such as Azure plus another public cloud.
Glossary
Service models
IaaS
Infrastructure as a Service. You rent virtual machines, storage, and networking while still managing the operating system, apps, and data.
PaaS
Platform as a Service. You focus on deploying apps while the cloud provider handles more of the operating system, runtime, and infrastructure management.
SaaS
Software as a Service. You use a complete application over the internet, such as email or collaboration software, without managing the underlying platform.
Serverless
A cloud model where you run code or workflows without managing servers directly. You usually pay based on executions or usage.
Glossary
Azure organization
Tenant
A dedicated Microsoft Entra ID instance for an organization. It stores users, groups, apps, and identity settings.
Subscription
A billing and management boundary for Azure resources. Resources are created inside subscriptions.
Resource group
A logical container used to organize related Azure resources so they can be managed together.
Management group
A higher-level container used to organize multiple subscriptions and apply governance at scale.
Azure region
A geographic area containing Azure datacenters where resources can be deployed.
Availability zone
A physically separate datacenter location within an Azure region, used to improve resiliency.
Glossary
Reliability and scale
Scalability
The ability to increase or decrease resources to meet demand.
Elasticity
Scaling resources automatically or quickly as demand changes, often scaling back down when demand drops.
High availability
Designing systems so they continue working with minimal downtime.
Fault tolerance
The ability for a system to keep working when a component fails.
Disaster recovery
Planning and technology used to restore services after a major outage or disaster.
SLA
Service Level Agreement. A provider commitment about uptime or service availability, often expressed as a percentage.
Glossary
Identity, security, and governance
Authentication
Proving who you are, usually with a username, password, multifactor authentication, or another identity method.
Authorization
Determining what an authenticated user, app, or service is allowed to access.
Microsoft Entra ID
Microsoft’s cloud identity and access management service, formerly called Azure Active Directory.
RBAC
Role-Based Access Control. A way to grant permissions based on roles assigned to users, groups, or service principals.
Shared responsibility
The security model where Microsoft secures the cloud infrastructure while customers remain responsible for things like data, identities, and configuration choices.
Policy
Rules used to enforce or audit requirements across Azure resources, such as allowed regions or required tags.
Compliance
Meeting legal, regulatory, or organizational requirements for security, privacy, data handling, and operations.
Glossary
Cost and operations
CapEx
Capital expenditure. Spending money upfront on assets like servers and datacenters.
OpEx
Operational expenditure. Ongoing spending for services as they are used, common in cloud billing.
Consumption-based pricing
A pricing model where you pay for what you use instead of buying fixed capacity upfront.
Azure Cost Management
Azure tools for monitoring, analyzing, budgeting, and optimizing cloud spending.
Monitoring
Collecting metrics, logs, and alerts so teams can understand the health and performance of systems.
Tags
Name-value labels applied to Azure resources to help organize costs, ownership, environments, or departments.
Independent training note
About this glossary
WebLizard Labs is independent training content. Microsoft, Azure, and related certification names belong to Microsoft. Use this glossary as a plain-English companion, and check Microsoft Learn for official product documentation and exam details.