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title Phase 05: Cluster Deployment
sidebar_label Phase 05: Cluster Deployment
sidebar_position 5
description Deploy the Azure Local cluster using Azure Portal or ARM templates

Phase 05: Cluster Deployment

Runbook Azure

DOCUMENT CATEGORY: Runbook
SCOPE: Azure Local cluster deployment
PURPOSE: Deploy the cluster through Azure Portal or ARM templates
MASTER REFERENCE: Microsoft Learn - Deploy Azure Local

Status: Active Estimated Time: 1.5-3 hours Last Updated: 2026-03-08

Overview

This stage deploys the Azure Local cluster using the configured infrastructure. Deployment can be performed through the Azure Portal (GUI-based) or ARM templates (infrastructure-as-code). Azure Local Cloud supports both Active Directory and Local Identity authentication methods.

Deployment Methods

Storage Spaces Direct (S2D) — Hyperconverged

Method Authentication Use Case
Portal - Active Directory Domain-joined Standard enterprise deployment
ARM Template - Active Directory Domain-joined Automated/repeatable deployment
Portal - Local Identity Local accounts Edge/disconnected scenarios
ARM Template - Local Identity Local accounts Automated edge deployment

Storage Area Network (SAN) — Disaggregated

Method Authentication Use Case
Portal - Active Directory (SAN) Domain-joined SAN with enterprise AD
ARM Template - Active Directory (SAN) Domain-joined SAN with automated deployment
Portal - Local Identity (SAN) Local accounts SAN at edge without AD
ARM Template - Local Identity (SAN) Local accounts SAN with automated edge

:::info Choosing Your Storage Type

  • S2D (Hyperconverged): Local NVMe/SSD/HDD in each node, up to 16 nodes. Compute and storage scale together.
  • SAN (Disaggregated): External SAN via Fiber Channel, up to 64 nodes. Compute and storage scale independently. See SAN Deployment for prerequisites and FC patterns. :::

:::tip Azure Local Cloud Standard For Azure Local Cloud Azure Local deployments, Active Directory with ARM Template is the recommended approach for consistency and repeatability. :::

Prerequisites

All Deployment Methods

Requirement Validation
Arc registration complete (Phase 04) All nodes show "Connected" in Azure Portal
Network infrastructure configured Management, storage, and compute networks ready
Required Azure permissions Contributor + User Access Administrator on resource group
Storage infrastructure ready Physical disks and enclosures configured

Active Directory Deployments Only

Requirement Validation
AD pre-created with New-HciAdObjectsPreCreation OU exists, LCM user created in OU, GPO inheritance blocked at OU level
Nodes NOT pre-joined to domain (Get-WmiObject Win32_ComputerSystem).Domain returns WORKGROUP
DNS resolves the AD domain FQDN from all nodes Resolve-DnsName <domain.fqdn> succeeds on each node

Local Identity Deployments Only

Requirement Validation
Non-built-in local admin account with identical credentials on ALL nodes Account is NOT the built-in Administrator; login succeeds on each node
Azure Key Vault available Existing KV accessible, or will be created during portal deployment
DNS server with zone configured for cluster nodes Resolve-DnsName <node-fqdn> succeeds for each node

Deployment Workflow

graph TD
 A[Start Deployment] --> B{Authentication Type?}
 B -->|Active Directory| C[AD Pre-checks]
 B -->|Local Identity| D[Local Admin Setup]
 C --> E{Deployment Method?}
 D --> E
 E -->|Portal| F[Portal Wizard]
 E -->|ARM Template| G[ARM Deployment]
 F --> H[Validation]
 G --> H
 H --> I{Deployment Successful?}
 I -->|Yes| J[Phase 16: Post-Deployment]
 I -->|No| K[Troubleshooting]
 K --> E
Loading

Azure Portal Deployment Overview

The Azure Portal deployment wizard guides you through:

  1. Basics - Subscription, resource group, cluster name, region
  2. Configuration - Node configuration, witness, and storage settings
  3. Networking - Management, compute, and storage network settings
  4. Management - Update settings, key vault integration
  5. Tags - Resource tagging for governance
  6. Validation - Pre-deployment checks
  7. Review + Create - Final review and deployment

ARM Template Deployment Overview

ARM template deployments provide:

  • Repeatability - Consistent deployments across environments
  • Version Control - Track infrastructure changes in Git
  • Automation - Integrate with CI/CD pipelines
  • Compliance - Audit trail of infrastructure changes

:::info Azure Local Cloud ARM Templates Azure Local Cloud parameter templates are maintained in the Azure Local Toolkit:

Toolkit location: configs/azure/arm-templates/04-cluster-deployment/

  • azuredeploy.parameters.ad.json — Active Directory authentication
  • azuredeploy.parameters.local-identity.json — Local Identity authentication

Microsoft official template: Pull at deploy time from the Azure Quickstart Templates repository. Do not modify the main template — customize only via the parameters file. :::

Estimated Deployment Time

Phase Duration
Pre-deployment validation 15-30 minutes
Cluster deployment 45-90 minutes
Extension installation 15-30 minutes
Post-deployment validation 15-30 minutes
Total 1.5-3 hours

Next Steps

Select your deployment method:

S2D (Hyperconverged)

Authentication Method Link
Active Directory Portal Portal Instructions
Active Directory ARM Template ARM Template Instructions
Local Identity Portal Portal Instructions
Local Identity ARM Template ARM Template Instructions

SAN (Disaggregated)

Authentication Method Link
Active Directory Portal Portal Instructions (SAN)
Active Directory ARM Template ARM Template Instructions (SAN)
Local Identity Portal Portal Instructions (SAN)
Local Identity ARM Template ARM Template Instructions (SAN)

After completing cluster deployment, proceed to Phase 16: Post Deployment.

Navigation

Previous Up Next
Phase 14: Arc Registration Cluster Deployment Index Phase 16: Post-Deployment

References: