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Tutorial: Create a lab and VM and add a user in DevTest Labs

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This tutorial shows Azure DevTest Labs administrators how to use the Azure portal to:

  • Create a lab in DevTest Labs.
  • Add an Azure virtual machine (VM) to the lab.
  • Add a user to the DevTest Labs User role.
  • Delete the lab resources when no longer needed.

If you're a developer, tester, or trainee, see Access a lab in Azure DevTest Labs to learn how to claim and connect to lab VMs.

Prerequisites

Create a lab

To create a lab, follow these steps. For more information, see Quickstart: Create a lab in the Azure portal.

  1. In the Azure portal, search for and select DevTest Labs.

    Screenshot of searching for DevTest Labs in the portal.

  2. On the DevTest Labs page, select Create. The Create DevTest Lab page appears.

  3. On the Basic Settings tab, provide the following information:

    • Subscription: Change the subscription if you want to use a different subscription for the lab.
    • Resource group: Select an existing resource group from the dropdown list, or select Create new to create a new resource group so it's easy to delete later.
    • Lab name: Enter a name for the lab.
    • Location: Change the location if you want to use a different Azure region for the lab.
    • Artifacts storage account access: You can select whether the lab uses a user-assigned managed identity or a shared key to access the lab storage account. To use a user-assigned managed identity, select it from the dropdown list. Otherwise, keep the option set to Storage account Shared Key.
    • Public environments: Leave On for access to the DevTest Labs public environment repository, or set to Off to disable access. For more information, see Enable public environments when you create a lab.

    Screenshot of the Basic Settings tab of the lab creation form.

  4. Optionally, select the Auto-shutdown, Networking, and Tags tabs at the top of the page, and customize those settings. You can also apply or change most of these settings after lab creation.

  5. After you complete all settings, select Review + create.

  6. Once Succeeded appears on the Review + create page, review the settings and then select Create.

    Tip

    Select Download a template for automation at the bottom of the page to view and download the lab configuration as an Azure Resource Manager (ARM) template. You can use the ARM template to create more labs. For more information, see Quickstart: Use ARM templates to create labs in Azure DevTest Labs.

  7. After the lab creation process finishes, select Go to resource from the deployment notification.

    Screenshot of the DevTest Labs deployment notification.

Add a VM to the lab

To add a VM to the lab, follow these steps. For more information, see Create lab virtual machines in Azure DevTest Labs.

  1. On the new lab's Overview page, select Add on the toolbar.

    Screenshot of a lab Overview page with Add highlighted.

  2. On the Choose a base page, search for and select a Windows Server 2019 Datacenter base for the VM. Some of the following options might be different if you use a different image.

  3. On the Basic Settings tab of the Create lab resource screen, provide the following information:

    • Virtual machine name: Keep the autogenerated name, or enter another unique VM name.
    • User name: Keep the autogenerated user name, or enter another user name to grant administrator privileges on the VM.
    • Use a saved secret: You can select this checkbox to use a secret from Azure Key Vault instead of a password to access the VM. For more information, see Store secrets in a key vault. For this tutorial, deselect the checkbox.
    • Password: Enter a VM password between 8 and 123 characters long.
    • Save as default password: Select the checkbox to save the password in the Key Vault associated with the lab.
    • Virtual machine size: Keep the default value for the base, or select Change Size to select a different size.
    • Allow hibernation: You can select this checkbox to enable hibernation for this VM. For this tutorial, keep the checkbox deselected.

      Note

      If you enable hibernation, you must also select either Public or Private for IP Address in the Advanced settings, because hibernation for Shared IPs isn't currently supported.

    • OS disk type: You can select a disk type from the dropdown list. For this tutorial, keep the default value.
    • Artifacts: You can select Add or Remove Artifacts to select and configure artifacts to add to the VM. For more information, see Add artifacts.

    Screenshot of the Basic Settings tab for creating a VM.

  4. Optionally, select the Advanced Settings tab to change any of the following settings:

    • Virtual network: Keep the default, or select a network from the dropdown list. For more information, see Add a virtual network.
    • Subnet: If necessary, select a different subnet from the dropdown list.
    • IP address: Leave at Shared, or select Public or Private. For more information, see Understand shared IP addresses.
    • Expiration date: Leave at Will not expire, or set an expiration date and time for the VM.
    • Make this machine claimable: The default of No keeps the VM creator as the owner of the VM. For this tutorial, select Yes to allow any lab user to claim the VM after creation. For more information, see Create and manage claimable VMs.
    • Number of instances: To create more than one VM with this configuration, enter the number of VMs to create.
    • View ARM template: Select this button to view and save the VM configuration as an Azure Resource Manager (ARM) template. You can use the ARM template to deploy new VMs.

    Screenshot of the Advanced Settings tab of lab resource creation page.

  5. You can also select the Tags tab to apply tags to the VM. After you configure all settings, select Create at the bottom of the screen.

    During VM deployment, you can select the Notifications icon at the top of the screen to see progress. Creating a VM takes a while.

After the VM is created, select Claimable virtual machines under My Lab in the left navigation of the lab Overview page to see the VM listed on the Claimable virtual machines page. Select Refresh if the VM doesn't appear. To take ownership of a VM in the claimable list, see Use a claimable VM.

Screenshot of the lab Claimable virtual machines page.

Add a user to the DevTest Labs User role

To add users to a lab, you must be a User Access Administrator or Owner of the subscription the lab is in. For more information, see Add lab owners, contributors, and users in Azure DevTest Labs.

  1. On the lab's Overview page in the Azure portal, under Settings, select Configuration and policies.

  2. On the Configuration and policies page, select Access control (IAM) from the left navigation.

  3. Select Add > Add role assignment.

    Screenshot of the Access control (IAM) page with the role assignment menu open.

  4. On the Role tab of the Add role assignment page, select the DevTest Labs User role, and then select Next.

    Screenshot of the role assignment page with the Role tab selected.

  5. On the Members tab, select Select members.

  6. On the Select members screen, select the user or users to assign to the DevTest Labs User role, and then select Select.

  7. Select Review + assign and then select Review + assign again to assign the role.

To share a link to the lab with your users, go to the lab home page in the Azure portal and copy the URL from your browser. Share the copied link with your lab users.

Lab users must have a Microsoft account, but they don't need an Azure account. If a lab user isn't a member of your Active Directory, they might see an error message when they try to access the shared link. If that happens, ask the user to first select their name in the upper-right corner of the Azure portal. They can then select the directory where the lab exists from the Directory section of the menu.

Clean up resources

You can use this lab for the next tutorial, Access a lab in Azure DevTest Labs, or for other uses. When you're done using the lab, delete it and its resources to avoid further charges.

  1. On the lab Overview page, select Delete from the top menu.

    Screenshot of the lab Delete button.

  2. On the Are you sure you want to delete it page, enter the lab name, and then select Delete.

    During the deletion process, you can select Notifications at the top of your screen to view progress. Deleting a lab can take a while.

Deleting the lab removes all of the lab resources from the resource group. If you created the resource group for the lab, you can now delete the resource group. You can't delete a resource group that has a lab in it.

Deleting the resource group that contained the lab deletes all resources in the resource group. To delete the resource group:

  1. Select the resource group that contained the lab from your subscription's Resource groups list.
  2. At the top of the page, select Delete resource group.
  3. On the Delete a resource group screen, enter the resource group name, and then select Delete.

Related content

To learn how to access the lab and VMs as a lab user, go on to the next tutorial:

Tutorial: Access the lab