Implement and manage service connections

In the world of DevOps, service connections play a vital role in connecting various external services with your pipelines, enabling seamless integration and automation. In this article, we will explore the process of implementing and managing service connections, a key topic covered in the Designing and Implementing Microsoft DevOps Solutions exam.

What are service connections?

Service connections are essentially a way to securely store credentials, access tokens, and other authentication details that allow your DevOps pipelines to interact with external services such as Azure, GitHub, Docker Registry, and more. These connections act as a bridge between your pipelines and the external resources they need to access.

Implementing a service connection:

To implement a service connection, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to your Azure DevOps Organization or Project.

2. Go to the Pipelines section and click on the “Service connections” tab.

3. Click on the “New service connection” button.

4. Choose the type of service connection you want to create. This could be Azure Resource Manager, GitHub, Docker Registry, or any other supported service.

5. Provide the required details such as connection name, authentication method, and respective details based on the selected service type. For example, if you choose Azure Resource Manager, you will need to provide the subscription ID, Azure AD tenant, and other authentication details.

6. Once you’ve provided all the necessary information, click on the “Save” button to create the service connection.

Managing service connections:

After creating a service connection, it’s crucial to understand how to manage and update them as needed. Here’s an overview of the key management tasks:

1. Updating service connection details:

To update the details of a service connection, follow these steps:

• Go to the Pipelines section and click on the “Service connections” tab.

• Locate the service connection you want to update and click on it.

• In the service connection details page, click on the “Edit” button.

• Modify the required details and click on the “Save” button to update the service connection.

2. Scoping service connections:

Sometimes you may want to limit the availability of a service connection to specific pipelines or pipeline stages. Azure DevOps allows you to scope service connections accordingly. To do this:

• Go to the Pipelines section and click on the “Service connections” tab.

• Locate the service connection you want to scope and click on it.

• In the service connection details page, click on the “Manage scopes” button.

• Specify the pipelines or stages where you want to limit the service connection and click on the “Save” button.

3. Revoking service connection access:

If you need to revoke the access of a service connection, follow these steps:

• Go to the Pipelines section and click on the “Service connections” tab.

• Locate the service connection you want to revoke access for and click on it.

• In the service connection details page, click on the “Delete” button.

• Confirm the deletion when prompted.

Conclusion:

Service connections are an essential element of any DevOps pipeline, enabling seamless integration with external services. In this article, we explored the process of implementing and managing service connections. By following the steps outlined above, you can easily create, update, scope, and revoke service connections in Azure DevOps. Remember, efficient management of service connections plays a crucial role in building robust and reliable DevOps solutions.