Roles are nothing, but the servers are layman terms. Servers are managed, load-balanced, platform as a Service virtual machines that work together to achieve a common goal.
These roles are divided into three parts
Web Role: It is used to deploy a website, using the languages supported by the IIS platform (like PHP, .NET, etc.). It was configured and customized to run web applications.
Worker Role: It helps the web role to execute background processes, unlike the web Role, which is used to deploy the website.
VM Role: It can be used by a user to schedule tasks and other windows services. We can use the VM role to customize the machine on which the web and worker role is running.
In Microsoft Azure, a “role” typically refers to a set of permissions that define the actions a user, service, or resource is allowed to perform within a specific scope or resource. Azure uses role-based access control (RBAC) to manage access to Azure resources, allowing administrators to assign roles to users, groups, or applications based on their responsibilities and the principle of least privilege.
There are three primary types of roles in Azure RBAC:
- Built-in Roles: These are predefined roles with a specific set of permissions, such as Owner, Contributor, Reader, etc. Each built-in role has a specific set of actions associated with it.
- Custom Roles: Organizations can create custom roles with specific permissions tailored to their needs. This allows for more fine-grained control over access to Azure resources.
- Classic Roles: Some services in Azure still use classic roles, which are being phased out in favor of RBAC. However, it’s essential to be aware of them in case you encounter older Azure services.
Roles are assigned at different scopes, including the subscription, resource group, and individual resources. The permissions granted by a role are inherited down the hierarchy. For example, if a user is assigned a role at the subscription level, they automatically have those permissions for all resources within that subscription.
Managing roles in Azure is crucial for maintaining security, ensuring that users and services have the appropriate level of access needed to perform their tasks without granting unnecessary permissions.