Python Flask Web Application Deployment to Azure

This project demonstrates how to containerize a Python Flask application and deploy it to Azure using Infrastructure as Code (Bicep) and GitHub Actions.

Development Process Steps

1. Container Development and Local Testing

First, I developed and tested the application locally:

# Build the container
docker build -t myapp .

# Run and test locally
docker run -p 5000:5000 myapp

# Test in browser: http://localhost:5000

2. Infrastructure Development

After confirming the container works, I built the infrastructure in steps:

1. Created main.bicep with basic resource structure:

   • Key Vault
   • Container Registry
   • Web App

2. Developed individual module files in /modules:

   • key-vault.bicep: Stores ACR credentials securely
   • container-registry.bicep: Hosts our container images
   • web-app.bicep: Runs our containerized application

3. GitHub Actions Workflow

Created .github/workflows/workflow.yaml with three main stages:

1. Infrastructure Deployment Stage

   • Deploys all Bicep templates
   • Creates/updates Azure resources
   • Sets up RBAC permissions

2. Run Tests Stage

   • Builds the Docker image
   • Runs tests on the container
   • Exits with error if tests fail

3. Container Build & Push Stage

   • Builds the Docker image
   • Tags with git SHA
   • Pushes to Azure Container Registry

4. Web App Deployment Stage

   • Pulls latest image from ACR
   • Deploys to Azure Web App
   • Updates container configuration

How to Use This Project

Prerequisites

• Azure Subscription
• GitHub Account
• Docker Desktop
• Azure CLI

Deployment Steps

1. Fork/Clone the Repository

2. Update Parameters Replace all instances of dkumlin with your identifier in:

   // main.parameters.json
   {
     "keyVaultName": { "value": "yourname-kv" },
     "containerRegistryName": { "value": "yourname-cr" },
     "webAppName": { "value": "yourname-webapp" }
   }

3. Configure GitHub Secrets Add to your repository:

   • AZURE_CREDENTIALS
   • AZURE_SUBSCRIPTION

4. Update Workflow Variables In .github/workflows/workflow.yaml:

   env:
     KEY_VAULT_NAME_DEV: "yourname-kv"
     CONTAINER_REGISTRY_SERVER_URL_DEV: "yournamecr.azurecr.io"
     IMAGE_NAME_DEV: "yourname-app"
     WEB_APP: "yourname-webapp"

5. Deploy

   • Push to main branch
   • GitHub Actions will handle the deployment

Project Structure

├── .github/workflows/
│   └── workflow.yaml        # CI/CD pipeline
├── modules/
│   ├── key-vault.bicep      # Key Vault infrastructure
│   ├── container-registry.bicep  # ACR infrastructure
│   └── web-app.bicep        # Web App infrastructure
├── main.bicep              # Main infrastructure template
├── main.parameters.json    # Infrastructure parameters
└── Dockerfile             # Container image definition

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Resource Name Conflicts

   • Ensure all resource names are unique
   • Update parameters with your unique identifiers

2. Container Registry Access

   • Verify Key Vault contains correct ACR credentials
   • Check service principal has proper permissions

3. Web App Deployment

   • Check container logs in Azure Portal
   • Verify container image exists in ACR
   • Confirm Web App configuration matches container

Useful Commands

# Check container locally
docker build -t myapp .
docker run -p 5000:5000 myapp