> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://comunity.gitbook.io/learning.comunityplatform/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://comunity.gitbook.io/learning.comunityplatform/26.x/toolkit-tutorials/comunity-platform-azure-marketplace-deployment-guide.md). # ComUnity Platform - Azure Marketplace Deployment Guide ### Overview The ComUnity Developer Toolkit is available as a managed application on Azure Marketplace under the name **"City-as-a-Platform: Digital Service Platform for Cities (preview)"**. This guide walks you through deploying the toolkit from marketplace purchase to accessing your fully functional development environment. #### What Gets Deployed Your deployment creates a complete ComUnity Platform Toolkit **Development environment** including: * Virtual Machine hosting all platform components * SQL Server and databases for platform and project data * Container Apps Environment with observability stack (Grafana, Loki, Tempo, Prometheus) * Application Insights, App Configuration, and Key Vault * Networking components (Virtual Network, NSG, Public IP) * Approximately 30 Azure resources in total #### Deployment Timeline | Phase | Duration | | ---------------------------- | ----------------- | | Infrastructure provisioning | 10–15 minutes | | Toolkit installation scripts | 30–45 minutes | | **Total deployment time** | **45–60 minutes** | #### Available Plans Seven plans are available, scaled by target municipality size: | Plan | Target Use Case | | --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------ | | **Innovator** | Sandbox/testing environments (recommended for initial setup) | | **Town** | Small municipalities | | **Small City** | Small city deployments | | **Medium City** | Medium city deployments | | **Large City** | Large city deployments | | **Metropolis** | Metropolitan areas | | **Mega City** | Major metropolitan regions | {% hint style="info" %} All plans deploy identical toolkit resources. The difference is in billing structure. {% endhint %} ### Prerequisites #### Required Access & Permissions * ✓ **Azure Subscription** – Active subscription with Contributor or Owner role * ✓ **Azure Portal Access** – Logged in with the correct account * ✓ **Correct Directory** – Ensure you're in the correct Azure directory/tenant (the offer won't appear in wrong directory) #### Planning Information * ✓ Chosen Azure region for deployment (select closest to your users) * ✓ Resource group naming convention decided * ✓ Password ready (12+ characters with upper, lower, numbers, special characters) * ✓ 90 minutes available for deployment and initial setup ### Deployment Process #### Step 1: Access the Marketplace Offer 1. Log into Azure Portal at [portal.azure.com](https://portal.azure.com/) 2. **Verify your directory:** Check the directory indicator in the top right. Switch directories if needed. 3. Click **Create a resource** or navigate to Marketplace 4. Search for **"City-as-a-Platform"** or **"ComUnity"** 5. Select **"City-as-a-Platform: Digital Service Platform for Cities (preview)"** #### Step 2: Select Your Plan On the offer page, you'll see the plan selection dropdown with all seven options available:
1. Select your **Subscription** 2. Click the **Plan** dropdown to see all seven options 3. Select **Innovator** for testing (as recommended in the listing) 4. Click **Create** to proceed to the configuration form #### Step 3: Configure Basics Complete the **Basics** tab with the following settings: **Project Details** | Field | Action | | ------------------ | -------------------------------------------- | | **Subscription** | Select the Azure subscription for deployment | | **Resource group** | Click **Create new** and enter a name |
\ **Instance Details** | Field | Action | | -------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | **Region** | Select the Azure region closest to your users (e.g., South Africa North) | | **Password** | Enter a strong password (this is used for VM administrator access) | | **Confirm password** | Re-enter the password | {% hint style="warning" %} **Password Requirements:** Minimum 12 characters, must include uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters. **Save this password securely!** {% endhint %} **Managed Application Details** | Field | Action | | -------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Application Name** | Enter a unique name for your deployment | | **Managed Resource Group** | Auto-populated (e.g., `mrg-city-as-a-platform24_4-preview-20251201140556`). Cannot be edited. | | | |
Click **Review + create** to proceed. #### Step 4: Review and Create 1. Wait for Azure to complete *"Running final validation..."* 2. Review the configuration summary under **Basics** 3. Read the **Co-Admin Access Permission** section 4. Check the box: **"I agree to the terms and conditions above"** 5. Click **Create** to begin deployment\
{% hint style="info" %} The Co-Admin Access Permission grants ComUnity administrative access to your Azure resources for support and management purposes. {% endhint %} ### Monitoring Deployment #### Deployment Started After clicking Create, you'll see the deployment in progress notification:
#### Understanding the Resource Structure The deployment creates a nested structure: ``` Your Resource Group (e.g., JPGTestMarketplaceDec) └── Managed Application (e.g., JPGTestMarketPlaceApp) └── Managed Resource Group (e.g., mrg-city-as-a-platform24_4-preview-...) └── ~30 Platform Resources (VM, SQL, Container Apps, etc.) ``` #### Viewing Deployment Progress 1. Navigate to **Resource Groups** in the left menu 2. Click on your resource group:
3. Click on the **Managed Application**
4. Click the **Managed resource group** link in the Essentials section 5. Under Settings in the left sidebar, click **Deployments** to see detailed progress. #### Viewing Operation Details Click on any resource to see operation details including duration and status:
#### Deployment Phases **Phase 1: Infrastructure Resources (10–15 minutes)** Resources being created include: * Storage accounts, Virtual Network, Network Security Groups * Public IP, Virtual Machine, SQL Server and databases * Container Apps (grafana, loki, tempo, prometheus, thanos, otel-collector) * Key Vault, App Configuration, Application Insights **Phase 2: Custom Script Extension (30–45 minutes)** This is the longest step. The script installs all platform components on the VM including: * Config Hub * Auth Server * Core Web Services * Deployment Agent * Communications Server * And more... {% hint style="info" %} You can safely close your browser – deployment continues in the background. Use the Refresh button to check status. {% endhint %} #### Viewing Created Resources Once deployment progresses, you can see all resources in the Managed Resource Group:
#### Confirming Successful Deployment Deployment is complete when the Deployments view shows all items as **"Succeeded"** with green checkmarks, especially the Custom Script Extension. ### Accessing Your Toolkit #### Step 1: Get the Public IP Address 1. Navigate to the Managed Resource Group 2. Click the **Type** column header to sort resources by type 3. Click on the **Virtual Machine** resource 4. In the VM Overview, locate and copy the **Public IP address** #### Step 2: Access the Toolkit 1. Open a new browser tab 2. Enter the IP address (e.g., `http://42.212.32.44`) 3. The ComUnity Platform Toolkit login page should load {% hint style="info" %} If the page doesn't load, wait 2–3 minutes for services to fully start. {% endhint %} #### Step 3: Log In Use the default credentials: | Field | Value | | ------------ | ----------------------------- | | **Username** | | | **Password** | admin | {% hint style="warning" %} ⚠️ **SECURITY:** Change these default credentials immediately after first login. {% endhint %} ### Post-Deployment Setup #### Immediate Actions ``` [ ] Change the default admin password [ ] Update the admin email address [ ] Create additional user accounts as needed ``` #### App Registration Setup (Required for Project Building) {% hint style="danger" %} **IMPORTANT:** You cannot build projects until App Registration is configured. {% endhint %} The Deployment Agent needs Azure permissions to create databases. Without App Registration, project builds will fail. Contact ComUnity support for assistance with this setup. #### Additional Configuration (Optional) | Configuration | Description | | --------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Custom Domain & SSL** | Configure a domain name and SSL certificate for HTTPS access | | **Observability URLs** | Connect observability dashboard endpoints | | **Additional Environments** | Use Infrastructure Management to create QA and Production environments | ### Troubleshooting #### Deployment Fails with Password Error **Cause:** Password doesn't meet complexity requirements. **Solution:** Delete the failed deployment and create a new one with a password meeting all requirements (12+ characters, uppercase, lowercase, numbers, special characters). #### Deployment Takes Too Long | Situation | Action | | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Normal** | 45–60 minutes total. Custom Script Extension alone takes 30–45 minutes. | | **Exceeds 90 minutes** | Contact support. Redeploying to the same resource group may resolve transient issues. | #### Toolkit Login Page Doesn't Load * Verify Custom Script Extension shows "Succeeded" * Wait 2–3 minutes for services to start * Use HTTP (not HTTPS) – SSL is not configured by default * Check your network allows access to the VM's public IP #### Project Build Fails **Most likely cause:** App Registration not configured. **Solution:** Contact support to complete App Registration setup. ### Deleting Your Deployment {% hint style="warning" %} **WARNING:** Deletion permanently removes all data and cannot be undone. {% endhint %} #### When to Delete * Completing a test deployment * Starting fresh after a failed deployment * Decommissioning the platform #### How to Delete 1. Navigate to **Resource Groups** 2. Find your marketplace resource group 3. Click **Delete resource group** 4. Type the resource group name to confirm 5. Click **Delete** This should delete both the marketplace resource group and the managed resource group with all platform resources. ### Related Documentation | Document | Description | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | | [**Azure Marketplace Reference**](/learning.comunityplatform/26.x/comunity-platform-azure-marketplace-reference.md) | Technical specifications and credentials | | [**Infrastructure Management Guide**](/learning.comunityplatform/26.x/getting-started/manage-your-project/infrastructure-management.md) | Creating QA and Production environments | | **App Registration Setup Guide** | Configuring Azure AD for project builds(Coming soon..) | | [**Observability Setup Guide**](/learning.comunityplatform/26.x/toolkit-guides/observability.md) | Configuring monitoring and analytics |