Implementing the Custom Script Extension

One of the most useful extensions is the Custom Script Extension. This extension allows you to run scripts on your virtual machines to provide custom logic or install additional software. Often, this extension is used to complete the configuration of your machine when it isn’t possible to use the standard deployment options.

Important note

Use of the Custom Script Extension shouldn’t replace tools such as Ansible, Chef, or Puppet when configuring a machine. If you need to configure a large number of machines or require advanced control tools, the Custom Script Extension will become cumbersome and difficult to maintain.

Let’s see how to use this extension for basic scenarios.

Installing software with the Custom Script Extension

To get started, we’ll need to create an Azure Virtual Machine that we will then configure later using the extension. Use the following commands to deploy an empty Linux machine...