Creating a virtual machine is one of the most common first steps in Azure. Here's the process, along with what each choice along the way actually affects.

Steps

1. Sign in to the Azure portal and search for Virtual machines, then click Create.
2. Choose (or create) a Resource group — a container that groups related resources together for billing and management.
3. Name the VM and choose a Region — pick one physically close to your users to reduce latency.
4. Choose an Image (the operating system, e.g. Windows Server or Ubuntu) and a Size — size determines the CPU, memory, and cost; you can resize later, so it's fine to start modest.
5. Set an administrator username and password (or SSH key for Linux).
6. Under Disks, choose the disk type — Premium SSD for production workloads, Standard SSD for lighter or less critical use.
7. Under Networking, confirm the virtual network and decide which ports are open — avoid leaving Remote Desktop (3389) or SSH (22) open to the entire internet; restrict it to your office IP or use Azure Bastion instead.
8. Review and click Create. Deployment typically takes a few minutes.

Common Questions

What size should I choose to start?

For general-purpose workloads (a small file server or line-of-business app), a "B-series" or "D-series" VM with 2–4 vCPUs and 8–16 GB RAM is a reasonable starting point. You can resize up or down later without rebuilding the VM.

What happens if I leave a VM running all the time?

You're billed for compute time whenever the VM is running, regardless of whether anyone's using it — for VMs that don't need to run 24/7 (like a test server), stopping and deallocating it when not in use avoids paying for idle compute (see our guide on starting, stopping, and deallocating VMs).