Hands-On LabBeginner

Create Your First Azure AI Search Index

Get started with Azure AI Search by creating your first search service, uploading data, and running basic search queries.

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60 minEstimated time
4Guided steps
AutoVerification
IsolatedSandbox
Create Your First Azure AI Search Index

Lab overview

Azure AI Search is Microsoft Azure's cloud search service that enables you to build search experiences for your applications with minimal complexity. It provides powerful full-text search capabilities, AI-powered content understanding, and intelligent ranking that can transform how users discover information in your applications. Organizations use Azure AI Search to create search solutions for websites, mobile apps, and enterprise applications, helping users find relevant content quickly and efficiently.

In this lab, you will create an Azure AI Search service, upload sample data to Azure Storage, and build a searchable index. You'll learn how to configure data sources, customize index schemas with appropriate field types, and execute various search queries including filtering, sorting, and faceted navigation.

Objectives

Upon completion of this beginner level lab, you will be able to:

  • Create an Azure AI Search service and explore its management interface
  • Upload data to Azure Storage containers and configure appropriate access permissions
  • Build a search index using the Import Data wizard with proper field type configuration
  • Execute various search queries including filtering, sorting, and faceted navigation

Who is this lab for?

This lab is designed for:

  • Cloud developers who want to add search capabilities to their applications
  • Data engineers looking to implement search solutions for data discovery
  • Solution architects designing applications with advanced search requirements
  • DevOps engineers responsible for deploying and managing search infrastructure
  • Product managers seeking to understand Azure AI Search capabilities and use cases

Verified against your live environment

An automated validation engine inspects your actual resources and configurations as you work. Completion means the task was performed — not multiple choice, real-world proficiency.

[CHECK] validation_activelive
Inspecting deployed resources...
Verifying configuration state...
✓ Step requirements satisfied

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Related reading

Azure AI Services Explained: A Beginner's Map to Vision, Speech, Language, and OpenAIA beginner's map to Azure AI Services. What Vision, Speech, Language, Content Safety, and Azure OpenAI each do, when to use them, and a week-by-week path with hands-on labs to start building today.Azure Compute Services Compared — VMs vs. App Service vs. Functions vs. Container AppsA practical comparison of Azure VMs, App Service, Functions, and Container Apps — what each does, what it costs, and when to use it.Startup Tech Stack: Building Smart with Azure ServicesExplore how startups can leverage Azure services to build a powerful, scalable tech stack. Learn how to select and implement key Azure tools for success.
PremiumIncluded in Premium
Duration
60 min
Steps
4

Environment

Live Cloud Environment

Every lab includes

  • Real environment, pre-credentialed
  • Automated checks on every step
  • Isolated sandbox, auto cleanup
  • AI-recommended next steps

Lab curriculum

  1. 01

    Logging into Azure Account using Azure Portal

  2. 02

    Creating an Azure AI Search Service Resource

    1 automated check

  3. 03

    Uploading Sample Data to Storage Account

    1 automated check

  4. 04

    Creating an Azure AI Search Index

    1 automated check

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