Microsoft Azure: Authentication Considerations

Use the following information when configuring authentication and proper file transfer between Azure Cloud and the F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition (VE):

  • The root account is disabled by default
  • The Administrator (admin) account/role does NOT have a default password

Important

When you use the scp or sftp commands to transfer files to/from the BIG-IP system, you MUST have the Administrator role and access set to Advanced Shell (bash) for BIG-IP versions that have the following CVE fixes:

When provisioning an instance through the Azure portal or with the waagent:

  • The names admin and root are NOT allowed. You must provide a unique admin account name.
  • With waagent, you can only configure authentication using either a password OR SSH Key authentication (not both).
  • If configuring SSH Key authentication, you can find the SSH public key in both the custom admin and the default admin’s account, as a convenience for those standardizing with the admin account.

Because password authentication is required for WebUI access, but not as commonly supported in other clouds, F5 recommends configuring both:

Consult the GitHub links in the Azure Automation section for additional authentication examples.

More help with BIG-IP VE