How to create a custom virtual machine running SUSE Linux Enterprise by using Azure Management Portal

In this article you will learn how to create a custom virtual machine From Gallery in the Management Portal. This method provides more options for configuring the virtual machine when you create it, such as the connected resources, the DNS name and network connectivity if needed.

1. Sign into the Windows Azure Management Portal. On the command bar, click New.
   
2. Click Virtual Machine, and then click From Gallery. The Select the virtual machine operating system dialog box appears.
3. From Platform Images, select the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Service Pack X image, and then click the arrow to continue. The Virtual machine configuration dialog box appears.
4. In the text field Virtual Machine Name, type the name that you want to use for the virtual machine. The name must be 15 characters or less. For this virtual machine, type MyTestVM1.
5. In the text field New User Name, type the name of the account that you will use to administer the virtual machine. You cannot use root for the user name.
6. In the text field New Password, type a strong password for the administrative account on the virtual machine. For this virtual machine, type a password and remember it. In Confirm Password, retype the password.
7. Under Size, select the size that you want to use for the virtual machine, this usually depends on the number of cores needed for your application. For this virtual machine, accept the default of Extra Small.
8. Click the arrow to continue. The Virtual machine mode dialog box appears.
9. You can connect virtual machines together under a cloud service to provide robust applications. For this tutorial, you only create a single virtual machine. To do this, select Standalone Virtual Machine.
10. Under DNS Name, type a name for the cloud service that is created for the virtual machine. A virtual machine that you create is contained in a cloud service. The entry under DNS Name may contain between 3 and 24 lowercase letters and numbers. This value becomes part of the URI that is used to contact the cloud service that the machine belongs to.
11. Select a storage account where the VHD file is stored. For this tutorial, accept the default setting of Use Automatically Generated Storage Account.
12. In Region/Affinity Group/Virtual Network, select where you want to locate the virtual machine.
13. Click the arrow to continue. The Virtual machine options dialog box appears.
14. The options on this page are only used if you are connecting this virtual machine to other machines or if you are adding the machine to a virtual network. For this virtual machine, you are not creating an availability set or connecting to a virtual network. Click the check mark to create the virtual machine.

After the above steps, the virtual machine is created and operating system settings are configured. You will see the new virtual machine listed as Running in the Windows Azure Management Portal.

How to log on to the virtual machine

1. In the Management Portal, go to the dashboard of the virtual machine.
2. If it isn’t selected already, click the name of the virtual machine. Now find the Host Name and Port information under SSH Details in the Quick Glance area.
   
   In this example:

   ssh -p 60528 username@myservice1.cloudapp-preview.net

For more details such as how to attach a data disk to the new virtual machine or how to set up communication with the virtual machine etc. visit the Azure tutorial at: http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/manage/linux/tutorials/virtual-machine-from-gallery/