Chris Pietschmann

Microsoft MVP since 2008!

14-time awardee in Azure and Developer Technologies.

IBM Champion!

Recognized for contributions to the Terraform community.

4x HashiCorp Ambassador!

Recognized for contributions to the Terraform community.

Latest Writing

Fresh articles on this blog; as well as Build5Nines and Powergentic.ai.

My Personal Blog

I've been blogging here since 2003.

C# • .NET • JavaScript • Career Advice

May 24, 2026

C#: Should This Service Be Singleton, Scoped, or Transient?

May 24, 2026

In C#, When Should You Use Exceptions, Result Objects, or Validation Errors?

May 20, 2026

Disposable Software Is the Future: Why Composable Architecture Beats Monoliths and Overbuilt Microservices

May 11, 2026

C#: How to Refactor Legacy Code Safely

May 8, 2026

C#: Inheritance vs Composition — When to Use Each and Why AI Can't Decide for You

May 7, 2026

C#: Should This Be a Class, Record, Struct, or Interface?

May 5, 2026

Remembering Planet Source Code: Sharing Code Before GitHub Made It Easy

May 2, 2026

8 AI Productivity Tips That Took Me Years to Learn (So You Don't Have To)

View all articles →

Build5Nines highlights

DevOps • Cloud • Infra • AI

Jun 4, 2026

Big Thinkers: Martin Fowler How Continuous Architecture Changed Modern Software Engineering

Modern cloud architecture rarely stands still. Systems evolve continuously through CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure as code,...

Jun 3, 2026

Design an Agentic AI Systems Enterprises Can Actually Trust?

There is a moment every developer eventually hits with AI automation. The demo works. The...

Jun 2, 2026

Architecting Resilient AI Solutions on Microsoft Azure with Regions and Availability Zones

Modern AI solutions are reshaping industries, driving demand for cloud architectures that are scalable, resilient,...

May 30, 2026

How to Use Build5Nines.SharpVector with Microsoft Agent Framework for Local RAG in C#

There is a moment every developer hits when building an AI agent: the demo works,...

View more on Build5Nines →

Powergentic highlights

Agentic AI • Multi-Agent • RAG • LLM

May 28, 2026

Introducing Powergentic Workflows

A Repository-Native Model for Agentic Work

May 8, 2026

Local LLMs vs Frontier AI: The Cost-Accuracy Tradeoff Every Business Needs to Understand

Why Gemma 4, Qwen3.6, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google models are forcing leaders to rethink the...

May 4, 2026

Gemma 4 Changes the AI Model Race: Why Smaller, Open Models May Be the Real Enterprise Breakthrough

Googles new Gemma 4 family shows why the future of AI will not be won...

Sep 15, 2025

Managing AI-Ready Infrastructure in Microsoft Azure using HashiCorp Terraform

Manage Your AI-Ready Infrastructure Properly Through Automation

View more on Powergentic →

Hackster.io

From 2019 to 2020, Chris Pietschmann used to write articles on Internet of Things (IoT), Azure Sphere, and related technologies on Hackster.io.

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Courses

On-demand training for Azure, DevOps, Terraform, and AI—built for real work.

Join Build5Nines Membership

Ultimate Guide to Microsoft Certification

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Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals

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Manage Infrastructure using HashiCorp Terraform from Beginner to Advanced

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Designing AI-Ready Infrastructure in Microsoft Azure

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Open Source

I actively contribute to open source projects—spanning DevOps tooling, Azure integrations, developer tools, and more.

GitHub Activity

Open source contributions and language usage.

GitHub Profile →

Featured Projects

Build5Nines SharpVector

Lightweight in-memory text vector DB with .NET support and multiple embeddings backends.

ai dotnet

Powergentic CLI

Powergentic CLI is an open-source, AI-powered coding assistant for the command line.

ai

Azure/terraform-azurerm-naming

Official Azure module to help keep resource naming consistent.

terraform azure

crpietschmann/VirtualRouter

The original, open source WiFi Hotspot for Windows with 15+ MILLION downloads!

dotnet

Build5Nines/terraform-azure-naming

Terraform module providing consistent naming conventions for Azure resources.

terraform azure

Build5Nines/terraform-quickstart-templates

Collection of Terraform templates for common Azure infrastructure patterns.

terraform azure

Awesome AZD

Microsoft-curated list of awesome Azure Developer CLI (azd) templates.

azure azd

Open WebUI

User-friendly AI interface supporting Ollama, OpenAI API, and more (Azure support contributions).

ai

Azure Cosmos DB Desktop Data Migration Tool

Command-line import/export tool for Azure Cosmos DB.

azure dotnet

AZ-220 Azure IoT Developer Certification Hands-on Labs

AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Labs

Official Microsoft training labs for the AZ-220 certification.

azure iot

powergentic/azd-mcp-csharp

AZD template to deploy a C# MCP server to Azure Container Apps using SSE.

ai azure azd dotnet

powergentic/azd-mcp-ts

AZD template to deploy a TypeScript MCP server to Azure Container Apps using SSE.

ai azure azd javascript

Build5Nines/azd-litellm

AZD template to deploy LiteLLM proxy API to Azure Container Apps with Postgres.

ai azure azd

Build5Nines/azd-react-bootstrap-dashboard

Multi-tier app template: React + Bootstrap front-end with Node.js API.

azure azd javascript

Build5Nines/azd-csharp-api-swagger

AZD template for a C# API with Swagger UI on Azure App Service.

azure azd dotnet

Azure-Samples/postgres-sa-byoac

End-to-end AI-enabled app on Azure Postgres (solution accelerator).

ai azure

AzureCosmosDB/Azure-OpenAI-Node.js-Developer-Guide

Developer guide integrating Azure Cosmos DB with Azure OpenAI using Node.js.

ai azure javascript

AzureCosmosDB/Azure-OpenAI-Python-Developer-Guide

Developer guide integrating Azure Cosmos DB with Azure OpenAI using Python.

ai azure

AzureCosmosDB/Azure-OpenAI-Developer-Guide-Front-End

Pre-built React front-end app for the Azure Cosmos DB + Azure OpenAI guides.

ai azure javascript

crpietschmann/jHtmlArea

Simple, lightweight, extensible WYSIWYG HTML editor built on jQuery.

javascript

crpietschmann/jHash

location.hash-based routing and querystring helper with cross-browser hashchange support.

javascript

crpietschmann/jslinq

LINQ to JavaScript: LINQ-style queries over arrays in JS.

javascript

Books

Books and guides I've authored for the broader tech community.

Build and Deploy Apps using Azure Developer CLI

Practical guide to building and deploying cloud-native applications

View book →

Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals (AI-900 Exam Ref)

Get Started with Azure AI and Machine Learning

View book →

Designing AI-Ready Infrastructure in Microsoft Azure

Build Scalable, Secure, and Future-Ready AI Systems with Azure

View book →

More Publications

The Developer's Guide to Azure

Published 2020 - The Developer's Guide to Azure is designed for Developers & Architects who are starting their journey into Microsoft Azure.

Azure Migration Readiness Whitepaper

Published 2019 - A whitepaper about Azure Migration published by Microsoft that I co-wrote with Dan Patrick.

The Ultimate Guide to Microsoft Certification

Published 2019 - Advance your career through cloud certification

Microsoft Cloud Practice Playbooks

Published 2019 - Co-Authored 2 Cloud Practice Development Playbooks that provide the essential blueprints and tools to develop, analyze, manage, and secure an effective cloud practice.

Microsoft Cloud Workshops

Published 2016-2023 - Authored/Edited 20+ Microsoft Cloud Workshops (MCWs) covering Azure, DevOps, Security, AI, and more. These workshops and hands-on labs were used globally by Microsoft and partners for training and enablement.

Podcast Appearances

These are my podcast appearances over the years.

MJFChat: What's New with Azure Certifications

Jun 22, 2020

Mary Jo Foley and I discuss the latest Microsoft Azure certification news, and where to start on your own certification journey.

Listen

Thirsty Developer: Episode #23 The Virtual Earth Edition

May 28, 2008

Chat with Larry Clarkin about the Virtual Earth platform, how I got started, and an overview of the service.

Listen

Experience

25 years building software, architecting cloud solutions, and training teams.

View LinkedIn Profile →

Career Summary

Chris Pietschmann has 25 years of experience as a software developer, cloud architect, and technology educator. With a career rooted in application development and extended through infrastructure, DevOps, and cloud operations, Chris helps organizations modernize how they design, build, and operate digital solutions across the Microsoft ecosystem.

25+ Years

Professional experience

Fortune 100 Clients

Microsoft, Disney, Boeing & more

20+ Certifications

Azure, Terraform, Security & more

Organizations I've Worked With

* These logos do not indicate endorsement or sponsorship. They illustrate the range of organizations I've collaborated with.

Microsoft MVP

Chris Pietschmann was first awarded Microsoft MVP in 2008. Chris is recognized by Microsoft as an independent expert in the Microsoft Azure and Developer Tools award categories. As a Microsoft MVP, Chris actively contributes to the technical community by sharing knowledge, providing feedback on Microsoft products, and helping others succeed with Microsoft and related technologies.

2008 → 2012

Bing Maps for Enterprise

2017 → 2023

Microsoft Azure

2023 → Current

Microsoft Azure & Dev Tools

Chris Pietschmann has earned the Microsoft MVP award 14 times!

Chris is a passionate community leader and educator, contributing to the industry throughout his entire career; through blogging, books, courses, speaking engagements, and more! He has a passion for sharing and teaching others how to be more efficient and affective with the latest technologies. He shares practical guidance on software development, Infrastructure as Code (IaC), Cloud, DevOps, SRE, and AI to help teams turn modern technology into real business outcomes—always with a people-first approach to software and innovation.

View Microsoft MVP Profile →

HashiCorp Ambassador

Chris Pietschmann was first awarded HashiCorp Ambassador in 2021. Chris is recognized by HashiCorp as an expert in the HashiCorp Terraform and HashiCorp Cloud Platform technologies from HashiCorp. As a HashiCorp Ambassador, Chris actively contributes to the technical community by sharing knowledge, providing feedback on Infrastructure as Code (Iac) and HashiCorp products.

In 2025, IBM completed an acquisition of HashiCorp. As a result, the HashiCorp Ambassador program was merged into the existing IBM Champion program. In 2026, Chris was awarded IBM Champion in recognition of his expertise in HashiCorp Terraform, HashiCorp Cloud Platform (HCP) and related technologies, as well as his active contributions to the technical community by sharing knowledge and providing feedback on HashiCorp related products.

2021

HashiCorp Terraform

2023 → 2025

HashiCorp Terraform & HashiCorp Cloud Platform

View HashiCorp Ambassador Profile →

IBM Champion

Chris Pietschmann was first awarded IBM Champion in 2026. Chris is recognized by IBM as an expert in HashiCorp Terraform, HashiCorp Cloud Platform (HCP) and related technologies. As an IBM Champion, Chris actively contributes to the technical community by sharing knowledge, providing feedback on HashiCorp related products.

2026 → Current

HashiCorp Terraform & HashiCorp Cloud Platform

Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT)

Chris Pietschmann has been a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) since 2017. As an MCT, Chris is part of an exclusive community of technical trainers who are certified by Microsoft to deliver official training on Microsoft technologies. Chris leverages this expertise to provide high-quality training and education to individuals and organizations looking to enhance their skills and knowledge in Microsoft technologies.

Over the years, Chris has delivered numerous training sessions, workshops, and courses on various Microsoft technologies, including Microsoft Azure, DevOps, IoT, Site Reliability Engineering and software development. He has trained teams at organizations of all sizes; including Fortune 100 companies like Microsoft, Disney, and Boeing. As an MCT, Chris stays up-to-date with the latest Microsoft technologies and best practices to ensure that learners receive the most relevant and effective training possible.

2017 → Current

10 years certified!

Certifications Earned

20+ certifications · 21+ exams passed

Microsoft Certifications

Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert Microsoft Certified: Azure Network Engineer Associate Microsoft Certified: Azure Virtual Desktop Specialty Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer: Azure Solutions Architect Microsoft Certified: Azure IoT Developer Specialty Microsoft Specialist: Programming in HTML5 with JavaScript and CSS3 Microsoft Certified Application Developer: Microsoft .NET Microsoft Certified Solution Developer: Visual Studio 6.0

HashiCorp Certifications

HashiCorp Terraform Associate HashiCorp Vault Associate HashiCorp Consul Associate

Other Certifications

Scrum Alliance: Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) GitHub Certified Trainer

Core Focus Areas

The topics I build and teach most often.

Cloud & Infra

Microsoft Azure Azure Bicep Serverless Azure Infrastructure & Security

DevOps & Platform

DevOps IaC HashiCorp Terraform CI/CD SRE Platform Engineering Observability Security

AI & Machine Learning

Generative AI Agentic AI Multi-Agent AI RAG

Languages

C# JavaScript Python Software Development