Built by Clouds on Mars — FabCon Europe 2025
This is your main instruction guide for today's hands-on workshop. Follow this document step-by-step to successfully complete all exercises.
You'll implement a complete data engineering solution with professional DevOps practices:
- Medallion Architecture: Bronze → Silver data layers using Microsoft Fabric Lakehouses
- Version Control: Full Git integration for all Fabric artifacts
- CI/CD Automation: Automated deployments across dev, test, and production environments
- Real-world Scenarios: Handle schema changes, data migrations, and cross-environment promotions
Whether you're a data engineer, architect, or DevOps practitioner, this workshop will equip you with the skills to confidently manage Fabric-based solutions at scale. No prior Fabric CI/CD experience required, but basic familiarity with Microsoft Fabric and Git concepts is helpful.
Before starting, ensure you have:
- Microsoft Fabric Capacity (Trial or Premium)
- Git Repository Access (GitHub or Azure DevOps)
- Development Environment:
- Python 3.11+ installed
- Git command line tools
- Text editor or IDE (VS Code recommended)
- Permissions:
- Fabric workspace admin rights
- Repository write access
By the end of this workshop, you will:
- Build a complete Data Engineering solution with Microsoft Fabric git and deployment pipelines
- Configure Fabric workspaces for Git integration and synchronization
- Master bi-directional changes: Fabric UI → Git and Git → Fabric
- Implement environment variables and deployment rules
- Deploy CI/CD pipelines that handle code, schema, and data changes
- Take home production-ready code samples for your organization
Want to understand the workshop at a glance? Check our Visual Workshop Diagrams:
- 🗺️ Workshop Flow - Complete journey with checkpoints and timing
- Purpose & Architecture - What you'll build and why
- Skills Progression - From beginner to advanced
- Business Value - ROI and transformation benefits
- ✨ Before vs After - Your transformation journey
You'll build a practical data engineering solution using public datasets, designed to demonstrate real-world complexity:
Key Components:
- 2 Lakehouses: Bronze (raw data) and Silver (processed data)
- 3 Spark Notebooks: Data transformation logic
- 2 Copy Jobs: Data loading
- 1 Semantic Model: Business logic layer
- 1 Power BI Report: End-user analytics
Important
START HERE: Each module builds on the previous one. Complete them in sequence for the best learning experience.
Exercise Tracking: Each module contains 4-6 exercises with clear checkpoints. Track your progress within each module!
| Time | Module | Duration | What You'll Do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 AM | Module 1: Environment Setup | 30 min | • Install fabric-cli tool • Configure Fabric workspace • Connect to Git repository • Validate round-trip sync |
| 9:30 AM | Module 2: First Deployment | 30 min | • Deploy the baseline solution • Explore medallion architecture • Run initial deployment pipeline • Verify Power BI report → CHECKPOINT #1 |
| 10:00 AM | Module 3: Version Control Basics | 30 min | • Make changes in Fabric UI • Commit to Git • Pull changes from Git • Resolve conflicts |
Morning Break: 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM
| Time | Module | Duration | What You'll Do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11:00 AM | Module 4: Branch Management | 60 min | • Create feature branches • Deploy to isolated workspaces • Test changes safely • Merge strategies |
| 12:00 PM | Module 5: Deployment Pipelines | 60 min | • Configure deployment stages • Set environment variables • Create mapping rules • Automate promotions → CHECKPOINT #2 |
Lunch Break: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
| Time | Module | Duration | What You'll Do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2:00 PM | Module 6: End-to-End Pipeline | 45 min | • Deploy across dev/test/prod • Validate each environment • Monitor deployment status • Troubleshoot issues |
| 2:45 PM | Module 7: Azure DevOps Integration | 30 min | • Set up Azure Pipelines • Configure service connections • Automate with YAML • Schedule deployments → CHECKPOINT #3 |
Afternoon Break: 3:15 PM - 3:45 PM
| Time | Module | Duration | What You'll Do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3:45 PM | Module 8: Schema Evolution | 45 min | • Handle column changes • Manage table splits • Cross-engine dependencies • Data migration patterns |
| 4:30 PM | Wrap-up & Q&A | 30 min | • Review key concepts • Discuss your scenarios • Get additional resources • Plan next steps |
Tip
Flexible Pacing: While times are suggested, work at your own pace. If you finish early, explore the advanced scenarios or help others!
The workshop includes 3 mandatory instructor checkpoints to ensure all participants stay synchronized:
| Checkpoint | After Module | Purpose | Key Validations |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Module 2 | Foundation Ready | • Medallion architecture deployed • Git sync working • All participants have working environment |
| #2 | Module 5 | Pipeline Working | • Deployment pipeline configured • Variable libraries set up • Rules successfully applied |
| #3 | Module 7 | Automation Ready | • Azure DevOps integrated • Service principals configured • CI/CD pipeline operational |
Important
Wait for instructor confirmation at each checkpoint before proceeding. These synchronization points ensure no one gets left behind on critical technical foundations.
The fabric-cli and fabric-cicd are key tools to harness capabilities of Microsoft Fabric in a DevOps context. To understand the when to use each tool and learn more, read the article fabric-cli vs fabric-cicd: Capabilities and Use Cases.
A command-line interface that automates Fabric operations:
- Deploy workspaces and artifacts
- Manage environment configurations
- Integrate with CI/CD pipelines
- Documentation
Best practices and patterns for Fabric DevOps:
- Deployment templates and scripts
- Environment management strategies
- Testing and validation approaches
- Documentation
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| Can't connect to Fabric | Check capacity is running and you have admin rights |
| Git sync fails | Ensure workspace is linked to correct branch |
| Deployment errors | Verify artifact dependencies and naming conventions |
| Missing permissions | Request workspace admin or contributor role |
- 🙋 During Workshop: Ask instructors or check with fellow participants
- 📖 Documentation: Each module has detailed step-by-step instructions
- 💬 Slack/Teams Channel: [If available for your workshop]
- 🐛 Known Issues: Check the troubleshooting guide
Use this checklist to track your progress:
- Environment setup complete
- First deployment successful
- Made changes through Fabric UI and Git
- Created feature branch and workspace
- Configured deployment pipeline
- Deployed to all environments (dev/test/prod)
- Set up Azure DevOps automation
- Handled schema changes successfully
- Apply to Your Projects: Use these patterns in your organization
- Explore Advanced Scenarios: Check the additional resources below
- Share Knowledge: Train your team on Fabric CI/CD practices
- Contribute: Submit improvements or new scenarios to this repository
We're expanding this workshop to cover:
- GitHub Actions integration
- Terraform infrastructure as code
- Advanced view patterns in Git
- Multi-tenant deployment strategies
| Workshop | Best For | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Lakehouse Fundamentals | Learning data integration patterns | Build Your First Lakehouse |
| Production Operations | Monitoring and optimization | Fabric Toolbox |
| Power BI CI/CD | Report deployment automation | Power BI CI/CD Sample |
| Data Warehousing | Understanding medallion architecture | Las Vegas Workshop 2025 |
- Foundation → Complete a Lakehouse or Data Warehousing workshop
- DevOps → This workshop (Git/CI/CD)
- Operations → Add monitoring and optimization
- Specialization → Explore specific scenarios (Power BI, Real-Time, etc.)
We welcome contributions! Please:
- Submit issues for bugs or feature requests
- Create pull requests for improvements
- Share your organization's patterns and practices
- Help expand the scenario library
- Workshop Issues: GitHub Issues
- General Questions: Microsoft Fabric Community
- Documentation: Microsoft Fabric Docs
Ready to start? → Begin with Module 1: Environment Setup
Good luck with your workshop! 🎉