How To Automate Azure Naming Conventions with the Build5Nines/naming/azure Terraform Module

Naming resources in Azure shouldn’t feel like deciphering ancient hieroglyphics. Yet, without a solid standard, names can quickly become inconsistent, confusing, and downright chaotic. The result? A messy Azure environment that’s hard to search, manage, and govern.

This guide will show you exactly how to establish and enforce Azure naming conventions using the open source Build5Nines/naming/azure Terraform module — making your cloud environment predictable, compliant, and easier to automate.

Let’s make naming conventions something you never worry about again.

---

Why Use a Naming Module?

Azure resources require names that follow strict rules:

• Some must be globally unique
• Some only allow lowercase alphanumeric characters
• Some have maximum length restrictions
• Some don’t allow dashes… others require them

Oh, and naming should also encode:

• Organization name
• Environment (prod, dev, test, etc.)
• Region abbreviations
• Resource type
• Optional workload/application identifiers

Are you doing this manually?

Mistakes are guaranteed — especially at scale.

By shifting naming into Terraform automation:

✔ Zero inconsistency

✔ Zero governance bottlenecks

✔ Zero naming refactor nightmares later

The module handles everything for you:

• Azure-standard resource type abbreviations
• Region abbreviations
• Region pairing for DR/business continuity
• Consistent naming format across all deployments

---

Step 1 — Install and Configure the Naming Module

Add the module to your Terraform configuration:

module "azure_primary" {
  source        = "Build5Nines/naming/azure"
  organization  = "b59"
  environment   = "prod"
  location      = "East US"  # or "eastus"
}

Inputs explained:

Input	Purpose	Example
organization	Your company or team identifier	b59, app, data
environment	Deployment environment	dev, test, prod
location	Azure region (full name or code)	East US, westus2

These are combined to generate a consistent, validated suffix:

{org}-{locAbbrev}-{env}
→ b59-eus-prod

This naming convention is used by default, but you can set the name_suffix input variable on the module to customize the specific naming convention to use.

---

Step 2 — Use the Generated Names in Resources

Every supported Azure resource type is exposed under:

module.azure_primary.resources

Example for a Resource Group:

resource "azurerm_resource_group" "main" {
  name     = module.azure_primary.resources.resource_group.name
  location = module.azure_primary.location
}

Resulting name:

rg-b59-eus-prod

You don’t even need to remember that the abbreviation for Resource Group is rg — the module already knows.

---

Step 3 — Append Workload Names When Needed

Some resources need additional identifiers — like an app or feature name:

resource "azurerm_storage_account" "files" {
  name = "${module.azure_primary.resources.storage_account.name}files"
}

Result:

stb59eusprodfiles

Same consistent structure — now with workload context.

---

Step 4 — Deploy Naming Across Multiple Regions (for DR)

Azure promotes paired regions for high availability. This module is automatically aware of what Microsoft’s Azure Region Pair is for the primary region you are using.

The module handles this automatically.

module "azure_secondary" {
  source       = "Build5Nines/naming/azure"
  organization = module.azure_primary.organization
  environment  = module.azure_primary.environment
  location     = module.azure_primary.location_secondary
}

Primary region: East US → eus

Secondary region: West US → wus

Now resource names clearly reflect DR location:

Primary Storage:  stb59eusprodfiles
Secondary Storage: stb59wusprodfiles

No guessing required.

---

Advanced Scenario — Override Naming Logic

If your organization follows stricter naming rules, customizing the name_suffix will enable you to set the naming convention pattern you need:

module "azure_primary" {
  source       = "Build5Nines/naming/azure"
  organization = "contoso"
  environment  = "prod"
  location     = "centralus"

  name_suffix = [
    "{environment}",
    "{organization}",
    "{locationAbbreviation}"
  ]
}

Result:

prod-contoso-cus

Your naming standard — your way — while still automated.

---

Best Practices for Azure Naming Conventions

🎯 Some battle-tested guidance:

Best Practice	How Module Helps
Resource names must be deterministic and repeatable	No random patterns unless required by Azure
Include environment in the name	Always enforced
Use official Azure region abbreviations	Built-in mapping and validation
Pair regions for business continuity	Secondary naming automated
Use short organizational identifiers	Inputs validated to avoid limits
Include workload name only when needed	Easy suffix append support

And the most important lesson:

Naming rules documented in a wiki are useless if not automated.

Codify governance → enforce policy → scale confidently.

---

Final Thoughts

With just a few lines of Terraform, you now have:

• A consistent naming standard across all Azure resources
• Automated region handling and failover naming
• Compliance with Azure formatting rules
• Better visibility for FinOps, SecOps, and DevOps teams

No more debates. No more “creative” naming failures.

Just clean, reliable resource names — everywhere.

---

Your Turn 🚀

Give this a try in your next Terraform deployment.

And if you’ve been wrestling with naming conventions — you’re not alone!

What’s the hardest part of keeping naming consistent in your organization?

I’d love to hear your experience!

Original Article Source: How To Automate Azure Naming Conventions with the Build5Nines/naming/azure Terraform Module written by Chris Pietschmann (If you're reading this somewhere other than Build5Nines.com, it was republished without permission.)