Creating and deploying service-ready virtual hard disks

A computer-readable storage medium, excluding a signal, having computer-executable instructions for building virtual hard disks for deployment in an online system, comprising:

• accessing a build project that specifies actions to perform to create a set of virtual hard disks (VHDs) and virtual machines (VMs) for remote deployment in an online service that comprises disparate networks that include machines arranged in farms;
• detecting, by a machine within a central service that deploys and manages the machines for the online service, a trigger event, comprising at least one of:
• a new version of software is detected, a specific date, a new farm request, a new machine request, and a new type of VM is defined;
• automatically determining an order in which to build the VHDs based on dependencies from a dependency tree indicated in the build project;
• automatically building the VHDs using the build project using the machine within the central service in response to the trigger event;
• storing the VHDs in a data store for automatic deployment;
• and
• automatically deploying the VHDs to machines in the online service, wherein the VHDs are installed on machines in response to a command received from a remote machine in the central service.

A system for building virtual hard disks for deployment in an online service, comprising:

• a cloud manager coupled to multiple different networks that is operative to manage deployment of machines and configuration of the networks and that automatically deploys virtual hard disks (VHDs) to machines in the online service;
• a data store in each of the different networks that is used to store virtual hard disks that are used in deployment of machines within that network;
• and
• a build machine, comprising:
• a processor and a computer-readable medium;
• an operating environment stored on the computer-readable medium and executing on the processor;
• and
• instructions stored on the computer-readable medium that, when executed by the processor, cause the build machine to:
• access a build project that specifies actions to perform to create a set of virtual hard disks (VHDs) and virtual machines (VMs) for remote deployment;
• detect a trigger event, comprising at least one of:
• a new version of software is detected, a specific date, a new farm request, a new machine request, and a new type of VM is defined;
• automatically determine an order in which to build the VHDs based on dependencies from a dependency tree indicated in the build project;
• automatically build the VHDs using the build project in response to the trigger event;
• and
• store the VHDs in a data store for automatic deployment.