Azure Agent Skills
A MicrosoftDocs-maintained collection of Azure Agent Skills that turns decisions, configuration, security, troubleshooting, and deployment knowledge from Microsoft Learn into standard SKILL.md resources for Codex, Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, and other coding assistants.
Project overview
Azure Agent Skills is a MicrosoftDocs-maintained collection for Azure development. It transforms Microsoft Learn material on service configuration, architecture choices, security constraints, quotas, troubleshooting, and deployment into Agent Skills-compatible SKILL.md files. Codex, Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, and other assistants can load them when relevant. The repository supports both plugin installation and manual copying, but it is not an Azure management tool; most Skills still retrieve current Microsoft Learn pages over the network when a task requires full documentation.
Core capabilities
Azure service knowledge index
Organizes configuration, decisions, security, quotas, integration, deployment, and troubleshooting by service, with links to relevant Microsoft Learn pages.
Progressive disclosure
The host first reads Skill names and descriptions, then loads a full SKILL.md when matched, followed by referenced files or remote documentation only when necessary.
Multi-host plugin distribution
The repository includes a common plugin.json, Claude Code manifests, a Codex plugin manifest, and a Codex marketplace catalog so one source can serve multiple hosts.
Role-based bundles
Documentation recommends sets for quick start, AI/ML, data engineering, infrastructure, security and compliance, DevOps, integration, and full-stack Azure work.
Documentation freshness hints
Generated Skills record a generation date. Representative files tell the agent to recommend an update after three months and prefer Microsoft Learn MCP for current pages.
Installation and usage
For Codex, use the repository's marketplace manifest to install the bundle. Confirm marketplace support, write scope, and network policy first. If only a few services are needed, clone the repository and copy only the relevant skills/ directories.
Let an AI Agent install it
Send this prompt to Codex, Claude Code, or another AI agent that can work with your local environment.
Install Azure Agent Skills from https://github.com/MicrosoftDocs/Agent-Skills. First read README.md, LICENSE, LICENSE-CODE, SECURITY.md, .codex-plugin/plugin.json, and .agents/plugins/marketplace.json. Confirm the plugin name azure-agent-skills, manifest version 1.0.0, and the Codex write scope. Do not install silently or request Azure credentials. After I confirm, run the README's `codex plugin marketplace add MicrosoftDocs/agent-skills`, then install azure-agent-skills through `/plugins`. Verify only with a read-only question that does not modify code or access an Azure subscription, and list added files or configuration. Stop and ask before writing to the home directory, changing organization policy, adding network services, installing Microsoft Learn MCP, signing into Azure, or modifying cloud resources.- Codex with plugin marketplace support or another SKILL.md-compatible host
- Network access to the public GitHub repository
- Write access to the plugin or Skills directory
- Microsoft Learn MCP or web access when current page content is needed
Project URL: https://github.com/MicrosoftDocs/Agent-Skills
Copy the URL and follow the steps below to complete setup.- 1Confirm the host and permission scope
Verify that Codex supports plugin marketplaces and that GitHub access plus plugin-directory writes are allowed. Do not configure Azure credentials yet.
- 2Add the official marketplace
Run `codex plugin marketplace add MicrosoftDocs/agent-skills` in Codex CLI and keep MicrosoftDocs/Agent-Skills as the source.
- 3Install Azure Agent Skills
Open `/plugins` and select azure-agent-skills from microsoft-agent-skills. Restart Codex if the Skills do not appear immediately.
- 4Run a read-only discovery check
Ask an architecture or quota question about one Azure service and verify Skill discovery without changing code, signing into Azure, or creating a resource.
- 5Expand external access per task
Enable Microsoft Learn MCP or web access only when current page bodies are required. Review tool, identity, subscription, resource group, and write scope separately before Azure actions.
After installation, confirm that azure-agent-skills is enabled and inspect one target Skill such as azure-functions for its name, description, generated date, and network requirement. Start with a read-only question such as comparing Azure Functions hosting plans without granting Azure credentials or changing code or cloud resources. Confirm that the relevant Skill is used before expanding permissions.
- The README recommends the plugin route. Codex first adds the marketplace, then selects azure-agent-skills in /plugins.
- For manual installation, copy entries inside skills/ rather than treating the repository root as one Skill.
- VS Code marketplace installation is a preview and requires chat.plugins.enabled=true, which an organization may manage.
- The repository has no GitHub release or tag; check main commits and the manifest version before updating.
Use cases
Azure architecture and service selection
Compare hosting, scaling, networking, and integration options while using the structured index to locate Microsoft Learn evidence.
Configuration and troubleshooting
Find diagnostic pages by error, setting, or service constraint for Functions, Key Vault, networking, data, and AI services.
Security and permission review
Retrieve RBAC, private endpoint, key management, encryption, Zero Trust, and service-specific security guidance for team review.
Deployment and migration planning
Locate official sequences for IaC, CI/CD, runtime upgrades, hosting plans, and cross-platform migration.
Assessment
The collection is valuable because of its verified publisher identity, inspectable Skill directories, native host manifests, and granular Microsoft Learn indexes—not because of its size or star count. Representative Skills cover decisions, quotas, security, configuration, integration, and deployment while declaring network dependencies and content dates. Its main boundary is that it is a generated guidance layer, not the Azure control plane. Most full documents still require network access, and there is no release or tag to anchor upgrades. This review inspected repository evidence but did not install the plugin, fetch Learn pages, or perform Azure operations.
Why it may be useful
- Clear MicrosoftDocs identity and dual licensing
- Substantive Skills, native manifests, and installation evidence
- Azure decision, security, quota, and troubleshooting coverage
- Both bundle installation and selective manual copying
- Recent generated updates and a defined security-reporting channel
What to know first
- Most Skills depend on external Microsoft Learn access
- No release or tag provides a stable upgrade anchor
- README and directory counts use different definitions
- Installation, host compatibility, and Azure functions were not executed
README
Azure Agent Skills
Overview
A MicrosoftDocs-maintained collection of Azure Agent Skills that turns decisions, configuration, security, troubleshooting, and deployment knowledge from Microsoft Learn into standard SKILL.md resources for Codex, Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, and other coding assistants. Curated Agent Skills for Microsoft and Azure that give AI coding assistants structured, real-time expertise from Microsoft Learn.
Getting started
- For Codex, use the repository's marketplace manifest to install the bundle. Confirm marketplace support, write scope, and network policy first. If only a few services are needed, clone the repository and copy only the relevant skills/ directories.
- The README describes Microsoft Learn decisions, procedures, best practices, and constraints as precompiled Skills with progressive discovery, instruction loading, and resource access.
- The plugin route installs all 193+ Skills: VS Code uses source or marketplace installation, while Claude Code and Codex use their plugin marketplaces. Other hosts can clone the repository and copy skills/ contents.
- After installation, confirm that azure-agent-skills is enabled and inspect one target Skill such as azure-functions for its name, description, generated date, and network requirement. Start with a read-only question such as comparing Azure Functions hosting plans without granting Azure credentials or changing code or cloud resources. Confirm that the relevant Skill is used before expanding permissions.
Configuration
Project URL: https://github.com/MicrosoftDocs/Agent-Skills
Copy the URL and follow the steps below to complete setup.