azure-deploy

name	azure-deploy
description	Execute Azure deployments for ALREADY-PREPARED applications that have existing infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md and infrastructure files. DO NOT use this skill when the user asks to CREATE a new application — use azure-prepare instead. This skill runs azd up, azd deploy, terraform apply, and az deployment commands with built-in error recovery. Requires infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md from azure-prepare and validated status from azure-validate. WHEN: "run azd up", "run azd deploy", "execute deployment", "push to production", "push to cloud", "go live", "ship it", "bicep deploy", "terraform apply", "publish to Azure", "launch on Azure". DO NOT USE WHEN: "create and deploy", "build and deploy", "create a new app", "set up infrastructure", "create and deploy to Azure using Terraform" — use azure-prepare for these.
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"Microsoft","version":"1.0.5"}

Azure Deploy

AUTHORITATIVE GUIDANCE — MANDATORY COMPLIANCE

PREREQUISITE: The azure-validate skill MUST be invoked and completed with status Validated BEFORE executing this skill.

⛔ STOP — PREREQUISITE CHECK REQUIRED Before proceeding, verify BOTH prerequisites are met:

1. azure-prepare was invoked and completed → infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md exists
2. azure-validate was invoked and passed → plan status = Validated

If EITHER is missing, STOP IMMEDIATELY:

• No plan? → Invoke azure-prepare skill first
• Status not Validated? → Invoke azure-validate skill first

⛔ DO NOT MANUALLY UPDATE THE PLAN STATUS

You are FORBIDDEN from changing the plan status to Validated yourself. Only the azure-validate skill is authorized to set this status after running actual validation checks. If you update the status without running validation, deployments will fail.

DO NOT ASSUME the app is ready. DO NOT SKIP validation to save time. Skipping steps causes deployment failures. The complete workflow ensures success:

azure-prepare → azure-validate → azure-deploy

Triggers

Activate this skill when user wants to:

• Execute deployment of an already-prepared application (azure.yaml and infra/ exist)
• Push updates to an existing Azure deployment
• Run azd up, azd deploy, or az deployment on a prepared project
• Ship already-built code to production
• Deploy an application that already includes API Management (APIM) gateway infrastructure

Scope: This skill executes deployments. It does not create applications, generate infrastructure code, or scaffold projects. For those tasks, use azure-prepare.

APIM / AI Gateway: Use this skill to deploy applications whose APIM/AI gateway infrastructure was already created during azure-prepare. For creating or changing APIM resources, see APIM deployment guide. For AI governance policies, invoke azure-aigateway skill.

Rules

1. Run after azure-prepare and azure-validate
2. infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md must exist with status Validated
3. Pre-deploy checklist required — Pre-Deploy Checklist
4. ⛔ Destructive actions require ask_user — global-rules
5. Scope: deployment execution only — This skill owns execution of azd up, azd deploy, terraform apply, and az deployment commands. These commands are run through this skill's error recovery and verification pipeline.

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Steps

#	Action	Reference
0	Auto-Prepare Gate — Check if infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md exists. If missing, invoke the azure-prepare skill to create it, then invoke azure-validate before returning here. Do not ask the user — run the full prepare→validate pipeline automatically.	—
1	Check Plan — Read infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md, verify status = Validated AND Validation Proof section is populated. If status is not Validated, invoke azure-validate first.	infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md
2	Pre-Deploy Checklist — MUST complete ALL steps	Pre-Deploy Checklist
3	Load Recipe — Based on recipe.type in infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md	recipes/README.md
4	Execute Deploy — Follow recipe steps	Recipe README
5	Post-Deploy — Configure SQL managed identity and apply EF migrations if applicable	Post-Deployment
6	Handle Errors — See recipe's errors.md	—
7	Verify Success — Confirm deployment completed and endpoints are accessible	Verification

⛔ VALIDATION PROOF CHECK

When checking the plan, verify the Validation Proof section (Section 7) contains actual validation results with commands run and timestamps. If this section is empty, validation was bypassed — invoke azure-validate skill first.

SDK Quick References

• Azure Developer CLI: azd
• Azure Identity: Python | .NET | TypeScript | Java

MCP Tools

Tool	Purpose
mcp_azure_mcp_subscription_list	List available subscriptions
mcp_azure_mcp_group_list	List resource groups in subscription
mcp_azure_mcp_azd	Execute AZD commands

References

• azd vs deploy.ps1 guide - Comparison, conventions, workflow
• Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
• Post-Deployment Steps - SQL + EF Core setup

Reference Index

Load these on demand — do NOT read all at once:

Reference	When to Load
references/auth-best-practices.md	Auth Best Practices
references/global-rules.md	Global Rules
references/pre-deploy-checklist.md	Pre Deploy Checklist
references/region-availability.md	Region Availability
references/troubleshooting.md	Troubleshooting