activate-site

name	activate-site
description	Activates and provisions a Power Pages website in a Power Platform environment via the Power Platform REST API. Use when the user wants to activate, provision, turn on, or enable a Power Pages website or portal.
user-invocable	true
allowed-tools	Read, Bash, Glob, Grep, AskUserQuestion, TaskCreate, TaskUpdate, TaskList
model	sonnet

Plugin check: Run node "${PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/check-version.js" — if it outputs a message, show it to the user before proceeding.

Activate Power Pages Site

Provision a new Power Pages website in a Power Platform environment via the Power Platform REST API.

Prerequisite: This skill expects an existing Power Pages code site created via /create-site. Run that skill first if the site does not exist yet.

Core Principles

• Cloud-aware URL resolution — Never hardcode API base URLs or site URL domains. Always derive them from the Cloud value returned by pac auth who.
• Token handling — Scripts acquire and refresh Azure CLI tokens internally. The agent only needs to verify the user is logged in to Azure CLI.
• Confirm before mutating — Always present the full activation parameters to the user and get explicit approval before POSTing to the websites API.

Initial request: $ARGUMENTS

Workflow

1. Phase 1: Verify Prerequisites — PAC CLI auth + Azure CLI login + activation status check
2. Phase 2: Gather Parameters — Site name, subdomain, website record ID
3. Phase 3: Confirm — Present all parameters to user for approval
4. Phase 4: Activate & Poll — Run activation script (POST + poll provisioning status)
5. Phase 5: Present Summary — Show site URL, suggest next steps

---

Phase 1: Verify Prerequisites

Goal: Ensure PAC CLI is installed and authenticated, and verify the user is logged in to Azure CLI (scripts handle token acquisition internally).

Actions

1.1 Verify PAC CLI

Run pac help to check if the PAC CLI is installed and available on the system PATH.

pac help

If the command fails (command not found / not recognized):

1. Tell the user: "PAC CLI is not installed. You can install it by running:"

   dotnet tool install --global Microsoft.PowerApps.CLI.Tool
   

2. If dotnet is also not available, direct the user to https://aka.ms/PowerPlatformCLI for full installation instructions.

3. After installation, verify by running pac help again.

1.2 Check Authentication

Run pac auth who to check current authentication status.

pac auth who

If authenticated: Extract these values from the output:

• Environment ID — the GUID after Environment ID:
• Organization ID — the GUID after Organization ID: (this is the Dataverse org ID)
• Cloud — the value after Cloud: (e.g., Public, UsGov, UsGovHigh, UsGovDod, China)

If not authenticated: Follow the same authentication flow as deploy-site — ask the user for their environment URL and run pac auth create --environment "<URL>".

1.3 Verify Azure CLI Login

Verify the user is logged in to Azure CLI (the activation scripts acquire tokens internally):

az account show

If az is not installed or not logged in: Instruct the user to install Azure CLI and run az login --allow-no-subscriptions (this form works whether or not the user has an Azure subscription — the activation flow only needs an AAD token).

1.4 Check If Already Activated

Before gathering parameters, check whether the site is already activated by running the shared activation status script:

node "${PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/check-activation-status.js" --projectRoot "<PROJECT_ROOT>"

Where <PROJECT_ROOT> is the directory containing powerpages.config.json or .powerpages-site folder. Evaluate the JSON result:

• If activated is true: Inform the user their site is already activated at websiteUrl. Suggest next steps (Phase 5.3) and stop — do NOT proceed to Phase 2.
• If activated is false: Proceed to Phase 2.
• If error is present: Proceed to Phase 2 (do not block the activation flow).

Output

• PAC CLI installed and authenticated
• Environment ID, Organization ID, and Cloud value extracted
• Azure CLI login confirmed
• Activation status checked (already activated → stop early, not activated → continue)

---

Phase 2: Gather Parameters

Goal: Determine the site name, generate or accept a subdomain, and look up the website record ID needed for the activation API call.

Actions

2.1 Read Site Name

Look for powerpages.config.json in the current directory or one level of subdirectories using Glob:

**/powerpages.config.json

Read the file and extract the siteName field. If not found, ask the user for the site name using AskUserQuestion.

2.2 Generate Subdomain Suggestion

CRITICAL — This step is MANDATORY. You MUST ask the user about the subdomain before proceeding. Do NOT skip this step or auto-select a subdomain without user input.

Run the subdomain generator script to create a random suggestion:

node "${PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/activate-site/scripts/generate-subdomain.js"

This outputs a string like site-a3f2b1. Resolve the correct site URL domain from the Cloud value obtained in Phase 1.2:

Cloud	Site URL Domain
Public	powerappsportals.com
UsGov	powerappsportals.us
UsGovHigh	high.powerappsportals.us
UsGovDod	appsplatform.us
China	powerappsportals.cn

🚦 Gate (plan · activate-site:2.2.subdomain): Confirm or override the generated subdomain. Subdomain is part of the resulting site URL; Cancel exits before any provisioning call.

Present the generated subdomain to the user and ask them to accept or enter their own using AskUserQuestion:

Question	Header	Options
Your site subdomain will be: <suggestion> (full URL: https://<suggestion>.<siteUrlDomain>). Would you like to use this subdomain or enter your own?	Subdomain	Use <suggestion> (Recommended), Enter a custom subdomain

If custom: The user provides their own subdomain via "Other" free text input. Validate it is lowercase, alphanumeric with hyphens only, and 3-50 characters.

2.3 Get Website Record ID

Run pac pages list to get the website record ID:

pac pages list

Parse the output to find the website record that matches the site name. Extract the Website Record ID (GUID). If pac pages list returns no results or the command is not available, set websiteRecordId to $null — the API will create a new website record.

Output

• Site name determined (from config file or user input)
• Subdomain chosen (generated or custom)
• Website record ID resolved (GUID or null)

---

Phase 3: Confirm

Goal: Present all activation parameters to the user and get explicit approval before making the API call.

Actions

🚦 Gate (final · activate-site:3.confirm): Last-call before the activation API call. All activation parameters echoed back; Cancel exits cleanly before provisioning. Fires fresh on every skill invocation. When plan-alm orchestrates multi-stage activation (Staging + Production), it invokes activate-site once per stage — each invocation hits this gate fresh with its own siteName, subdomain, and target env. The Staging activation consent does NOT cover Production. Each stage's site URL is a separate go-live decision (different audiences, different timing).

Present all activation parameters to the user using AskUserQuestion:

Question	Header	Options
Ready to activate your Power Pages site with these settings:\n\n- Site name: <siteName>\n- Subdomain: <subdomain>.powerappsportals.com\n- Environment ID: <environmentId>\n\nProceed with activation?	Activate	Yes, activate the site (Recommended), No, cancel

If "No": Stop the skill and inform the user they can re-run it later.

If "Yes": Proceed to Phase 4.

Output

• User has explicitly approved the activation parameters

---

Phase 4: Activate & Poll

Goal: POST to the Power Platform websites API to start provisioning, poll until completion, and report the result.

Actions

4.1 Run Activation Script

Run the shared activation script, passing all parameters gathered in Phases 1–2:

node "${PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/activate-site/scripts/activate-site.js" --siteName "<siteName>" --subdomain "<subdomain>" --organizationId "<organizationId>" --environmentId "<environmentId>" --cloud "<cloud>" --websiteRecordId "<websiteRecordId>"

Omit --websiteRecordId if it is null/empty.

The script acquires an Azure CLI token, POSTs to the websites API, extracts the Operation-Location header, and polls every 10 seconds for up to 5 minutes (refreshing the token periodically). It outputs a JSON result to stdout.

Note: This script may run for up to 5 minutes while polling. Use a Bash timeout of at least 360 seconds (6 minutes).

4.2 Handle Results

Evaluate the JSON output:

status value	statusCode / errorCode	Action
Succeeded	—	Provisioning complete. The result includes siteUrl. Proceed to Phase 5.
Failed	400 + SubdomainConflict (or error message mentions subdomain)	Subdomain already taken. Loop back to Phase 2 action 2.2 for a new subdomain, then re-run the script.
Failed	401	Token expired. Ask the user to run az login --allow-no-subscriptions and retry.
Failed	403	Insufficient permissions. Inform user they need the "Power Pages site creator" or "System Administrator" role.
Failed	409	Website already exists. Inform user and suggest using /deploy-site instead.
Failed	429 or 5xx	Throttling or server error. Wait 5 seconds and re-run the script once.
Failed	other	Present the error to the user and help troubleshoot.
Running	—	Provisioning still in progress after 5 minutes. Inform the user it may take up to 15 minutes and suggest checking the Power Platform admin center.
error field	—	Prerequisite failure (missing args, no token). Present the error and help troubleshoot.

Output

• Provisioning status resolved (Succeeded with siteUrl, Failed with error details, or Running with timeout advisory)

---

Phase 5: Present Summary

Goal: Show the user the final site URL and suggest next steps.

Actions

5.1 Show Results

Present the activation summary using the siteUrl from the script output:

Power Pages site activated successfully!

  Site Name:  <siteName>
  Site URL:   <siteUrl>
  Environment: <environmentName> (<environmentId>)
  Status:     Provisioned

The script already resolves the correct cloud-specific site URL domain, so use the siteUrl value directly.

5.1b Write docs/alm/last-activate.json Marker

For consumers like the rendered ALM plan (Manual path's per-target Activate steps), write a structured marker that captures the post-activation state. Ensure the docs/alm/ directory exists first:

node -e "require('fs').mkdirSync('docs/alm',{recursive:true})"
# Determine the stage label this activation was for. The upstream ALM context
# (e.g. the user running this after import-solution) supplies it as "Staging"/
# "Production"; standalone invocations may leave it null — refreshActivateSite
# falls back to env-URL matching against planData.stages[].envUrl.
node -e "require('fs').writeFileSync('docs/alm/last-activate.json', JSON.stringify({
  stageName: <stageNameOrNull>,
  siteName: '<siteName>',
  siteUrl: '<siteUrl>',
  websiteRecordId: '<websiteRecordId>',
  environmentUrl: '<envUrl>',
  environmentId: '<environmentId>',
  activatedAt: new Date().toISOString(),
  status: 'Activated',
  cloud: '<cloud>',
}, null, 2))"

When the activation was an already-activated detection (Phase 1.4), still write the marker — the rendered plan should reflect "this stage is live at https://..." regardless of whether activation was performed this run or pre-existing. Set status: 'AlreadyActivated' and use the existing siteUrl from Phase 1.4's check.

5.2 Record Skill Usage

Reference: ${PLUGIN_ROOT}/references/skill-tracking-reference.md

Follow the skill tracking instructions in the reference to record this skill's usage. Use --skillName "ActivateSite".

5.2b Refresh the ALM plan (if one exists)

node "${PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/lib/refresh-alm-plan-data.js" \
  --projectRoot "." \
  --phase activate-site \
  --stageName "{stageNameOrEmpty}" \
  --render

{stageNameOrEmpty} is the Manual-path target stage label (e.g. Staging, Production) the agent was activating — stated by the user, or inferred from the target env. Pass an empty string when unknown; refreshActivateSite falls back to URL-matching docs/alm/last-activate.json's environmentUrl against planData.stages[].envUrl, so standalone invocations still get captured.

The helper reads docs/alm/last-activate.json, writes a per-target entry into planData.activations[stageName] (siteUrl, status, activatedAt), and re-renders docs/alm-plan.html so the matching Activate site in {stageName} checklist step shows an ACTIVATED badge with the live site URL inline. When docs/.alm-plan-data.json is absent (standalone, not part of an ALM plan), the helper returns ok:false as a soft no-op.

Point the user at the next step (user-driven sequencing). The helper's stdout JSON includes nextStep: { name, skill: string | null } | null. When non-null, branch on skill: when skill is non-null, tell the user "Plan updated. Next in your plan: {nextStep.name} → run {nextStep.skill} when you're ready."; when skill is null (an internal step such as Finalize, no user command), name the step only — "Plan updated. Next in your plan: {nextStep.name}." — and never print run null. When null or the helper returned ok:false, say nothing about a next step. Never auto-invoke the next skill — the user drives execution.

5.3 Suggest Next Steps

After the summary, suggest:

• Test the site: /test-site — Verify the site loads correctly and API calls are working
• Set up ALM: /power-pages:plan-alm — Set up ALM to promote this site to staging or production (creates a solution, configures a deployment pipeline or export/import strategy)
• Set up the data model: /setup-datamodel
• Add sample data: /add-sample-data
• View the site in the browser at the provisioned URL (note: it may take a few minutes for DNS to propagate)

Output

• Activation summary presented with site URL
• Next steps suggested to the user

---

Important Notes

Progress Tracking

Use TaskCreate at the start to track progress through each phase:

Task	Description
Phase 1	Verify Prerequisites — PAC CLI auth, Cloud detection, Azure CLI login, activation status check
Phase 2	Gather Parameters — site name, subdomain, website record ID
Phase 3	Confirm — user approval of activation parameters
Phase 4	Activate & Poll — run activation script, handle result
Phase 5	Present Summary — show site URL and next steps

Mark each task complete with TaskUpdate as you finish each phase.

Key Decision Points

• Phase 1.2: If not authenticated, must authenticate before proceeding — cannot skip.
• Phase 1.4: If site is already activated, stop early — do NOT proceed to Phase 2.
• Phase 2.2: User may accept the generated subdomain or provide a custom one — validate custom input.
• Phase 3: User must explicitly approve activation. If declined, stop the skill entirely.
• Phase 4.2: On 400 (subdomain taken), loop back to Phase 2 action 2.2 and re-run the script — do not abort.
• Phase 4.2: On 409 (site already exists), redirect user to /deploy-site instead.
• Phase 4.2: On timeout (still Running after 5 minutes), do not treat as failure — advise user to check admin center.

Begin with Phase 1: Verify Prerequisites