Azure Compute
MicrosoftOfficialCreated by Microsoft
- Skill
- Tool integration
- Cloud and DevOps
- MIT
- Medium risk
AutoGineer summary
Written by AutoGineer from the skill’s own files, not by the author
The Azure Compute skill acts as a primary router for infrastructure-level tasks within Azure. It directs user requests to specialized workflows for recommending, provisioning, and managing bare virtual machine infrastructure. It is designed to handle the lifecycle of VMs and VMSS, including capacity planning through Capacity Reservation Groups and machine monitoring via Essential Machine Management.
What it does
- Routes requests to specific workflows for VM and VMSS provisioning.
- Provides guidance on selecting VM families based on workload requirements.
- Facilitates capacity reservation and guarantee for critical infrastructure.
- Supports Essential Machine Management for enrollment and monitoring tasks.
- Enables cost estimation and pricing comparisons for various VM SKUs.
- Distinguishes between infrastructure deployment and application-level service deployment.
When to use it
- When you need to provision or deploy bare virtual machines or scale sets.
- When you require assistance in selecting the appropriate VM family for a specific workload.
- When you need to reserve or guarantee capacity for your Azure compute resources.
- When you are setting up or monitoring machines using Essential Machine Management.
- When you need to compare pricing for different VM SKUs or regions.
Advantages
- Centralized entry point for all Azure compute-related infrastructure tasks.
- Prevents confusion between infrastructure provisioning and application deployment.
- Provides structured paths for complex tasks like capacity reservation.
- Ensures consistent use of specialized tools for quota and SKU management.
Usage examples
- “I need to deploy a set of web servers. Which VM family should I use?”
- The skill routes the request to the VM Recommender to analyze your workload and suggest the appropriate D-series or B-series VMs.
- “How can I reserve capacity for my production database VMs?”
- The skill initiates the Capacity Reservation workflow to guide you through creating and associating a Capacity Reservation Group.
- “Provision a new Ubuntu VM for testing.”
- The skill routes the request to the VM Creator workflow to handle the infrastructure deployment.
- “How do I enroll my machines in Essential Machine Management?”
- The skill directs you to the Essential Machine Management workflow for enrollment and monitoring instructions.
Install
Download the skill as a ZIP:
https://autogineer.com/agent-skills/microsoft/azure-compute/downloadUnzip it into the cross-client skills folder of your project:
mkdir -p .agents/skills && unzip azure-compute.zip -d .agents/skills
Documentation by Microsoft
Azure Compute Skill
Routes Azure VM and Virtual Machine Scale Set (VMSS) requests to the right workflow.
When to Use This Skill
User wants to recommend, compare, or price a VM or VMSS
User wants to create, provision, or deploy a VM or VMSS
User asks about Capacity Reservation Groups (CRG) — reserve, guarantee capacity, pre-provision
User asks about Essential Machine Management (EMM) — machine enrollment, monitor
Disambiguate with azure-prepare: if the user wants to deploy an application (Docker service, web app, API, serverless workload), route to azure-prepare. vm-creator is for bare VM/VMSS infrastructure only.
Routing
Mandatory workflow-first routing: never route directly to references/* files. First classify the user intent below, open the matched workflow file, then load only the reference files that workflow requests. Reference files are supporting material, not entry points. If the intent is unclear, ask a clarifying question to disambiguate between the workflows.
| Workflow | File | Use when |
|---|---|---|
| VM Recommender | vm-recommender.md | User asks which VM/VMSS to choose, whether to use VMSS/autoscaling, wants pricing, or wants to compare options |
| VM Creator | vm-creator.md | User wants to create, provision, or deploy a bare VM or VMSS (not an app deployment) |
| Capacity Reservation | capacity-reservation.md | User needs to reserve / guarantee VM capacity (CRG create / associate / disassociate) |
| Essential Machine Management | essential-machine-management.md | User asks about EMM / machine enrollment / monitor |
Files
- ATTRIBUTION.mdAdded by AutoGineer971 B
- LICENSELicence file added by AutoGineer1.1 KiB
- SKILL.md2.6 KiB
- references/retail-prices-api.md6.3 KiB
- references/vm-families.md5.8 KiB
- references/vm-quotas.md4.1 KiB
- references/vmss-guide.md6.2 KiB
- workflows/capacity-reservation/capacity-reservation.md7.8 KiB
- workflows/capacity-reservation/references/association-disassociation.md3.8 KiB
- workflows/capacity-reservation/references/capacity-reservation-overview.md6.0 KiB
- workflows/essential-machine-management/essential-machine-management.md5.0 KiB
- workflows/essential-machine-management/references/emm-enable-flow-portal-guidance.md3.1 KiB
- workflows/essential-machine-management/references/emm-enable-flow.md9.2 KiB
- workflows/essential-machine-management/references/emm-overview.md2.4 KiB
- workflows/essential-machine-management/references/emm-prerequisites.md3.5 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/bicep/README.md1.6 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/bicep/main.bicep3.8 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/terraform/README.md2.5 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/terraform/main.tf3.2 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/terraform/outputs.tf135 B
- workflows/vm-creator/examples/terraform/variables.tf1010 B
- workflows/vm-creator/references/delivery-options/github-pr.md3.2 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/delivery-options/index.md2.3 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/delivery-options/print.md474 B
- workflows/vm-creator/references/delivery-options/save-local.md2.0 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/beginner.md1.2 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/cost-deep.md1.1 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/index.md3.0 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/networking-deep.md1.6 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/security-deep.md1.2 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/depth-probe/spec-deep.md1.3 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/mcp-tools.md2.3 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/output-adapters/az-cli.md1.9 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/output-adapters/bicep.md1.7 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/output-adapters/index.md3.0 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/output-adapters/mcp-apply.md2.6 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/output-adapters/terraform.md1.5 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/plan-card.md3.9 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/references/validation-gates.md2.2 KiB
- workflows/vm-creator/vm-creator.md7.5 KiB
- workflows/vm-recommender/references/handoff-to-creator.md1.6 KiB
- workflows/vm-recommender/references/web-fetch-policy.md1.6 KiB
- workflows/vm-recommender/vm-recommender.md6.4 KiB
workflows/essential-machine-management/references/emm-overview.md
EMM Overview
Essential Machine Management (EMM) simplifies onboarding and configuration of management for Azure VMs and Arc-enabled servers at the subscription level.
What is EMM?
When you enable a subscription for EMM, all VMs and Arc-enabled servers in that subscription are automatically enrolled and configured with a curated set of management features. Any new VMs added to the subscription are also automatically enrolled.
Features Included
Essentials Tier (Always Enabled)
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Azure Monitor VM Insights | Monitors VM performance and health, configures metric-based recommended alerts |
| Azure Update Manager | Automates OS update deployment |
| Azure Machine Configuration | Audits Azure security baseline policy |
| Change Tracking & Inventory | Tracks VM configuration changes, maintains resource inventory |
Security Tier (Optional Add-ons)
| Feature | Description | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational CSPM | Agentless, risk-prioritized security posture insights | Free |
| Defender CSPM | Advanced CSPM with attack path analysis | Paid |
| Defender for Cloud | EDR, vulnerability management, file integrity monitoring, threat detection | Paid |
Pricing
Azure VMs: Essentials tier features at no extra charge
Arc-enabled servers with Windows Server SA/PayGo/ESU: No extra charge
Other Arc-enabled servers: $9/server/month once billing is enabled (future date, currently free in preview)
Change Tracking & Inventory logs: Incur separate Log Analytics ingestion charges
Security tier add-ons: Standard Microsoft Defender pricing applies
Key Characteristics
Subscription-level scope: Enables for all VMs in a subscription at once
No VM exclusion: Currently no ability to exclude individual VMs
Existing services preserved: If a VM already has Update Manager with a maintenance schedule, it keeps that schedule
REST API available: Official docs focus on the portal experience, but a REST API (
Microsoft.ManagedOps) is available and used by the Copilot-guided flowResource type:
Microsoft.ManagedOps/ManagedOps
Documentation Links
Requirements and compatibility
Works with: Claude Code, Claude apps, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, Kiro, OpenCode, Goose, Amp, Roo Code, JetBrains Junie, Factory Droid, Devin (ex-Windsurf), Mistral Vibe, OpenHands, Letta
“Works with” means the tool reads the open Agent Skills format; a skill written for one tool may use features others lack.
Security
What our scanner noticed· Medium risk
- References to credential files
A static scan is not a guarantee. Skills are third-party content: review a skill before you let an agent use it.
Attribution and licence
- Created by
- Microsoft
- Publisher
- Microsoft (Official)
- Source
- microsoft/skills · .github/plugins/azure-skills/skills/azure-compute · commit 0696600
- Licence
- MIT License (redistribution allowed)
- LICENSE (added by AutoGineer from .github/plugins/azure-skills/LICENSE)
- ATTRIBUTION.md (written by AutoGineer)
- Synced
- Also distributed in
- microsoft/azure-skills
AutoGineer is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft or Microsoft.
Download ZIP
The ZIP holds the skill’s files, its licence files and an ATTRIBUTION.md. Download azure-compute.zip