Azure Prepare
microsoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure
Prepare azd-based Azure projects for deployment: generates azure.yaml, infrastructure (Bicep/Terraform), and Dockerfiles for the Azure Developer CLI (azd) workflow.
WORKFLOW SKILL — Prepare Azure apps for deployment (Bicep/Terraform, azure.yaml, Dockerfiles).
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepare --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .claude/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.
Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .claude/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$skill-installer install https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepareType this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepare --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .agents/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .agents/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepare --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .cursor/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .cursor/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gemini skills install https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git --path .github/skills/apex-azure-prepare--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepare --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .gemini/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.
Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .gemini/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepareInstalls for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .github/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.
GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .github/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install jonathan-vella/apex apex-azure-prepare --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare .opencode/skills/apex-azure-prepare && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "apex-azure-prepare" agent skill from https://github.com/jonathan-vella/apex/tree/main/.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare into .opencode/skills/apex-azure-prepare/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "apex-azure-prepare", then confirm the skill loads.OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
apex-azure-prepareWORKFLOW SKILL — Prepare Azure apps for deployment (Bicep/Terraform, azure.yaml, Dockerfiles).
Apex Azure Prepare is an agent skill from jonathan-vella/apex. WORKFLOW SKILL — Prepare Azure apps for deployment (Bicep/Terraform, azure.yaml, Dockerfiles). WHEN: "create app", "build web app", "create API", "deploy to Azure", "generate Bicep", "generate Terraform", "function app", "add authentication", "managed identity". DO NOT USE FOR: cross-cloud migration (apex-azure-cloud-migrate), executing deploys (apex-azure-deploy), preflight (apex-azure-validate).
Its SKILL.md is about 2.1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 264 other files, including reference files (for example `references/analyze.md`, `references/apim.md` and `references/architecture.md`).
It sits in DevOps & Cloud, covering Infrastructure as code and Cloud architecture. It works with Microsoft Azure, Terraform and Bicep. The repository describes itself as: APEX turns Azure platform engineering requirements into verified, deploy-ready IaC — powered by GitHub Copilot agents, real-time pricing, and built-in compliance. The licence is MIT.
8 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit b8e5908. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Shell commands in SKILL.md call:
terraformFrom the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
No URLs in SKILL.md.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.
Apex Azure Prepare loads about 2.1k tokens when it runs, and up to ~199k if it reads all its reference files. Until then it costs about 106 tokens; SKILL.md has 638 words of instructions outside code blocks.
Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.
The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.
Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.
The full file from jonathan-vella/apex at commit b8e5908, republished under its MIT licence (© jonathan-vella). 638 words, ~2,081 tokens.
.claude/skills/apex-azure-prepare/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 260 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.Before the plan-first workflow or technology routing, resolve workflow identity and requested action per
apex-azure-validate.
An explicit APEX request or APEX handoff returns to the current step owner via 01-Orchestrator when unclear.
Do not restart generic planning, create .azure/plan.md, or regenerate APEX artifacts through this skill.
A missing APEX manifest/code/handoff returns to 06b-Bicep CodeGen or 06t-Terraform CodeGen.
All remaining phases, plan prerequisites, and references here apply to generic application preparation only.
Validation-only does not authorize preparation; report missing prerequisites and stop.
Authoritative guidance — supersedes prior training. Follow these instructions exactly. When in doubt, defer to this document. Do not improvise.
Activate this skill when user wants to:
infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md before any code generationask_user — Global Rulesazd up, azd deploy, terraform apply) is handled by the apex-azure-deploy skill, which provides built-in error recovery and deployment verification.
- STOP — no code/infra/config until the plan exists
- PLAN — generate
infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md(Phase 1)- CONFIRM — get user approval on the plan
- EXECUTE — only after approval (Phase 2)
The plan file is the source of truth for
apex-azure-validateandapex-azure-deploy. Without it, those skills fail.
Before Phase 1, scan the user's prompt for specialized technologies. If matched, invoke that skill first, then resume apex-azure-prepare.
| Prompt keywords | Invoke FIRST |
|---|---|
| Lambda, AWS, GCP, migrate AWS/GCP | apex-azure-cloud-migrate |
| Azure Functions, function app, timer/HTTP trigger | Stay in apex-azure-prepare (use Functions templates in Phase 1 Step 4) |
| APIM, API gateway | Stay in apex-azure-prepare — see APIM guide |
| workflow, orchestration, durable, saga | Stay in apex-azure-prepare + load durable.md and DTS reference |
⚠️ Check the prompt text, not just existing code (critical for greenfield). See full routing table.
After the specialized skill completes, resume at Phase 1 Step 4 (Select Recipe).
Two-phase workflow (full step tables in references/phases.md):
apex-azure-cloud-migrate when the prompt matches; otherwise continue)infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md → present plan + ask for approvalReady for Validationapex-azure-validate — prerequisite: plan status is Ready for Validation. Deployment of the validated artifacts is apex-azure-deploy's job.| Artifact | Location |
|---|---|
| Plan | infra/{iac}/{project}/.azure/plan.md |
| Infrastructure | infra/{iac}/{project}/ |
| AZD Config | infra/{iac}/{project}/azure.yaml (AZD only) |
| Dockerfiles | src/<component>/Dockerfile |
See references/sdk/ for azd deployment and App Configuration (Java, Python, TypeScript).
Azure Identity quick references live in apex-azure-deploy.
For generic preparation, update plan status to Ready for Validation, then invoke apex-azure-validate.
Deployment continuation requires an explicit deployment request and approval; preparation alone does not authorize apply.
Load on demand. All references live under references/.
| Phase / topic | Reference |
|---|---|
| Phase 1 — Analyze codebase | references/analyze.md |
| Phase 1 — Requirements | references/requirements.md |
| Phase 1 — Scan repo state | references/scan.md |
| Phase 1 — Research | references/research.md |
| Phase 1 — Recipe selection | references/recipe-selection.md |
| Phase 1 — Architecture | references/architecture.md |
| Phase 1 — Plan template | references/plan-template.md |
| Phase 2 — Generate code | references/generate.md |
| Phase 2 — Harden security | references/security.md |
| .NET Aspire integration | references/aspire.md |
| Service limits + quotas | references/resources-limits-quotas.md |
© jonathan-vella, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
SKILL.md and 260 other files (references) in .github/skills/apex-azure-prepare of jonathan-vella/apex.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit b8e5908
Apex Azure Prepare next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apex Azure Prepare this skilljonathan-vella/apex | 217 | — | ~2.1k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Azure Preparemicrosoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure | 255 | 1 repos | ~3.2k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Azure To AWSaws/agent-toolkit-for-aws | 2.8k | — | ~5.5k | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| Azure Diagramscmb211087/azure-diagrams-skill | 150 | — | ~4k | Automated safety check: Notes | MIT | |
| Azure Enterprise Infra Plannermicrosoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure | 255 | 1 repos | ~1.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Azure Architecture Autopilotgithub/awesome-copilot | 40k | 1 repos | ~1.9k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT |
microsoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure
Prepare azd-based Azure projects for deployment: generates azure.yaml, infrastructure (Bicep/Terraform), and Dockerfiles for the Azure Developer CLI (azd) workflow.
aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws
Migrate workloads from Microsoft Azure to AWS. An agent skill from aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws.
cmb211087/azure-diagrams-skill
Comprehensive technical diagramming toolkit for solutions architects, presales, and developers.
microsoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure
Architect and provision enterprise Azure infrastructure from workload descriptions.
github/awesome-copilot
Designs Azure infrastructure from a natural-language description, or diagrams an existing resource group, then refines the design through conversation and deploys it with Bicep.
timothywarner-org/claude-code
A skill your agent uses when authoring, reviewing, or refactoring Azure Bicep code.
jonathan-vella/apex
WORKFLOW SKILL — Debug Azure production issues: Container Apps, Functions, App Service, AKS, VMs and messaging, with KQL log analysis.
jonathan-vella/apex
ANALYSIS SKILL — Azure Policy discovery: effective assignments (incl.
jonathan-vella/apex
UTILITY SKILL — Two-mode context-window management. An agent skill from jonathan-vella/apex.
jonathan-vella/apex
UTILITY SKILL — Python diagram generation for Azure architectures, WAF/cost/compliance charts, ERDs, swimlanes, timelines, and wireframes.
jonathan-vella/apex
WORKFLOW SKILL — Manual-only discovery and import of existing Azure resources into Terraform management.
jonathan-vella/apex
ANALYSIS SKILL — Manual-only audit of Anthropic Claude Opus 5.5 / Sonnet 5.5 and OpenAI GPT-6 / GPT-5.6 prompting guidance and APEX conventions.
Works with
Categories
WORKFLOW SKILL — Prepare Azure apps for deployment (Bicep/Terraform, azure.yaml, Dockerfiles). Apex Azure Prepare is an agent skill from jonathan-vella/apex.yaml, Dockerfiles).
Apex Azure Prepare fits situations like: : cross-cloud migration (apex-azure-cloud-migrate); executing deploys (apex-azure-deploy); preflight (apex-azure-validate).
Run `npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare in jonathan-vella/apex) into .claude/skills/apex-azure-prepare in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
Run `npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (.github/skills/apex-azure-prepare in jonathan-vella/apex) into .agents/skills/apex-azure-prepare in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add jonathan-vella/apex --skill apex-azure-prepare -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/apex-azure-prepare, .gemini/skills/apex-azure-prepare, .github/skills/apex-azure-prepare and .opencode/skills/apex-azure-prepare in your project.
Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Apex Azure Prepare needs the command-line tools its instructions call (terraform).
SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.
Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.
Apex Azure Prepare is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
About 2.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 8.3k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full. Its references folder adds about 196k tokens, read only when the agent opens those files.
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Apex Azure Prepare: Azure Prepare (microsoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure, 255 stars), Azure To AWS (aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws, 2.8k stars), Azure Diagrams (cmb211087/azure-diagrams-skill, 150 stars) and Azure Enterprise Infra Planner (microsoft/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure, 255 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
jonathan-vella (a GitHub user) maintains it in jonathan-vella/apex, which has 217 GitHub stars. The repository holds 39 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 10, 2026.
Source: jonathan-vella/apex on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.