Azure CLI Tools

Installation

Auto-Installation Flow

When a CLI tool is missing, follow this sequence:

1. Detect Missing Tool

Check for these error patterns:

•'az' is not recognized or az: command not found
•'azd' is not recognized or azd: command not found
•'func' is not recognized or func: command not found
•'docker' is not recognized or docker: command not found

2. Offer One-Click Install

Use AskUserQuestion to offer installation:

"I detected that [TOOL] is not installed. Would you like me to install it now?"

•Yes, install it
•No, I'll install it manually

3. Run Installation Command

Windows (preferred - winget):

powershell

# Azure CLI
winget install Microsoft.AzureCLI --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements

# Azure Developer CLI
winget install Microsoft.Azd --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements

# Azure Functions Core Tools
winget install Microsoft.Azure.FunctionsCoreTools --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements

# Docker Desktop
winget install Docker.DockerDesktop --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements

macOS:

bash

# Azure CLI
brew install azure-cli

# Azure Developer CLI
brew tap azure/azd && brew install azd

# Azure Functions Core Tools
brew tap azure/functions && brew install azure-functions-core-tools@4

# Docker Desktop
brew install --cask docker

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian):

bash

# Azure CLI
curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash

# Azure Developer CLI
curl -fsSL https://aka.ms/install-azd.sh | bash

# Azure Functions Core Tools
curl https://packages.microsoft.com/keys/microsoft.asc | gpg --dearmor > microsoft.gpg
sudo mv microsoft.gpg /etc/apt/trusted.gpg.d/microsoft.gpg
sudo sh -c 'echo "deb [arch=amd64] https://packages.microsoft.com/repos/microsoft-ubuntu-$(lsb_release -cs)-prod $(lsb_release -cs) main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/dotnetdev.list'
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install azure-functions-core-tools-4

# Docker
sudo apt-get install docker.io
sudo systemctl enable docker && sudo systemctl start docker

4. Verify Installation

bash

# After installation, verify:
az version
azd version
func --version
docker version

5. Handle PATH Issues

If command still not found after install:

Windows:

•Restart terminal
•Or run: refreshenv (if using Chocolatey)
•Or start new PowerShell/CMD window

macOS/Linux:

•Run: source ~/.bashrc or source ~/.zshrc
•Or start new terminal session

Using MCP Install Tool

The Azure MCP server provides installation guidance:

code

Tool: azure__extension_cli_install
Parameters:
  - cli-type: "az" | "azd" | "func"

Example:

code

Use azure__extension_cli_install with cli-type: "azd"

This returns platform-specific installation instructions.

Tool Priority

For Azure deployments, install in this order:

Priority	Tool	Required For
1	`azd`	Application deployments (ALWAYS use this)
2	`az`	Resource queries, manual operations
3	`docker`	Container builds, local testing
4	`func`	Local Functions development

Quick Check Script

Run this to check all tools at once:

bash

# Bash version
echo "=== Azure Tools Check ==="
echo -n "az: " && (az version --query '"azure-cli"' -o tsv 2>/dev/null || echo "NOT INSTALLED")
echo -n "azd: " && (azd version 2>/dev/null || echo "NOT INSTALLED")
echo -n "docker: " && (docker version --format '{{.Server.Version}}' 2>/dev/null || echo "NOT INSTALLED")
echo -n "func: " && (func --version 2>/dev/null || echo "NOT INSTALLED")

powershell

# PowerShell version
Write-Host "=== Azure Tools Check ==="
Write-Host -NoNewline "az: "; try { az version --query '"azure-cli"' -o tsv 2>$null } catch { Write-Host "NOT INSTALLED" }
Write-Host -NoNewline "azd: "; try { azd version 2>$null } catch { Write-Host "NOT INSTALLED" }
Write-Host -NoNewline "docker: "; try { docker version --format '{{.Server.Version}}' 2>$null } catch { Write-Host "NOT INSTALLED" }
Write-Host -NoNewline "func: "; try { func --version 2>$null } catch { Write-Host "NOT INSTALLED" }

Authentication After Installation

Azure CLI (az)

bash

# Interactive (opens browser)
az login

# Device code (headless/remote) - use if browser login fails
az login --use-device-code

# Service principal (CI/CD)
az login --service-principal -u APP_ID -p SECRET --tenant TENANT_ID

Azure Developer CLI (azd)

bash

# Uses Azure CLI credentials by default
# Or explicitly:
azd auth login

# Check authentication status
azd auth login --check-status

⚠️ For automation/CI-CD: Always use --no-prompt with azd commands to avoid interactive prompts blocking execution.

Tip: If device code auth times out repeatedly, run az login in a separate terminal window where you can interact with it directly.

Common Installation Issues

Issue	Solution
winget not found	Install App Installer from Microsoft Store
brew not found	Install Homebrew: `/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"`
Permission denied	Run as Administrator (Windows) or use sudo (Linux)
Old version installed	Run `az upgrade` or `brew upgrade azure-cli`
PATH not updated	Restart terminal or source shell config

Bulk Install (All Tools)

Windows:

powershell

winget install Microsoft.AzureCLI Microsoft.Azd Docker.DockerDesktop --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements

macOS:

bash

brew install azure-cli && brew install azd && brew install --cask docker

💡 Note: brew install azd works directly without needing brew tap azure/azd in recent Homebrew versions.

Command Cheatsheet

Authentication

bash

# Interactive login
az login

# Device code flow (headless)
az login --use-device-code

# Service principal
az login --service-principal -u APP_ID -p PASSWORD --tenant TENANT_ID

# Check current account
az account show

# List subscriptions
az account list --output table

# Set subscription
az account set --subscription "Subscription Name"

Resource Management

bash

# List resource groups
az group list --output table

# Create resource group
az group create --name RG --location eastus

# List resources in group
az resource list -g RG --output table

# Delete resource group
az group delete --name RG --yes

Storage

bash

# List storage accounts
az storage account list --output table

# List containers
az storage container list --account-name ACCOUNT --output table

# List blobs
az storage blob list --account-name ACCOUNT --container-name CONTAINER --output table

# Upload blob
az storage blob upload --account-name ACCOUNT --container-name CONTAINER --name BLOB --file FILE

# Download blob
az storage blob download --account-name ACCOUNT --container-name CONTAINER --name BLOB --file FILE

SQL Database

bash

# List SQL servers
az sql server list --output table

# List databases
az sql db list --server SERVER -g RG --output table

# Create firewall rule
az sql server firewall-rule create --server SERVER -g RG --name RULE --start-ip-address IP --end-ip-address IP

Key Vault

bash

# List vaults
az keyvault list --output table

# List secrets
az keyvault secret list --vault-name VAULT --output table

# Get secret
az keyvault secret show --vault-name VAULT --name SECRET

# Set secret
az keyvault secret set --vault-name VAULT --name SECRET --value VALUE

App Service

bash

# List web apps
az webapp list --output table

# Get app details
az webapp show --name APP -g RG

# Deploy ZIP
az webapp deploy --name APP -g RG --src-path app.zip --type zip

# View logs
az webapp log tail --name APP -g RG

Functions

bash

# List function apps
az functionapp list --output table

# Get app settings
az functionapp config appsettings list --name APP -g RG

# Set app settings
az functionapp config appsettings set --name APP -g RG --settings KEY=VALUE

Container Apps

bash

# List container apps
az containerapp list --output table

# Deploy
az containerapp up --name APP -g RG --image IMAGE --ingress external --target-port 8080

# View logs
az containerapp logs show --name APP -g RG --follow

AKS

bash

# List clusters
az aks list --output table

# Get credentials
az aks get-credentials --name CLUSTER -g RG

# Scale node pool
az aks nodepool scale --cluster-name CLUSTER -g RG --name POOL --node-count 5

Azure Developer CLI (azd)

bash

# Initialize project
azd init --template TEMPLATE

# Provision and deploy
azd up

# For automation/agent scenarios - use --no-prompt
azd up --no-prompt
azd provision --no-prompt
azd deploy --no-prompt

# Preview changes before deployment
azd provision --preview

# Deploy code only
azd deploy --no-prompt

# Tear down resources
azd down

# View deployed resources
azd show

⚠️ CRITICAL: azd down Data Loss Warning

azd down permanently deletes ALL resources in the environment, including:

•Databases with all data (Cosmos DB, SQL, PostgreSQL, etc.)

•Storage accounts with all blobs and files

•Key Vault with all secrets (use --purge to bypass soft-delete)

Flags:

•azd down - Prompts for confirmation

•azd down --force - Skips confirmation (still soft-deletes Key Vault)

•azd down --force --purge - Permanently deletes Key Vault (no recovery possible)

Best practices:

•Always use azd provision --preview before azd up to understand what will be created

•Use separate environments for dev/staging/production

•Back up important data before running azd down

Monitoring

bash

# Query logs
az monitor log-analytics query --workspace WORKSPACE_ID --analytics-query "QUERY"

# List activity log
az monitor activity-log list -g RG --max-events 20

Advanced Tips and Patterns

Output Formatting

Table Output (Human Readable)

bash

az resource list -g RG --output table

JSON Output (Scripting)

bash

az resource list -g RG --output json

TSV Output (Parsing)

bash

az resource list -g RG --output tsv

YAML Output

bash

az resource list -g RG --output yaml

JMESPath Queries

Select Specific Fields

bash

az resource list --query "[].{Name:name, Type:type}" -o table

Filter Results

bash

# Exact match
az resource list --query "[?type=='Microsoft.Web/sites']" -o table

# Contains
az resource list --query "[?contains(name, 'prod')]" -o table

# Multiple conditions
az resource list --query "[?type=='Microsoft.Web/sites' && contains(name, 'api')]" -o table

Get Single Value

bash

az account show --query "id" -o tsv

First/Last Item

bash

az resource list --query "[0].name" -o tsv
az resource list --query "[-1].name" -o tsv

Environment Variables

Set Default Subscription

bash

# Bash version
export AZURE_DEFAULTS_SUBSCRIPTION="subscription-id"

powershell

# PowerShell version
$env:AZURE_DEFAULTS_SUBSCRIPTION = "subscription-id"

Set Default Location

bash

# Bash version
export AZURE_DEFAULTS_LOCATION="eastus"

powershell

# PowerShell version
$env:AZURE_DEFAULTS_LOCATION = "eastus"

Set Default Resource Group

bash

# Bash version
export AZURE_DEFAULTS_GROUP="my-resource-group"

powershell

# PowerShell version
$env:AZURE_DEFAULTS_GROUP = "my-resource-group"

Scripting Patterns

Get Resource ID

bash

# Bash version
RESOURCE_ID=$(az webapp show -n APP -g RG --query "id" -o tsv)

powershell

# PowerShell version
$RESOURCE_ID = az webapp show -n APP -g RG --query "id" -o tsv

Loop Over Resources

bash

# Bash version
for app in $(az webapp list -g RG --query "[].name" -o tsv); do
  echo "Processing $app"
  az webapp show -n "$app" -g RG
done

powershell

# PowerShell version
$apps = az webapp list -g RG --query "[].name" -o tsv
foreach ($app in $apps) {
    Write-Host "Processing $app"
    az webapp show -n $app -g RG
}

Check If Resource Exists

bash

# Bash version
if az webapp show -n APP -g RG &>/dev/null; then
  echo "App exists"
else
  echo "App does not exist"
fi

powershell

# PowerShell version
$result = az webapp show -n APP -g RG 2>$null
if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
    Write-Host "App exists"
} else {
    Write-Host "App does not exist"
}

Wait for Operation

bash

# Bash version
az webapp create ... --no-wait
az webapp wait --name APP -g RG --created

powershell

# PowerShell version
az webapp create ... --no-wait
az webapp wait --name APP -g RG --created

Error Handling

Suppress Errors

bash

# Bash version
az resource show --ids ID 2>/dev/null || echo "Not found"

powershell

# PowerShell version
$result = az resource show --ids ID 2>$null
if (-not $result) { Write-Host "Not found" }

Check Exit Code

bash

# Bash version
if az webapp show -n APP -g RG; then
  echo "Success"
else
  echo "Failed with code $?"
fi

powershell

# PowerShell version
az webapp show -n APP -g RG
if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
    Write-Host "Success"
} else {
    Write-Host "Failed with code $LASTEXITCODE"
}

Configuration

View Config

bash

az config get

Set Defaults

bash

az config set defaults.group=myRG
az config set defaults.location=eastus

Disable Telemetry

bash

az config set core.collect_telemetry=false

Extensions

List Extensions

bash

az extension list

Add Extension

bash

az extension add --name extension-name

Update Extensions

bash

az extension update --name extension-name

Performance Tips

•Use --no-wait for long operations
•Use --query to reduce output size
•Use TSV output for parsing
•Cache results when querying multiple times
•Use resource IDs instead of name lookups

Common Issues

Command Not Found

bash

# Update CLI
az upgrade

# Or reinstall
curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash

Authentication Expired

bash

az login --use-device-code

Permission Denied

Check RBAC roles:

bash

az role assignment list --assignee USER@domain.com