2.1 - AZD Workflow

Welcome to Week 2! This week we deep dive into Azure Developer CLI. Today we explore the complete AZD workflow and understand each command’s purpose.

What You’ll Learn

The complete AZD workflow from start to finish
When and why to use each AZD command
Environment management and configuration
Best practices for AZD-based development

Resources

Before diving in, review these resources:

📘 AZD Architecture and Concepts - Understanding AZD internals
📘 AZD Environments - Managing environments and configuration
📘 AZD Commands Reference - Complete command documentation

The AZD Development Lifecycle

┌─────────────┐
│   azd init  │  Initialize project
└──────┬──────┘
       ↓
┌─────────────┐
│   azd auth  │  Authenticate to Azure
└──────┬──────┘
       ↓
┌─────────────┐
│ azd provision│ Create infrastructure
└──────┬──────┘
       ↓
┌─────────────┐
│  azd deploy │  Deploy application
└──────┬──────┘
       ↓
┌─────────────┐
│ azd monitor │  Monitor application
└──────┬──────┘
       ↓
┌─────────────┐
│   azd down  │  Clean up resources
└─────────────┘

Core Commands Deep Dive

1. `azd init` - Project Initialization

Purpose: Start a new project or adopt existing code

Usage Scenarios:

A. From Template

azd init --template Azure-Samples/contoso-chat

Clones template repository
Creates .azure/ directory
Prompts for environment name

B. From Existing Code

cd my-existing-project
azd init

Detects project structure
Prompts for services to deploy
Creates azure.yaml and infra/ folder

C. Empty Project

mkdir my-new-project
cd my-new-project
azd init

Creates basic structure
Prompts for language and services

What Gets Created:

.azure/
  <env-name>/
    .env            # Environment variables (gitignored)
    config.json     # Environment configuration

2. `azd auth login` - Authentication

Purpose: Authenticate with Azure

Methods:

Interactive Login

azd auth login

Opens browser for Azure authentication

Device Code Flow

azd auth login --use-device-code

For environments without browser

Service Principal

azd auth login --client-id <id> --client-secret <secret> --tenant-id <tenant>

For CI/CD pipelines

Check Authentication

azd auth login --check-status

3. `azd env` - Environment Management

Purpose: Manage deployment environments

List Environments

azd env list

Create Environment

azd env new <env-name>

Select Environment

azd env select <env-name>

Set Variables

azd env set API_KEY "your-key-value"
azd env set ENABLE_MONITORING true

View Configuration

azd env get-values

Real-World Example:

azd env new dev
azd env set AZURE_LOCATION eastus
azd env set AZURE_OPENAI_SKU S0

azd env new prod
azd env set AZURE_LOCATION westus
azd env set AZURE_OPENAI_SKU S0
azd env set ENABLE_PRIVATE_ENDPOINTS true

4. `azd provision` - Infrastructure Deployment

Purpose: Create and configure Azure resources

Basic Usage

azd provision

Preview Changes

azd provision --preview

Shows what will be created/modified (like Terraform plan)

What Happens:

Reads azure.yaml and infra/ templates
Prompts for required parameters
Deploys Bicep templates to Azure
Captures outputs (endpoints, keys)
Stores values in .azure/<env>/.env
Runs post-provision hooks

Time: 5-10 minutes (varies by complexity)

Output Example:

Provisioning Azure resources (azd provision)

  (✓) Done: Resource group: rg-retailai-dev
  (✓) Done: Azure OpenAI: openai-retailai-dev-abc123
  (✓) Done: AI Search: search-retailai-dev-abc123
  (✓) Done: Cosmos DB: cosmos-retailai-dev-abc123
  (✓) Done: Container Apps Environment: cae-retailai-dev

SUCCESS: Your application was provisioned in 8m 32s

5. `azd deploy` - Application Deployment

Purpose: Build and deploy application code

Basic Usage

azd deploy

Deploy Specific Service

azd deploy api
azd deploy web

What Happens:

Builds application code
Creates container images (if containerized)
Pushes images to Azure Container Registry
Deploys to target hosts (Container Apps, Static Web Apps, etc.)
Applies environment variables
Runs post-deploy hooks

Time: 3-5 minutes

Output Example:

Deploying services (azd deploy)

  (✓) Done: Building api (3m 12s)
  (✓) Done: Deploying api to Container App (1m 45s)
  (✓) Done: Building web (2m 5s)
  (✓) Done: Deploying web to Static Web App (1m 8s)

SUCCESS: Your application was deployed in 5m 10s

Endpoints:
  web: https://retailai-web-abc123.azurestaticapps.net
  api: https://api-abc123.eastus.azurecontainerapps.io

6. `azd up` - All-in-One

Purpose: Provision + Deploy in one command

azd up

Perfect for:

Initial deployment
Fresh environment setup
Demo scenarios
Onboarding new developers

Equivalent to:

azd provision
azd deploy

7. `azd monitor` - Application Monitoring

Purpose: View application telemetry and logs

Overview Dashboard

azd monitor --overview

Opens Application Insights overview

Live Logs

azd monitor --logs

Streams application logs

Query Logs

azd monitor --logs --query "traces | where severityLevel >= 3"

8. `azd down` - Resource Cleanup

Purpose: Delete all Azure resources

Basic Usage

azd down

Force Delete (no confirmation)

azd down --force

Purge (remove soft-deleted resources)

azd down --purge

What Gets Deleted:

Resource group and all resources
Deployments
Role assignments
Local environment files remain (.azure/ folder)

Environment Configuration

.azure//.env File

AZD stores configuration here:

AZURE_SUBSCRIPTION_ID=12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012
AZURE_LOCATION=eastus
AZURE_RESOURCE_GROUP=rg-retailai-dev

AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT=https://openai-retailai-dev.openai.azure.com/
AZURE_SEARCH_ENDPOINT=https://search-retailai-dev.search.windows.net
AZURE_COSMOS_ENDPOINT=https://cosmos-retailai-dev.documents.azure.com:443/

API_KEY=your-api-key
ENABLE_MONITORING=true
LOG_LEVEL=INFO

Accessing in Code

Python:

import os

openai_endpoint = os.environ["AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT"]
api_key = os.environ["API_KEY"]

Node.js:

const openaiEndpoint = process.env.AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT;
const apiKey = process.env.API_KEY;

Best Practices

1. Environment Strategy

dev: Individual developer environments
test: Shared testing environment
staging: Pre-production validation
prod: Production workloads

2. Configuration Management

✅ Store in .env: Environment-specific values ✅ Use Key Vault: Sensitive secrets ✅ Version Control: azure.yaml and infra/ templates ❌ Never Commit: .azure/ directory contents

3. Development Workflow

azd init --template <template-name>
azd auth login
azd up

azd deploy

azd provision --preview  # Preview changes
azd provision           # Apply changes

azd down

4. Team Collaboration

Option A: Shared Dev Resources

One dev environment
Quick but can have conflicts

Option B: Individual Environments

Each developer has own environment
Higher cost but isolated

Option C: Ephemeral Environments

Create, use, destroy
Best cost/isolation balance

Hooks for Customization

Add custom logic to workflow:

azure.yaml hooks

hooks:
  preprovision:
    - echo "About to provision..."

  postprovision:
    - azd env set API_ENDPOINT $(az containerapp show -g $AZURE_RESOURCE_GROUP -n api --query properties.configuration.ingress.fqdn -o tsv)

  predeploy:
    - npm run test

  postdeploy:
    - echo "Deployment complete!"
    - azd env get-values

Troubleshooting Commands

Check AZD Version

azd version

Update AZD

azd upgrade

View Detailed Logs

azd provision --debug

Show Help

azd --help
azd provision --help

Ask Copilot

Explore AZD workflow:

“What’s the difference between running ‘azd up’ once versus running ‘azd provision’ followed by multiple ‘azd deploy’ commands during development?”
“How do you safely manage secrets and API keys when using azd for deployment?”
“What happens to Azure resources if you delete the .azure directory locally?”

Next: Day 9 - Installation & Commands

Tomorrow we’ll cover AZD installation across platforms and explore all available commands in detail.

2.1 - AZD Workflow

What You’ll Learn

Resources

The AZD Development Lifecycle

Core Commands Deep Dive

1. azd init - Project Initialization

2. azd auth login - Authentication

3. azd env - Environment Management

4. azd provision - Infrastructure Deployment

5. azd deploy - Application Deployment

6. azd up - All-in-One

7. azd monitor - Application Monitoring

8. azd down - Resource Cleanup

Environment Configuration

.azure//.env File

Accessing in Code

Best Practices

1. Environment Strategy

2. Configuration Management

3. Development Workflow

4. Team Collaboration

Hooks for Customization

azure.yaml hooks

Troubleshooting Commands

Ask Copilot

Related Resources

1. `azd init` - Project Initialization

2. `azd auth login` - Authentication

3. `azd env` - Environment Management

4. `azd provision` - Infrastructure Deployment

5. `azd deploy` - Application Deployment

6. `azd up` - All-in-One

7. `azd monitor` - Application Monitoring

8. `azd down` - Resource Cleanup