Fix azure-prepare to use azd init --from-code for .NET Aspire projects

[Copilot]

The skill was manually generating azure.yaml files for Aspire projects with only name/metadata fields, missing the services section. This caused "Could not find infra\main.bicep" errors since Aspire auto-generates infrastructure from the AppHost.

Changes

• New dedicated guide (recipes/azd/aspire.md) - Shows correct vs incorrect approach with detection patterns
• Enhanced detection guidance (generate.md) - Makes Aspire check mandatory first step with grep/find commands
• Added warnings at key decision points (azure-yaml.md, recipe-selection.md, aspire.md)
• Test utilities - Added hasServicesSection() and getServiceProject() to validate azure.yaml structure
• Test coverage - Added integration test for aspire-with-azure-functions sample

Detection Pattern

# Find AppHost projects
find . -name "*.AppHost.csproj"
grep -r "Aspire\.Hosting\|Aspire\.AppHost\.Sdk" . --include="*.csproj"

# If detected, use azd init instead of manual generation
azd init --from-code -e "$ENV_NAME"

Before/After

Before (manual creation):

name: aspire-app
metadata:
  template: azd-init
# Missing services section → deployment fails

After (azd init --from-code):

name: aspire-app
metadata:
  template: azd-init
services:
  app:
    project: ./MyApp.AppHost/MyApp.AppHost.csproj
    host: containerapp

Warning

Firewall rules blocked me from connecting to one or more addresses (expand for details)

I tried to connect to the following addresses, but was blocked by firewall rules:

• centralus-2.in.applicationinsights.azure.com
  • Triggering command: /home/REDACTED/.npm/_npx/6027471c64e54353/node_modules/@azure/mcp-linux-x64/dist/azmcp /home/REDACTED/.npm/_npx/6027471c64e54353/node_modules/@azure/mcp-linux-x64/dist/azmcp server start (dns block)
• https://api.github.com/user
  • Triggering command: /home/REDACTED/work/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure/tests/node_modules/@github/copilot-linux-x64/copilot /home/REDACTED/work/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure/GitHub-Copilot-for-Azure/tests/node_modules/@github/copilot-linux-x64/copilot --headless --log-level error --stdio (http block)

If you need me to access, download, or install something from one of these locations, you can either:

• Configure Actions setup steps to set up my environment, which run before the firewall is enabled
• Add the appropriate URLs or hosts to the custom allowlist in this repository's Copilot coding agent settings (admins only)

Original prompt

---

This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>azure-prepare skill generates incorrect azure.yaml for .NET Aspire AppHost projects</issue_title>
<issue_description>## Description

When deploying a .NET Aspire application, the azure-prepare skill manually generates an azure.yaml with only name and metadata fields, missing the critical services section that points to the AppHost .csproj. This causes azd up to fail because it cannot find infra/main.bicep — Aspire apps auto-generate infrastructure from the AppHost, so azd must be aware of the AppHost project.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Clone the dotnet/aspire-samples repo
2. Navigate to samples/aspire-with-azure-functions
3. Ask Copilot for Azure to deploy the application
4. The agent follows the azure-prepare skill's AZD recipe and manually creates azure.yaml:

   name: aspire-with-azure-functions
   metadata:
     template: azd-init

5. Run azd up — fails with:

   ERROR: failed to compile bicep template: Could not find a part of the path 'infra\main.bicep'
   

Expected Behavior

The azure-prepare skill should detect .NET Aspire AppHost projects (identifiable by Aspire.AppHost.Sdk or Aspire.Hosting.* packages in .csproj files) and use azd init --from-code to generate the correct azure.yaml instead of manually creating one. The correct generated file looks like:

name: aspire-with-azure-functions
services:
  app:
    language: dotnet
    project: ./ImageGallery.AppHost/ImageGallery.AppHost.csproj
    host: containerapp

Root Cause

The azure-prepare skill references (azure-yaml.md, recipe-selection.md, etc.) do not include guidance for .NET Aspire projects, which have a unique deployment model:

• Infrastructure is auto-generated from the AppHost code at provision time
• No manual infra/ directory or Bicep files are needed
• azure.yaml must reference the AppHost .csproj with host: containerapp

The skill's AZD recipe assumes all projects need manually-authored azure.yaml + infra/ artifacts.

Suggested Fix

1. Add Aspire detection to the scan/analysis phase (look for Aspire.AppHost.Sdk in .csproj files or Aspire.Hosting.* packages)
2. When an Aspire AppHost is detected, use azd init --from-code -e <env-name> --no-prompt instead of manually generating azure.yaml
3. Add an Aspire-specific section to the AZD recipe documentation explaining that Aspire apps don't need manual Bicep infrastructure

Environment

• azd version: 1.23.3
• OS: Windows
• Sample: dotnet/aspire-samples/samples/aspire-with-azure-functions
• Aspire SDK: 13.1.0, .NET 10</issue_description>

Comments on the Issue (you are @copilot in this section)

• Fixes azure-prepare skill generates incorrect azure.yaml for .NET Aspire AppHost projects #872

---

💡 You can make Copilot smarter by setting up custom instructions, customizing its development environment and configuring Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers. Learn more Copilot coding agent tips in the docs.

[jeo02]

Test Report: agent-metadata-2026-02-21T00-07-18-573Z

Date: 2026-02-21
Duration: ~10-12 minutes (estimated from execution flow)
Status: ✅ PASSED
Confidence: 🟢 HIGH

📝 Test Prompt

Please deploy this application to Azure. Use the eastus2 region. Use my current subscription. This is for a small scale production environment. Use standard SKUs.

📊 Result Summary

Metric	Value
Status	PASSED
Retries	0
Duration	~720000ms (~720s)
Skill	azure-prepare
Task Type	Azure Deployment Preparation

🎯 Confidence Level

Overall Confidence: 🟢 HIGH (85%)

Factor	Impact
Skill invocation success	+25
Infrastructure generation	+25
Configuration optimization	+20
Environment setup	+15

Confidence Indicators:

• ✅ azure-prepare skill invoked correctly on first attempt
• ✅ .NET Aspire application detected and analyzed successfully
• ✅ Deployment plan created at .azure/plan.md
• ✅ azd init --from-code executed successfully
• ✅ Infrastructure (Bicep) generated to disk
• ✅ Region configured to eastus2 as requested
• ✅ SKUs optimized for small-scale production (Standard_LRS, Basic ACR)
• ✅ Environment values validated

⚠️ Warnings (Non-Blocking)

These issues were detected during execution but did not prevent the task from completing.
They are documented for awareness and potential optimization.

Warning Summary

Category	Count	Why It Didn't Matter
Tool Errors	3	Failed reads/searches for non-critical paths; agent adapted successfully
Version Warnings	4	azd version outdated warning; functionality unaffected

Warning Details

Tool Errors (Path Not Found)

Why it didn't block success: Agent successfully adapted by using alternative approaches to gather required information.

• Cannot find path 'Program.cs' - Agent found AppHost.cs instead
• Path does not exist for functions.module.bicep - Agent found alternative paths
• error: Parent directory does not exist - Agent created directory and retried successfully

Version Warnings

Why it didn't block success: azd 1.23.3 has all required functionality; 1.23.5 update is cosmetic.

• WARNING: your version of azd is out of date, you have 1.23.3 and the latest version is 1.23.5
• ...and 3 more

🎯 Success Artifacts

📄 Generated Files & Reports

Path	Type	Skill
.azure/plan.md	Deployment Plan	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/azure.yaml	AZD Configuration	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/infra/main.bicep	Infrastructure (Bicep)	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/infra/main.parameters.json	Parameters	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/infra/storage/storage.module.bicep	Storage Module	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/infra/env/env.module.bicep	Environment Module	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/infra/env-acr/env-acr.module.bicep	ACR Module	azure-prepare
samples/aspire-with-azure-functions/.azure/imagegallery-prod/.env	Environment Config	azure-prepare

🔧 Configuration Applied

Setting	Value	Status
Azure Region	eastus2	✅
Environment Name	imagegallery-prod	✅
Storage SKU	Standard_LRS	✅ (optimized)
Container Registry SKU	Basic	✅
Deployment Approach	AZD + Aspire	✅

🎯 Skills Invoked

Skill	Type	Category
azure-prepare	Custom	Azure Deployment

🔧 Tools Invoked

Tool	Count	Actions
powershell	15x	Directory navigation, azd commands, file checks, environment configuration
view	10x	File/directory inspection, code analysis
glob	6x	File pattern matching (*.csproj, *.sln, *.json, etc.)
create	2x	Created .azure/plan.md
edit	2x	Updated plan status, optimized storage SKU
report_intent	2x	"Preparing Azure deployment", "Analyzing application structure"
azure-subscription_list	1x	Subscription enumeration

🔌 Azure MCP Tools Used

Tool	Type	Category
azure-subscription_list	MCP	Azure Resource Management

📈 Token Usage

Metric	Value
Input Tokens	~8,500 (estimated)
Output Tokens	~3,200 (estimated)
Total Tokens	~11,700 (estimated)

🔐 Azure Authentication

• Azure CLI: ✅ Authenticated (subscription access verified)

Note: Agent successfully queried subscriptions via MCP tool, confirming active authentication context.

🚀 Further Optimization

Recommended Actions

Priority	Action	Benefit	Effort
🟡 Medium	Update azd to 1.23.5	Remove version warnings	Low (1 command)
🟢 Low	Add explicit subscription parameter	Avoid ambiguity in multi-sub environments	Low
🟢 Low	Pre-validate .NET 10 SDK installation	Catch dependency issues earlier	Low

Details

1. Update Azure Developer CLI

   • Run winget upgrade Microsoft.Azd to eliminate version warnings
   • Ensures access to latest features and bug fixes

2. Explicit Subscription Handling

   • Current approach relies on default subscription
   • Consider adding azd env set AZURE_SUBSCRIPTION_ID <id> for clarity
   • Reduces risk in multi-subscription scenarios

3. Pre-Flight Dependency Check

   • Validate .NET 10 SDK before azd init
   • Check Docker availability for local testing
   • Add to planning phase checklist

📚 Learnings

What Worked

• ✅ Skill invocation pattern correct (azure-prepare for deployment tasks)
• ✅ Plan-first approach successful (created .azure/plan.md before execution)
• ✅ Agent correctly identified .NET Aspire project type
• ✅ azd init --from-code auto-detected AppHost successfully
• ✅ Infrastructure generation and SKU optimization completed
• ✅ Error recovery excellent (adapted to missing files gracefully)
• ✅ Region and environment configuration applied correctly

Areas for Improvement

• ⚠️ Multiple failed file reads could be avoided with better path handling
• ⚠️ Consider checking azd version before execution
• ⚠️ Subscription confirmation step could be more explicit

Aspire-Specific Learnings

Agent correctly followed Aspire best practices:

• Used azd init --from-code instead of manual azure.yaml creation
• Let Aspire AppHost drive infrastructure generation
• Generated Bicep from AppHost definitions
• Avoided common "Could not find infra/main.bicep" error

---

Generated at 2026-02-21T00:17:47Z

[jeo02]

Ran it locally as it placed the test inside of azure-prepare which only lets you run all the azure-prepare tests. (Only deploy lets you run by test name)

[github-actions]

🔍 Token Analysis Report

@github-copilot-for-azure/scripts@1.0.0 tokens
node --import tsx src/tokens/cli.ts compare --base origin/main --head HEAD --markdown

📊 Token Change Report

Comparing origin/main → HEAD

Summary

Metric	Value
📈 Total Change	+781 tokens (+11%)
Before	7,075 tokens
After	7,856 tokens
Files Changed	5

Changed Files

File	Before	After	Change
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plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/generate.md	798	965	+167 (+21%)
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plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/recipes/azd/azure-yaml.md	1,709	1,803	+94 (+6%)

@github-copilot-for-azure/scripts@1.0.0 tokens
node --import tsx src/tokens/cli.ts check --markdown

📊 Token Limit Check Report

Checked: 391 files
Exceeded: 91 files

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Consider moving content to references/ subdirectories.

---

Automated token analysis. See skill authoring guidelines for best practices.

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

This PR fixes a critical issue in the azure-prepare skill where .NET Aspire projects were having azure.yaml files manually generated with only name and metadata fields, missing the essential services section. This caused "Could not find infra\main.bicep" errors during deployment, since Aspire projects auto-generate infrastructure from the AppHost and require proper service definitions in azure.yaml.

Changes:

• Added dedicated Aspire detection and workflow guidance with clear DO/DON'T examples
• Enhanced detection patterns using find and grep commands for AppHost project identification
• Added test utilities (hasServicesSection, getServiceProject) to validate azure.yaml structure
• Added integration test for aspire-with-azure-functions sample to verify correct azure.yaml generation

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 7 out of 7 changed files in this pull request and generated 3 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
tests/azure-prepare/utils.ts	Added utility functions to validate azure.yaml has services section and extract service project paths
tests/azure-prepare/integration.test.ts	Added integration test to verify Aspire projects generate azure.yaml with services section
plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/recipes/azd/azure-yaml.md	Added critical warning to check for Aspire projects before manual azure.yaml creation
plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/recipes/azd/aspire.md	Comprehensive rewrite with detection patterns, correct workflow, and troubleshooting guidance
plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/recipe-selection.md	Added special cases section highlighting Aspire detection as first step
plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/generate.md	Added mandatory Aspire detection check at top of generation workflow
plugin/skills/azure-prepare/references/aspire.md	Added critical warnings and references to detailed workflow documentation