azure-automation

# Azure Automation Skill

This skill provides expert guidance for Azure Automation. Covers troubleshooting, best practices, decision making, limits & quotas, security, configuration, integrations & coding patterns, and deployment. It combines local quick-reference content with remote documentation fetching capabilities.

## How to Use This Skill

> **IMPORTANT for Agent**: Use the **Category Index** below to locate relevant sections. For categories with line ranges (e.g., `L35-L120`), use `read_file` with the specified lines. For categories with file links (e.g., `[security.md](security.md)`), use `read_file` on the linked reference file

> **IMPORTANT for Agent**: If `metadata.generated_at` is more than 3 months old, suggest the user pull the latest version from the repository. If `mcp_microsoftdocs` tools are not available, suggest the user install it: [Installation Guide](https://github.com/MicrosoftDocs/mcp/blob/main/README.md)

This skill requires **network access** to fetch documentation content:
- **Preferred**: Use `mcp_microsoftdocs:microsoft_docs_fetch` with query string `from=learn-agent-skill`. Returns Markdown.
- **Fallback**: Use `fetch_webpage` with query string `from=learn-agent-skill&accept=text/markdown`. Returns Markdown.

## Category Index

| Category | Lines | Description |
|----------|-------|-------------|
| Troubleshooting | L36-L46 | Diagnosing and fixing Azure Automation issues: runbook failures, DSC/State Configuration, Hybrid Runbook Workers, managed identities, shared resources, and collecting logs for support. |
| Best Practices | L47-L56 | Best practices for structuring and running Automation runbooks: modular parent-child design, execution patterns, error handling, stream/output usage, and avoiding context/locking issues. |
| Decision Making | L57-L65 | Guidance for planning and migrating Azure Automation: runbook types, Orchestrator/runbook/agent/Hybrid Worker migrations, Run As → managed identity, and module/AzureRM to Az updates. |
| Limits & Quotas | L66-L72 | Azure Automation capacity limits, quotas, and supported configurations, plus Change Tracking & Inventory support details when using the Azure Monitor Agent (AMA). |
| Security | L73-L93 | Securing Automation accounts: identities (system/user-assigned), RBAC, auth methods, encryption, certificates/credentials, Private Link, Azure Policy, and Terraform-based secure provisioning. |
| Configuration | L94-L137 | Configuring Azure Automation runbooks, DSC/State Configuration, Hybrid Runbook Workers, schedules, modules/packages, alerts, policies, and integrations (VS Code, source control, ARM, Azure Monitor). |
| Integrations & Coding Patterns | L138-L150 | Patterns for integrating runbooks with AWS, ARM/SQL/Office 365, webhooks, email (SendGrid), Azure Monitor logging, and using the graphical runbook SDK with managed identities |
| Deployment | L151-L159 | Guides for deploying resilient Automation accounts, setting up disaster recovery, and installing/configuring Hybrid Runbook Workers (Windows/Linux, agent- and extension-based) plus DSC/Chocolatey CI/CD. |

### Troubleshooting
| Topic | URL |
|-------|-----|
| Collect diagnostic data for Azure Automation support cases | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/collect-data-microsoft-azure-automation-case |
| Troubleshoot Azure Automation State Configuration problems | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/desired-state-configuration |
| Troubleshoot extension-based Hybrid Runbook Worker failures | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/extension-based-hybrid-runbook-worker |
| Troubleshoot agent-based Hybrid Runbook Worker issues | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/hybrid-runbook-worker |
| Troubleshoot managed identity issues in Azure Automation | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/managed-identity |
| Diagnose and fix Azure Automation runbook issues | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/runbooks |
| Troubleshoot Azure Automation shared resource problems | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/troubleshoot/shared-resources |

### Best Practices
| Topic | URL |
|-------|-----|
| Design modular parent-child runbooks in Azure Automation | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-child-runbooks |
| Design and manage Azure Automation runbook execution | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-runbook-execution |
| Implement error handling in Azure Automation graphical runbooks | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-runbook-graphical-error-handling |
| Configure output and message streams in Automation runbooks | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-runbook-output-and-messages |
| Avoid context switching issues in Azure Automation runbooks | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/context-switching |
| Manage Azure Automation runbooks with recommended design patterns | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/manage-runbooks |

### Decision Making
| Topic | URL |
|-------|-----|
| Migrate System Center Orchestrator runbooks to Azure Automation | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-orchestrator-migration |
| Choose appropriate Azure Automation runbook types | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-runbook-types |
| Migrate Change Tracking from Log Analytics agent to AMA | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/change-tracking/guidance-migration-log-analytics-monitoring-agent |
| Migrate agent-based Hybrid Workers to extension-based workers | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/migrate-existing-agent-based-hybrid-worker-to-extension-based-workers |
| Plan and execute migration from Run As to managed identities | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/migrate-run-as-accounts-managed-identit