azure-dev

What the CLI does

The Azure Developer CLI, called azd, is a command line tool for building, deploying, and operating Azure applications. The README sums up its pitch as going from code to cloud in minutes, and it is aimed at developers rather than cloud administrators. The commands are organized around the stages of a workflow: code, build, deploy, and monitor. That structure means the same tool carries you from a local project through to a running deployment and back to observing it, instead of stitching together separate utilities for each step. The README says Azure recommended practices are built in, through opinionated templates that follow Azure development standards, so a team gets a sane default layout rather than a blank slate. It also positions the CLI as a way to learn core Azure constructs by doing, which is useful for developers new to the platform. Alongside the CLI there is a VS Code extension listed in the README, which brings the same workflows into the editor. The broader promise is productivity: less time wiring infrastructure by hand and more time on application code, with the template doing the repeated scaffolding. For a small team shipping an AI application, the README specifically notes the CLI is built for working with Azure resources to build and deploy AI applications.

Installing across platforms

The README gives clear install paths for each major platform. On Windows the recommended route is winget with the microsoft.azd package, and it also shows Chocolatey and an install script as alternatives. On macOS the route is Homebrew, but with a required trust step: you run brew trust azure/azd before installing the cask, because Homebrew requires trusting a third party tap before it installs from it. The README adds a note that if you are upgrading from a non Homebrew install you should remove the existing azd binary first. On Linux the install is a curl piped to bash script from the aka.ms URL. The CLI also supports shell completion for bash, zsh, fish, and powershell through an azd completion command with a shell argument. Uninstall paths are documented too, with Windows using add or remove programs or a package manager, and Linux or macOS using the uninstall script or the package manager. These per platform instructions are practical because the CLI is a native binary, not something you run through a language runtime, so each OS needs its own acquisition method. The multiple options mean most developers can use the package manager they already have rather than switching tools.

Privacy and contribution

The README includes a data collection note that is worth reading before you adopt the tool. It states the software may collect usage data and send it to Microsoft to improve products, and it tells you how to opt out by setting the AZURE_DEV_COLLECT_TELEMETRY environment variable to no. That single line is the lever for teams with strict data policies, and it is good that the README states it plainly rather than burying it. On the contribution side, the project welcomes pull requests and points to a contributing guide. Most contributions require a Contributor License Agreement, and a bot walks you through that when you open a pull request, which is a standard process for a Microsoft owned repository. The README also links an AGENTS.md for coding standards and a docs folder for contributor documentation, and it mentions an agency.toml that configures Agency with Azure DevOps and Kusto MCP tools for Microsoft contributors. There is an AI agents section for people using azd with a coding assistant. The MIT license makes the CLI free to use and modify, and the Go implementation fits a distributed, cross platform command line tool. For a team standardizing on Azure, the mix of templates, editor support, and a clear opt out for telemetry makes azd a reasonable default entry point.

Editorial conclusion

The CLI is published under the MIT license and is written in Go.