azure-cost-management

What this skill does

# Azure Cost Management Skill

This skill provides expert guidance for Azure Cost Management. Covers troubleshooting, best practices, decision making, architecture & design patterns, 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 | L37-L66 | Diagnosing and fixing Azure billing, subscription, and reservation issues (errors, disabled subs, payment failures, access problems, low utilization, and sign‑up/sign‑in problems). |
| Best Practices | L67-L77 | Best practices for analyzing and optimizing Azure costs, using Advisor and savings plans, onboarding under MCA, managing Azure Hybrid Benefit, and setting up org-wide cost management processes |
| Decision Making | L78-L156 | Guidance for choosing cost models, reservations, savings plans, subscription/billing offers, and allocation strategies, plus EA→MCA migrations and partner/CSP billing decisions. |
| Architecture & Design Patterns | L157-L161 | How Azure bills centrally assigned SQL Server licenses hourly, including license assignment, cost calculation, and optimization considerations |
| Limits & Quotas | L162-L176 | Limits, quotas, timing, and usage rules for Azure costs: free tier limits, credits, region policies, subscription/spending limits, savings plan exclusions/utilization, and billing account dormancy. |
| Security | L177-L200 | RBAC and admin roles for cost/billing data, securing subscriptions and tenants, fraud prevention, reservation/savings plan access, and compliant, secure billing and tax document management. |
| Configuration | L201-L232 | Configuring Azure Cost Management: budgets, alerts, tags, exports, cost analysis views, reservations/savings plans, billing ownership/transfers, payment methods, and EA/MCA/partner billing settings. |
| Integrations & Coding Patterns | L233-L249 | APIs, scripts, and Power BI for cost/billing analysis, plus programmatic creation and management of EA/MCA/MPA subscriptions and reservations across tenants. |
| Deployment | L250-L253 | Configuring automated, large-scale exports of Azure cost and usage data to storage (like Azure Storage), including setup, scheduling, and management for ongoing cost analysis. |

### Troubleshooting
| Topic | URL |
|-------|-----|
| Troubleshoot common Azure Cost Management error codes | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/costs/cost-management-error-codes |
| Fix and reactivate disabled Azure for Students subscriptions | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/manage/azurestudents-subscription-disabled |
| Troubleshoot and reactivate a disabled Azure subscription | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/manage/subscription-disabled |
| Troubleshoot subscription access issues after MCA signup | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/microsoft-customer-agreement/troubleshoot-subscription-access |
| Find who purchased an Azure reservation using logs | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/find-reservation-purchaser-from-logs |
| Resolve issues downloading Azure reservation usage details | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-download-usage |
| Fix 'No eligible subscriptions' when buying reservations | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-no-eligible-subscriptions |
| Fix Azure reservation types appearing as not available | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-product-not-available |
| Troubleshoot unexpected Azure reservation recommendations | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-reservation-recommendation |
| Transfer Azure reservation orders between Entra tenants | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-reservation-transfers-between-tenants |
| Resolve Azure reservations showing zero or low utilization | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/troubleshoot-reservation-utilization |
| Troubleshoot Azure savings plan utilization anomalies | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/savings-plan/troubleshoot-savings-plan-utilization |
| Troubleshoot Azure billing payment update errors | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/billing-troubleshoot-azure-payment-issues |
| Fix VM creation errors for Azure EA users | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/cannot-create-vm |
| Resolve missing billing account in Azure portal | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-account-not-found |
| Fix issues viewing Azure invoices in portal | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-cant-find-invoice |
| Troubleshoot CSP billing with reconciliation usage files | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-csp-billing-issues-usage-file-pivot-tables |
| Troubleshoot MCA billing using Azure usage pivot tables | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-customer-agreement-billing-issues-usage-file-pivot-tables |
| Resolve declined credit cards for Azure billing | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-declined-card |
| Troubleshoot Azure EA billing with usage pivot tables | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-ea-billing-issues-usage-file-pivot-tables |
| Diagnose and fix Azure threshold billing issues | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-billing/troubleshoot-threshold-billing |
| Resolve 'account belongs to a directory' subscription sign-up error | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-subscription/cannot-sign-up-subscription |
| Resolve 'No subscriptions found' Azure portal error | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-subscription/no-subscriptions-found |
| Troubleshoot new Azure account sign-up issues | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-subscription/troubleshoot-azure-sign-up |
| Resolve 'Not available due to conflict' for Azure reservations | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-subscription/troubleshoot-not-available-conflict |
| Troubleshoot Azure subscription sign-in problems | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/troubleshoot-subscription/troubleshoot-sign-in-issue |