Plan, create, and configure production-ready Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) clusters. Covers Day-0 checklist, SKU selection (Automatic vs Standard), networking options (private API server, Azure CNI Overlay, egress configuration), security, and operations (autoscaling, upgrade strategy, cost analysi

Azure Kubernetes Service AUTHORITATIVE GUIDANCE — MANDATORY COMPLIANCE This skill produces a recommended AKS cluster configuration based on user requirements, distinguishing Day 0 decisions (networking, API server — hard to change later) from Day 1 features (can enable post creation). See [CLI reference](./references/cli reference.md) for commands. Quick Reference Property Value Best for AKS cluster planning and Day 0 decisions MCP Tools mcp azure mcp aks CLI az aks create , az aks show , kubectl get , kubectl describe Related skills azure kubernetes app deploy (deploy an app to an existing cluster), azure diagnostics (troubleshooting AKS), azure validate (readiness checks), azure kubernetes automatic readiness (migrate existing cluster to AKS Automatic) When to Use This Skill Activate this skill when user wants to: Create a new AKS cluster Plan AKS cluster configuration for production workloads Design AKS networking (API server access, pod IP model, egress) Set up AKS identity and secrets management Configure AKS governance (Azure Policy, Deployment Safeguards) Enable AKS observability (Container Insights, Managed Prometheus, Grafana) Define AKS upgrade and patching strategy Understand AKS Automatic vs Standard SKU differences Get a Day 0 checklist for AKS cluster setup and configuration Deploying an application to an existing cluster? This skill provisions and configures the cluster . To containerize an app and deploy it to a cluster that already exists (Dockerfile + manifests + Deployment Safeguards), use the azure kubernetes app deploy sub skill instead. Rules 1. Start with the user's requirements for provisioning compute, networking, security, and other settings. 2. Use the azure MCP server and select mcp azure mcp aks first to discover the exact AKS specific MCP tools surfaced by the client. Choose the smallest discovered AKS tool that fits the task, and fall back to Azure CLI ( az aks ) only when the needed functionality is not exposed through the AKS MCP surface. 3. Determine if AKS Automatic or Standard SKU is more appropriate based on the user's need for control vs convenience. Default to AKS Automatic unless specific customizations are required. 4. Document decisions and rationale for cluster configuration choices, especially for Day 0 decisions that are hard to change later (networking, API server access). Required Inputs (Ask only what’s needed) If the user is unsure, use safe defaults. AKS environment type: dev/test or production Region(s), availability zones, preferred node VM sizes Expected scale (node/cluster count, workload size) Networking requirements (API server access, pod IP model, ingress/egress control) Security and identity requirements, including image registry Upgrade and observability preferences Cost constraints Workflow 1. Cluster Type AKS Automatic (default): Best for most production workloads, provides a curated experience with pre configured best practices for security, reliability, and performance. Use unless you have specific custom requirements for networking, autoscaling, or node pool configurations not supported by Node Auto Provisioning (NAP). AKS Standard : Use if you need full control over environment configuration, which requires additional overhead to set up and manage. 2. Networking (Pod IP, Egress, Ingress, Dataplane) Pod IP Model (Key Day 0 decision): Azure CNI Overlay (recommended): pod IPs from private overlay range, not VNet routable, scales to large environments and good for most workloads Azure CNI (VNet routable) : pod IPs directly from VNet (pod subnet or node subnet), use when pods must be directly addressable from VNet or on prem Docs: https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/aks/azure cni overlay Dataplane & Network Policy : Azure CNI powered by Cilium (recommended): eBPF based for high performance packet processing, network policies, and observability Egress : Static Egress Gateway for stable, predictable outbound IPs For restricted egress: UDR + Azure Firewall or NVA Ingress : App Routing addon with Gateway API — recommended default for HTTP/HTTPS workloads Istio service mesh with Gateway API for advanced traffic management, mTLS, canary releases Application Gateway for Containers — for L7 load balancing with WAF integration DNS : Enable LocalDNS on all node pools for reliable, performant DNS resolution 3. Security Use Microsoft Entra ID everywhere (control plane, Workload Identity for pods, node access). Avoid static credentials. Azure Key Vault via Secrets Store CSI Driver for secrets Enable Azure Policy + Deployment Safeguards Enable Encryption at rest for etcd/API server; in transit for node to node Allow only signed, policy approved images (Azure Policy + Ratify), prefer Azure Container Registry Isolation : Use namespaces, network policies, scoped logging 4. Observability Use Managed Prometheus and Container Insights with Grafana for AKS observability (logs + metrics). Enable Diagnostic Settings to collect control plane logs and audit logs in a Log Analytics workspace for security monitoring and troubleshooting. For other monitoring and troubleshooting tools, use features like the Agentic CLI for AKS, Application Insights, Resource Health Center, AppLens detectors, and Azure Advisors. 5. Upgrades & Patching Configure Maintenance Windows for controlled upgrade timing Enable auto upgrades for control plane and node OS to stay up to date with security patches and Kubernetes versions Consider LTS versions for enterprise stability (2 year support) by upgrading your AKS environment to the Premium tier Fleet upgrades : Use AKS Fleet Manager for staged rollout across test to production environments 6. Performance Use Ephemeral OS disks ( node osdisk type Ephemeral ) for faster node startup Select Azure Linux as node OS (smaller footprint, faster boot) Enable KEDA for event driven autoscaling beyond HPA 7. Node Pools & Compute Dedicated system node pool : At least 2 nodes, tainted for system workloads only ( CriticalAddonsOnly ) Enable Node Auto Provisioning (NAP) on all pools for cost savings and responsive scaling Use latest generation SKUs (v5/v6) for host level optimizations Avoid B series VMs — burstable SKUs cause performance/reliability issues Use SKUs with at least 4 vCPUs for production workloads Set topology spread constraints to distribute pods across hosts/zones per SLO 8. Reliability Deploy across 3 Availability Zones ( zones 1 2 3 ) Use Standard tier for zone redundant control plane + 99.95% SLA for API server availability Enable Microsoft Defender for Containers for runtime protection Configure PodDisruptionBudgets for all production workloads Use topology spread constraints to ensure pod distribution across failure domains 9. Cost Controls Use Spot node pools for batch/interruptible workloads (up to 90% savings) Stop/Start dev/test clusters: az aks stop/start Consider Reserved Instances or Savings Plans for steady state workloads Deep dive scenarios — load only the relevant reference file: Scenario Trigger Keywords Reference Pod Rightsizing over provisioned pods, CPU requests, memory requests, rightsize workloads [azure aks rightsizing.md](./references/azure aks rightsizing.md) VPA Setup vertical pod autoscaler, VPA recommendations, VPA enable [azure aks vpa.md](./references/azure aks vpa.md) Cluster Autoscaler idle nodes, CAS off, enable autoscaler, scale down profile, node utilization [azure aks autoscaler.md](./references/azure aks autoscaler.md) Spot Node Pools Spot VMs, Spot nodes, batch workloads, cheaper nodes [azure aks spot.md](./references/azure aks spot.md) Disambiguation: If a prompt matches multiple rows (e.g., "cheaper nodes" could suggest both Spot and autoscaler), prefer the most specific match. If ambiguous, ask the user to clarify their intent before loading a reference file. Guardrails / Safety Do not request or output secrets (tokens, keys). Do not ask the user to paste subscription IDs. Discover subscription and resource scope via MCP tools (e.g., list subscriptions, list resource groups) or az account show / az account list so the agent can resolve context without exposing identifiers. If requirements are ambiguous for day 0 critical decisions, ask the user clarifying questions. For day 1 enabled features, propose 2–3 safe options with tradeoffs and choose a conservative default. Do not promise zero downtime; advise workload safeguards (PDBs, probes, replicas) and staged upgrades along with best practices for reliability and performance. MCP Tools Tool Purpose Key Parameters mcp azure mcp aks AKS MCP entry point used to discover the exact AKS specific tools exposed by the client Discover the callable AKS tool first, then use that tool's parameters Error Handling Error / Symptom Likely Cause Remediation MCP tool call fails or times out Invalid credentials, subscription, or AKS context Verify az login , confirm the active subscription context with az account show , and check the target resource group without echoing subscription identifiers back to the user Quota exceeded Regional vCPU or resource limits Request quota increase or select different region/VM SKU Networking conflict (IP exhaustion) Pod subnet too small for overlay/CNI Re plan IP ranges; may require cluster recreation (Day 0) Workload Identity not working Missing OIDC issuer or federated credential Enable enable oidc issuer enable workload identity , configure federated identity

azure-kubernetes