Deploy agent to Azure

Important

You need to be part of the Frontier preview program to get early access to Microsoft Agent 365. Frontier connects you directly with Microsoft’s latest AI innovations. Frontier previews are subject to the existing preview terms of your customer agreements. As these features are still in development, their availability and capabilities may change over time.

You've built your agent and tested it locally—now it's time to bring it to life in the cloud. This step is optional and can be skipped if you have already deployed your agent to some cloud (doesn't even need to be Azure).

This guide walks you through deploying your agent code to Azure and publishing it to Microsoft Admin Center, where it becomes a discoverable asset for your organization.

There are also resources available to show how you can update the messaging endpoint if instead of Azure, you have already deployed your agent to other cloud providers like AWS or GCP:

• Use agent code deployed in AWS
• Use agent code deployed in GCP

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

Required accounts and permissions

• Azure subscription with contributor access.
• Working agent code with a valid and reachable messaging endpoint. Please ensure that you have tested this locally and verify that the agent code can be built and run.
• Complete the setup agent blueprint step to have a valid agent blueprint.
• Ensure configuration files a365.config.json, a365.generated.config.json and config file in the code (eg. .env file) are up to date.

Required tools

• Azure CLI installed and authenticated (Install Azure CLI)
• A365 CLI installed (Agent 365 CLI)

Deploy to Azure

The a365 deploy command deploys your agent to the Azure Web App created during setup. This uploads your agent code to Azure, making it available to run in the cloud and handle any agentic requests to that endpoint.

Deploy agent

Run the deployment command:

a365 deploy

Note

a365 deploy -h shows all the options of running this command including sub-commands.

.NET

The deploy command for .NET agents:

• Detects .NET project files (*.csproj, *.fsproj, or *.vbproj)
• Restores NuGet packages using dotnet restore
• Publishes application using dotnet publish with Release configuration
• Creates Oryx manifest with entry point DLL command (for example, dotnet YourApp.dll)
• Configures Azure runtime based on detected .NET version (default: DOTNET|8.0)
• Deploys via zip with real-time progress

Python

The deploy command for Python agents:

• Detects Python project structure (pyproject.toml, requirements.txt, and *.py files)
• Builds packages using uv build if pyproject.toml exists
• Converts .env to Azure App Settings automatically
• Smart startup detection: Finds Agent 365 entry points.
• Configures Azure runtime to PYTHON|3.11
• Deploys via zip with real-time progress

Node.js

The deploy command for Node.js agents:

• Detects Node.js project structure (package.json file)
• Installs dependencies using npm ci (falls back to npm install if needed)
• Runs build script (npm run build) if defined in package.json
• Copies application files: built output (dist/build) or source files
• Copies node_modules for Azure deployment
• Creates Oryx manifest with start command from package.json (or detects entry point)
• Configures Azure runtime based on detected Node version (default: NODE|18)
• Deploys via zip with real-time progress

Warning

Secrets management: When you deploy, environment variables (including API keys and secrets) are stored as Azure App Settings. While environment variables are commonly used for configuration, they are stored in plain text. For production environments, Microsoft recommends using Azure Key Vault for sensitive secrets. For more information, see Safe storage of app secrets in development in ASP.NET Core and Azure Key Vault configuration provider. Never commit .env files with sensitive information to source control.

Verify deployment

After deployment completes:

1. Navigate to your Web App in Azure Portal
2. Go to Settings > Configuration to verify App Settings
3. Check the deployment logs in Deployment Center

Next steps

Next, publish your agent application to Microsoft Admin Center so that agent instances and users can be created from it: Publish agent to Microsoft Admin Center

Your agent is now live in the cloud and ready to respond to agentic requests. As your agent handles real-world requests, consider these next steps to your code:

• Monitor performance: Use observability features to track agent behavior and optimize responses
• Add more tools: Explore the tooling catalog to expand your agent's capabilities
• Iterate and improve: Update your agent code, redeploy, and republish (remember to increment the version number!)
• Scale across your org: Share your agent's success stories to drive adoption