Azure Cloud Architect

Azure Cloud Architect

End-to-end Azure-specific architecture: service selection, Well-Architected Framework assessment, identity and networking patterns, cost optimization, and operational defaults. Provider-specific complement to our generic senior-cloud-architect skill — that one covers cross-cloud patterns; this one knows AKS pricing tiers, when to pick Cosmos over SQL DB, and how Front Door differs from Application Gateway.

Core Capabilities

• Compute selection — decision tree across AKS, App Service, Container Apps, Functions, VMs/VMSS, Batch, Static Web Apps, and API gateways.
• Data store selection — relational, NoSQL/document, cache, blob, time-series, search, vector, and warehouse decision trees.
• Networking design — VNets, Private/Service Endpoints, gateways (App Gateway, Front Door, Firewall, NAT, VPN/ER), hub-and-spoke and Private Link patterns.
• Identity design — Entra ID, Managed Identity (system/user-assigned), Workload Identity, Service Principals, and least-privilege RBAC scoping.
• WAF assessment — score workloads across Reliability, Security, Cost, Operational Excellence, and Performance Efficiency pillars.
• Cost optimization — right-sizing, reservations, autoscaling, spot, storage tiering, and egress-reduction levers with anti-pattern detection.

When to Use

| Situation | Skill applies |

|-----------|---------------|

| Designing an Azure architecture from scratch | Yes — start with the compute decision tree |

| Reviewing an existing Azure architecture | Yes — run WAF assessment via scripts/azure_waf_scorer.py |

| Validating an ARM/Bicep/Terraform plan | Yes — scripts/azure_architecture_validator.py |

| Estimating Azure cost for a workload | Yes — scripts/azure_cost_estimator.py |

| Picking compute, data store, networking, or identity | Yes — see the decision-trees reference |

| Going to production without WAF review | Don't — run the WAF scorer first |

Clarify First

Before designing or assessing, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:

• [ ] Task — design from scratch, review an existing architecture, validate IaC, or estimate cost (selects azure_architecture_validator.py vs azure_cost_estimator.py vs azure_waf_scorer.py)
• [ ] Workload spec — the YAML workload config, or the Bicep/ARM/Terraform files (the input the scripts parse)
• [ ] Priority pillar — reliability, security, cost, operational excellence, or performance (weights the WAF assessment and which recommendations lead)

Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the artifact.

Tools

| Tool | Purpose | Command |

|------|---------|---------|

| azure_architecture_validator.py | Validate a Bicep/ARM/YAML workload for anti-patterns and missing best-practice settings | python scripts/azure_architecture_validator.py --bicep ./infra/*.bicep |

| azure_cost_estimator.py | Estimate monthly Azure cost from a YAML workload spec | python scripts/azure_cost_estimator.py --workload-config workload.yaml |

| azure_waf_scorer.py | Score a workload against the five Well-Architected pillars | python scripts/azure_waf_scorer.py --workload-config workload.yaml |

All scripts: stdlib only, argparse CLI, JSON or markdown output (--format).

References

Load the reference that matches the task — keep this file lean and pull detail on demand:

• references/azure-decision-trees.md — full compute, data store, networking, and identity decision trees with building-block, gateway, and RBAC tables. Read when selecting services or designing topology.
• references/azure-workflows-and-antipatterns.md — the five WAF pillars, cost levers and anti-patterns, the design/review/migrate workflows, Azure-specific anti-patterns, and tooling outputs. Read when running a design or review.
• references/azure-services-reference.md — per-service depth: tiers, SLAs, limits, when to upgrade. Read when choosing a specific SKU or tier.
• references/azure-well-architected.md — 5-pillar WAF assessment with the 10-question checklist per pillar, common findings, and remediations. Read during a WAF review.
• references/azure-cost-optimization.md — full cost lever catalog, anti-patterns, and detection heuristics. Read when optimizing spend.

Related skills

• engineering/senior-cloud-architect — generic multi-cloud architecture patterns
• engineering/aws-solution-architect — AWS counterpart
• engineering/gcp-cloud-architect — GCP counterpart
• engineering/kubernetes-operator — for AKS operator-pattern workloads
• ra-qm-team/information-security-manager-iso27001 — for compliance-mapped controls (Azure has built-in Defender / Compliance Manager)
• ra-qm-team/soc2-compliance-expert — Azure-specific SOC 2 evidence collection