How do I install the Azure Migrate skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add tomz/azure-migrate in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

What does the Azure Migrate skill do?

Azure Migrate — discovery, assessment, migration of servers, databases, web apps, VDI; Azure Site Recovery, Database Migration Service It is listed under Product & Planning on SkillMD.

Is Azure Migrate safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: makes network calls, reads secrets. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Azure Migrate?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Azure Migrate free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free. This skill is licensed under MIT.

Who published Azure Migrate?

tomz (@tomz) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Azure Migrate by tomz — Agent Skill

Name: Azure Migrate
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: tomz

Azure Migrate Skill

Azure Migrate is the hub for discovering, assessing, and migrating on-premises workloads to Azure. It integrates Site Recovery, Database Migration Service, and partner ISV tools into a single project-based experience.

Architecture Overview

Azure Migrate Project (resource type: Microsoft.Migrate/migrateProjects)
├── Discovery & Assessment
│   ├── Azure Migrate Appliance         # Lightweight VM deployed on-prem
│   │   ├── Server Discovery            # VMware (vCenter), Hyper-V, Physical
│   │   ├── SQL Discovery               # SQL Server instances + databases
│   │   └── Web App Discovery           # ASP.NET apps on IIS
│   ├── Server Assessment               # Azure VM sizing + TCO
│   ├── SQL Assessment                  # Azure SQL DB / MI / SQL VM target
│   └── Web App Assessment              # Azure App Service target
├── Migration Tools
│   ├── Server Migration (ASR-based)    # Agentless (VMware) or Agent-based
│   ├── Database Migration Service      # Homogeneous + heterogeneous DB migrations
│   └── Web App Migration               # App Service Migration Assistant
└── Business Case                       # Full TCO/ROI analysis

Prerequisites

# Register providers
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.Migrate
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.OffAzure
az provider register --namespace Microsoft.DataMigration

# Install CLI extension
az extension add --name azure-migrate   # limited; portal/REST used for most operations

# Create Migrate project
az group create --name "rg-migrate" --location "eastus"

# Projects are primarily portal-driven; use REST API for automation
MIGRATE_API="https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/migrateProjects"
TOKEN=$(az account get-access-token --query accessToken -o tsv)

curl -X PUT "$MIGRATE_API/migrate-proj-prod?api-version=2020-05-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "location": "eastus",
    "properties": { "publicNetworkAccess": "Enabled" }
  }'

Discovery Appliance

The Azure Migrate appliance is a lightweight VM (OVA for VMware, VHD for Hyper-V, ZIP installer for physical/AWS/GCP) that performs agentless discovery.

VMware Appliance Deployment

# Step 1: Download OVA from Azure portal → Azure Migrate → Servers → Discover
# Step 2: Deploy OVA in vCenter (32 GB RAM, 8 vCPU, 80 GB disk recommended)
# Step 3: Configure appliance via browser at https://<appliance-ip>:44368

# Appliance requires outbound access to:
# *.portal.azure.com, *.servicebus.windows.net, *.vault.azure.net
# login.microsoftonline.com, management.azure.com

# For proxy environments:
# Set proxy in appliance config manager UI during setup

# Verify appliance registration (REST)
curl "$MIGRATE_API/migrate-proj-prod/solutions/Servers-Discovery-ServerDiscovery?api-version=2020-05-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | jq '.properties.status'

Physical / AWS / GCP Server Discovery

# On each Windows server to discover — install discovery agent
# Download installer from portal, run:
.\AzureMigrateInstaller.ps1 -scenario Physical -cloud Public -proxy $null

# On Linux servers:
# wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Azure/azure-migrate/master/linux/AzureMigrateInstaller.sh
# chmod +x AzureMigrateInstaller.sh && sudo ./AzureMigrateInstaller.sh

Server Assessment

Create & Run Assessment

# Assessments are managed via REST API
ASSESS_API="https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/assessmentProjects/migrate-proj-prod"

# Create assessment group (list of discovered machines)
curl -X PUT "$ASSESS_API/groups/servers-wave1?api-version=2019-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "properties": {
      "machines": [
        "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/assessmentProjects/migrate-proj-prod/machines/server-01-uuid",
        "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/assessmentProjects/migrate-proj-prod/machines/server-02-uuid"
      ]
    }
  }'

# Create VM assessment
curl -X PUT "$ASSESS_API/groups/servers-wave1/assessments/assess-wave1-eastus?api-version=2019-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "properties": {
      "azureLocation": "EastUs",
      "azureOfferCode": "MSAZR0003P",
      "currency": "USD",
      "discountPercentage": 0,
      "percentile": "Percentile95",
      "scalingFactor": 1.3,
      "sizingCriterion": "PerformanceBased",
      "timeRange": "Month",
      "azureVmFamilies": ["Dsv3_series","Dsv4_series","Esv3_series"],
      "reservedInstance": "RI3Year",
      "azurePricingTier": "Standard",
      "vmUptime": { "daysPerMonth": 31, "hoursPerDay": 24 }
    }
  }'

# Get assessment results
curl "$ASSESS_API/groups/servers-wave1/assessments/assess-wave1-eastus?api-version=2019-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | jq '.properties | {status, numberOfMachines, monthlyCost}'

# Get per-machine recommendations
curl "$ASSESS_API/groups/servers-wave1/assessments/assess-wave1-eastus/assessedMachines?api-version=2019-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | jq '.value[] | {name: .properties.displayName, size: .properties.recommendedSize, suitability: .properties.suitability}'

Dependency Analysis

# Agentless dependency analysis (VMware only — uses vCenter APIs)
# Enable in Azure Migrate portal → Discover → Start dependency analysis

# Agent-based dependency analysis (all sources)
# Install MMA (Log Analytics Agent) + Dependency Agent on each VM:
# Windows:
msiexec.exe /i MMASetup-AMD64.exe /qn NOAPM=1 ADD_OPINSIGHTS_WORKSPACE=1 \
  OPINSIGHTS_WORKSPACE_ID="<WorkspaceID>" OPINSIGHTS_WORKSPACE_KEY="<Key>" AcceptEndUserLicenseAgreement=1

# Linux:
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Microsoft/OMS-Agent-for-Linux/master/installer/scripts/onboard_agent.sh
sh onboard_agent.sh -w <WorkspaceID> -s <Key> -d opinsights.azure.com

# View dependency map in portal → Azure Migrate → Servers → Dependency analysis

Server Migration

Agentless VMware Migration

# Step 1: Enable replication (agentless — uses vCenter snapshot APIs)
# Step 2: In portal: Azure Migrate → Servers → Migrate → Replicate
# Step 3: Monitor via REST

MIGRATION_API="https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.RecoveryServices"

# List replicating items
az resource list \
  --resource-type "Microsoft.RecoveryServices/vaults" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" -o table

# Check replication health via Site Recovery vault
az site-recovery protected-item list \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --vault-name "migrate-vault-prod"

Agent-Based Migration (Physical/AWS/GCP/Hyper-V)

# Install Mobility Service on source server
# Download from: portal → Azure Migrate → Replicate → Prepare infrastructure

# Windows (run as admin):
# MobSvcWindows\install.bat /Role MS /InstallLocation "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Azure Site Recovery" \
#   /Platform VmWare /Silent

# Linux (run as root):
# ./install -t both -a host -R Agent -l 10.0.0.100 -p 443 -s <process-server-passphrase>

# Enable replication via REST (agent-based)
curl -X PUT "https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.RecoveryServices/vaults/migrate-vault/replicationProtectedItems/server-01-uuid?api-version=2022-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "properties": {
      "policyId": "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/.../replicationPolicies/migrate-policy",
      "providerSpecificDetails": {
        "instanceType": "InMageAzureV2",
        "targetResourceGroupId": "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrated-prod",
        "targetAzureNetworkId": "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-network/providers/Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/vnet-prod",
        "targetAzureSubnetId": "subnet-app",
        "targetAzureVmName": "vm-prod-server01",
        "targetAzureVmSize": "Standard_D4s_v5",
        "targetAzureStorageAccountId": "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/.../storageAccounts/stagingsa"
      }
    }
  }'

# Monitor replication state
az site-recovery protected-item show \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --vault-name "migrate-vault" \
  --name "server-01-uuid" \
  --fabric-name "onprem-fabric" \
  --protection-container "onprem-container" \
  --query "properties.replicationHealth"

Test Failover & Final Migration

# Test migration (creates isolated test VM — doesn't impact replication)
curl -X POST "https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.RecoveryServices/vaults/migrate-vault/replicationProtectedItems/server-01-uuid/testFailover?api-version=2022-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "properties": {
      "networkId": "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/.../virtualNetworks/vnet-test",
      "failoverDirection": "PrimaryToRecovery"
    }
  }'

# Clean up test migration
curl -X POST ".../server-01-uuid/testFailoverCleanup?api-version=2022-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "properties": { "comments": "Test passed - ready for production migration" } }'

# Initiate actual migration (final)
curl -X POST ".../server-01-uuid/plannedFailover?api-version=2022-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "properties": { "failoverDirection": "PrimaryToRecovery", "sourceSiteOperations": "NotRequired" } }'

Database Migration

Azure Database Migration Service (DMS)

# Create DMS instance (Premium for online migration, Standard for offline)
az dms create \
  --name "dms-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --location "eastus" \
  --sku-name "Premium_4vCores" \
  --subnet "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-network/providers/Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/vnet-prod/subnets/subnet-dms" \
  --no-wait

# Create migration project
az dms project create \
  --service-name "dms-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --name "proj-sql-to-azuresql" \
  --source-platform SQL \
  --target-platform SQLDB \
  --location "eastus"

# Create migration task (SQL Server → Azure SQL Database)
az dms project task create \
  --service-name "dms-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --project-name "proj-sql-to-azuresql" \
  --name "task-migrate-adventureworks" \
  --task-type MigrateSqlServerSqlDb \
  --source-connection-json '{
    "dataSource": "onprem-sql-server.company.local",
    "authentication": "SqlAuthentication",
    "encryptConnection": true,
    "trustServerCertificate": true,
    "userName": "sa",
    "password": "P@ssw0rd!"
  }' \
  --target-connection-json '{
    "dataSource": "target-sql.database.windows.net",
    "authentication": "SqlAuthentication",
    "encryptConnection": true,
    "trustServerCertificate": false,
    "userName": "sqladmin",
    "password": "AzureP@ss1!"
  }' \
  --database-options-json '[{
    "name": "AdventureWorks",
    "targetDatabaseName": "AdventureWorks",
    "makeSourceDbReadOnly": false,
    "tableMap": {}
  }]'

# Check task status
az dms project task show \
  --service-name "dms-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --project-name "proj-sql-to-azuresql" \
  --name "task-migrate-adventureworks" \
  --expand output

# SQL Server → Azure SQL Managed Instance (online migration)
az dms project task create \
  --service-name "dms-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --project-name "proj-sql-to-mi" \
  --name "task-online-mi" \
  --task-type MigrateSqlServerSqlDbMiSync \
  --source-connection-json '{ "dataSource": "onprem-sql.company.local", ... }' \
  --target-connection-json '{ "dataSource": "mi-prod.xxxx.database.windows.net", ... }' \
  --database-options-json '[{
    "name": "AdventureWorks",
    "restoreWithNoRecovery": false,
    "backupFileShare": { "path": "\\\\onprem-sql\\SQLBackups", "userName": "domain\\svc-backup", "password": "pwd" }
  }]'

Azure SQL Migration Extension (SSMS / ADS)

The Azure SQL Migration extension for Azure Data Studio provides guided online/offline migrations:

# Install Azure Data Studio
# In ADS → Extensions → Install "Azure SQL Migration"

# Or use az datamigration CLI for SQL MI migrations:
az extension add --name datamigration

az datamigration sql-managed-instance create \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate" \
  --managed-instance-name "mi-prod" \
  --target-db-name "AdventureWorks" \
  --migration-service "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.DataMigration/SqlMigrationServices/dms-prod" \
  --scope "/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Sql/managedInstances/mi-prod" \
  --source-database-name "AdventureWorks" \
  --source-sql-connection '{"dataSource":"onprem-sql.company.local","authentication":"SqlAuthentication","userName":"sa","password":"P@ss!"}' \
  --backup-configuration '{"sourceLocation":{"fileShare":{"path":"\\\\onprem-sql\\SQLBackups","username":"domain\\svc","password":"pwd"}},"targetLocation":{"storageAccountResourceId":"/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg/providers/Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts/stmigrate","accountKey":"key"}}'

Azure Site Recovery (ASR) — DR & Migration

# Create Recovery Services Vault
az backup vault create \
  --name "rsv-dr-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-dr" \
  --location "westus2"

# Set replication policy (RPO, app-consistent, crash-consistent)
az site-recovery policy create \
  --resource-group "rg-dr" \
  --vault-name "rsv-dr-prod" \
  --name "replication-policy-prod" \
  --recovery-point-history 72 \      # hours
  --app-consistent-frequency 60 \   # minutes between app-consistent snapshots
  --crash-consistent-frequency 5    # minutes between crash-consistent

# Failover (for DR event)
az site-recovery protected-item failover-commit \
  --resource-group "rg-dr" \
  --vault-name "rsv-dr-prod" \
  --name "server-01-uuid" \
  --fabric-name "primary-fabric" \
  --protection-container "primary-container"

# Failback (return to on-prem after DR)
az site-recovery protected-item reprotect \
  --resource-group "rg-dr" \
  --vault-name "rsv-dr-prod" \
  --name "server-01-uuid" \
  --fabric-name "primary-fabric" \
  --protection-container "primary-container"

Web App Migration

# Use App Service Migration Assistant for ASP.NET discovery + migration
# Download from: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/app-service/migration-tools/

# CLI-assisted migration — create target App Service
az appservice plan create \
  --name "asp-migrated-prod" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate-apps" \
  --location "eastus" \
  --sku P2V3 \
  --is-linux false

az webapp create \
  --name "myapp-migrated" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate-apps" \
  --plan "asp-migrated-prod"

# Deploy migrated package
az webapp deploy \
  --name "myapp-migrated" \
  --resource-group "rg-migrate-apps" \
  --src-path "./migrated-app.zip" \
  --type zip

Business Case & TCO

# Business case is generated in Azure Migrate portal
# REST API to retrieve business case report:
curl "https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/assessmentProjects/migrate-proj-prod/businessCases/businesscase1?api-version=2023-03-15" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | jq '.properties | {status, onPremisesAnnualCost, azureAnnualCost}'

# TCO Calculator (web-based, export to CSV)
# https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/tco/calculator/

Migration Wave Planning (Shell Script)

#!/bin/bash
# Export assessed servers to CSV for wave planning
ASSESS_API="https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/SUB_ID/resourceGroups/rg-migrate/providers/Microsoft.Migrate/assessmentProjects/migrate-proj-prod"
TOKEN=$(az account get-access-token --query accessToken -o tsv)

# Get all assessed machines with recommended sizes and monthly cost
curl -s "$ASSESS_API/groups/all-servers/assessments/assess-prod/assessedMachines?api-version=2019-10-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" | \
  jq -r '.value[] | [
    .properties.displayName,
    .properties.recommendedSize,
    .properties.suitability,
    (.properties.monthlyComputeCostEstimate | tostring),
    (.properties.monthlyStorageCostEstimate | tostring),
    .properties.operatingSystem
  ] | @csv' > assessed-servers.csv

echo "name,recommended_size,suitability,monthly_compute,monthly_storage,os" | \
  cat - assessed-servers.csv > migration-plan.csv
echo "Exported $(wc -l < migration-plan.csv) servers to migration-plan.csv"

Quick Reference

Task	Tool
Discover VMware VMs	Azure Migrate OVA appliance + vCenter credentials
Discover physical/AWS/GCP	Azure Migrate installer script
Assess VMs	Azure Migrate portal → Assessment → Create
Dependency mapping	Agentless (VMware) or MMA+DependencyAgent
Migrate VMware VMs (agentless)	Azure Migrate → Migrate → Replicate
Migrate physical servers	Agent-based: Mobility Service + ASR
Migrate SQL databases	`az dms` or Azure SQL Migration extension
Migrate web apps	App Service Migration Assistant
DR with ASR	Recovery Services Vault → Site Recovery
Business case	Azure Migrate portal → Business case
Check replication	`az site-recovery protected-item list`

Azure Migrate

File contents

Azure Migrate Skill

Architecture Overview

Prerequisites

Discovery Appliance

VMware Appliance Deployment

Physical / AWS / GCP Server Discovery

Server Assessment

Create & Run Assessment

Dependency Analysis

Server Migration

Agentless VMware Migration

Agent-Based Migration (Physical/AWS/GCP/Hyper-V)

Test Failover & Final Migration

Database Migration

Azure Database Migration Service (DMS)

Azure SQL Migration Extension (SSMS / ADS)

Azure Site Recovery (ASR) — DR & Migration

Web App Migration

Business Case & TCO

Migration Wave Planning (Shell Script)

Quick Reference

Frequently asked questions

Azure Migrate

File contents

Azure Migrate Skill

Architecture Overview

Prerequisites

Discovery Appliance

VMware Appliance Deployment

Physical / AWS / GCP Server Discovery

Server Assessment

Create & Run Assessment

Dependency Analysis

Server Migration

Agentless VMware Migration

Agent-Based Migration (Physical/AWS/GCP/Hyper-V)

Test Failover & Final Migration

Database Migration

Azure Database Migration Service (DMS)

Azure SQL Migration Extension (SSMS / ADS)

Azure Site Recovery (ASR) — DR & Migration

Web App Migration

Business Case & TCO

Migration Wave Planning (Shell Script)

Quick Reference

Related skills

Frequently asked questions

How do I install the Azure Migrate skill?

What does the Azure Migrate skill do?

Is Azure Migrate safe to use?

Which AI agents work with Azure Migrate?

Is Azure Migrate free to use?

Who published Azure Migrate?