This document provides AI agents with structured guidance for working with the Azure API Management (APIM) Samples repository.
This repository provides resources to deploy Azure API Management infrastructures and experiment with APIM policies. It offers:
- Infrastructures: Pre-built Azure architectures featuring APIM in various configurations
- Samples: Real-world policy examples that can be deployed to any supported infrastructure
- Shared Resources: Reusable Bicep modules, Python helpers, and policy templates
All repository contributions should treat accessibility as a first-class quality requirement.
- Use WCAG 2.0 AA as the default baseline for user-facing outputs, including documentation, web content, workbook/dashboard visuals, and presentation materials.
- Do not rely on color alone to convey meaning; pair color cues with labels, text, icons, or structure.
- Preserve or improve contrast and readability when editing existing assets.
/
├── infrastructure/ # Azure infrastructure deployments
│ ├── afd-apim-pe/ # Azure Front Door + APIM with Private Endpoint
│ ├── apim-aca/ # APIM with Azure Container Apps
│ ├── appgw-apim/ # Application Gateway + APIM (VNet)
│ ├── appgw-apim-pe/ # Application Gateway + APIM with Private Endpoint
│ └── simple-apim/ # Basic APIM setup (fastest, lowest cost)
│
├── samples/ # APIM policy samples
│ ├── _TEMPLATE/ # Template for creating new samples
│ ├── authX/ # Authentication and authorization
│ ├── authX-pro/ # Advanced auth with policy fragments
│ ├── azure-maps/ # Azure Maps integration
│ ├── aoai-v1-migration/ # Azure OpenAI v1 Migration on existing lab resources
│ ├── costing/ # APIM costing and showback
│ ├── dynamic-cors/ # Dynamic per-API CORS origin validation
│ ├── egress-control/ # Egress control via NVA routing
│ ├── general/ # Basic policy demonstrations
│ ├── inference-failover/ # AOAI model failover with LLM telemetry
│ ├── load-balancing/ # Backend pool load balancing
│ ├── oauth-3rd-party/ # OAuth 3rd-party (Spotify example)
│ └── secure-blob-access/ # Valet key pattern for blob storage
│
├── shared/ # Reusable components
│ ├── apim-policies/ # Common APIM policy XML files
│ ├── bicep/modules/ # Versioned Bicep modules
│ ├── jupyter/ # Reusable Jupyter notebooks
│ └── python/ # Python helper modules
│
├── tests/ # Unit tests for Python code
│ └── python/ # pytest-based tests
│
├── setup/ # Environment setup scripts
├── assets/ # Images and diagrams
└── .github/ # CI/CD and Copilot instructions
├── agents/ # Custom agents for focused repository workflows
├── copilot-instructions.md
└── skills/ # Agent skills for specialized tasks
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
README.md |
Documentation, objectives, and configuration instructions |
create.ipynb |
Jupyter notebook for deploying the sample |
main.bicep |
Bicep template defining Azure resources |
clean-up.ipynb |
(Infrastructure only) Teardown notebook |
*.xml |
APIM policy files |
Use these skills for specialized tasks. Skills are located in .github/skills/.
| Skill | When to Use |
|---|---|
| sample-creator | Creating new samples under samples/ following the _TEMPLATE structure |
| apim-bicep | Writing Bicep templates for APIM resources (APIs, backends, policies, products) |
| apim-policies | Creating or modifying APIM XML policies (inbound/outbound, authentication, rate limiting) |
Use these custom agents for focused repository workflows. Agents are located in .github/agents/.
| Agent | When to Use |
|---|---|
| APIM Sample Creator | Adding a new sample, gathering missing sample metadata, scaffolding from _TEMPLATE, and updating README, website, slide deck, and compatibility artifacts |
| APIM Sample Publisher | Finalizing an implemented sample for review or release by synchronizing READMEs, website, SEO, slide deck, compatibility artifacts, and quality checks |
When a task matches a skill's domain, read the skill file first:
.github/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md
Skills provide templates, patterns, and step-by-step workflows.
- Prefer the custom agent: Use
.github/agents/apim-sample-creator.agent.mdfor end-to-end sample creation. - Read the skill: Load
.github/skills/sample-creator/SKILL.md - Gather requirements: Sample name, description, supported infrastructures, learning objectives
- Create folder:
samples/<sample-name>/unless the user explicitly requests another location - Create required files:
README.md- Follow the template structurecreate.ipynb- Jupyter notebook with initialization, deployment, and verification cells<domain>_helpers.py- Add a descriptive sample-local module when parsing, retries, sessions, persistence, command composition, or multi-step orchestration would otherwise live in notebook cellsmain.bicep- Reference shared modules fromshared/bicep/modules/; add sample-owned policy files underapim-policies/and KQL queries underqueries/when needed
- Update repo surfaces:
- Root
README.mdsample table docs/index.htmlsample cards and JSON-LD listassets/APIM-Samples-Slide-Deck.htmlwhen sample inventory or descriptions are showntests/Test-Matrix.md- Compatibility diagrams when supported infrastructures change visually
- Root
- Ask the user for the sample name if it is not provided.
- Ask the user for supported infrastructures if they are not provided.
- Keep sample display names consistent across README tables, the website, the slide deck, and compatibility artifacts.
- If a broadly useful improvement is discovered while creating a sample, suggest updating
samples/_TEMPLATEso future samples inherit it.
Use .github/agents/apim-sample-publisher.agent.md after sample implementation is ready for a final quality pass. The publisher agent checks the working-tree diff, synchronizes README, website, SEO metadata and structured data, slideshow, matrix, and compatibility-diagram surfaces, runs the applicable linting and unit tests, exports the presentation, and reports any manual or live-Azure verification that remains.
- Folder: kebab-case (e.g.,
oauth-validation,rate-limiting) - API prefix: Short, unique, with trailing hyphen (e.g.,
oauth-,rl-) - Policy files: Descriptive, kebab-case, and stored under
samples/<sample-name>/apim-policies/(e.g.,token-validation.xml) - Query files: Descriptive, kebab-case, and stored under
samples/<sample-name>/queries/(e.g.,request-summary.kql) - Workbook files: Azure Monitor Workbook JSON files use the
<name>.workbook.jsonsuffix (e.g.,costing.workbook.json). One workbook per file, stored in the sample folder, loaded into Bicep vialoadJsonContent('<name>.workbook.json'), and pushed back to Azure via a sample-localupdate-workbook.ps1. See the Azure Monitor Workbook File Convention section in.github/copilot-instructions.md. - Admin APIs: Samples needing admin/operational endpoints use path
{api_prefix}adminwithsubscriptionRequired=Trueand kebab-case operation paths (e.g.,/load-cache)
Available in Python via from apimtypes import INFRASTRUCTURE:
| Constant | Description |
|---|---|
INFRASTRUCTURE.AFD_APIM_PE |
Azure Front Door + APIM with Private Endpoint |
INFRASTRUCTURE.APIM_ACA |
APIM with Azure Container Apps |
INFRASTRUCTURE.APPGW_APIM |
Application Gateway + APIM (VNet injection) |
INFRASTRUCTURE.APPGW_APIM_PE |
Application Gateway + APIM with Private Endpoint |
INFRASTRUCTURE.SIMPLE_APIM |
Basic APIM setup |
- Ensure an infrastructure is deployed (or will be created on first run)
- Open
samples/<sample-name>/create.ipynb - Adjust
USER CONFIGURATIONsection if needed - Execute all cells
- Edit the
*.xmlpolicy file in the sample'sapim-policies/folder - Re-run the deployment cell in
create.ipynb - Test via the verification cells
Existing root-level policy files may remain until their sample is migrated. Policy helpers should resolve apim-policies/ first and the sample root second as a temporary fallback. After moving policy XML or KQL files, verify every notebook, helper, Bicep, test, script, and documentation reference, including path-resolution tests for canonical locations, fallback behavior, explicit paths, auto-detection, and missing files.
In create.ipynb, define APIs using:
from apimtypes import API, GET_APIOperation, POST_APIOperation
# Create operations
get_op = GET_APIOperation('Description of the operation')
post_op = POST_APIOperation('Description', policyXml = '<policy-xml>')
# Create API
api = API(
'<name>', # API name (resource identifier)
'<Display Name>', # Human-readable display name
'<path>', # URL path segment (often same value as name)
'<Description>', # API description
operations = [get_op, post_op],
tags = ['tag1', 'tag2']
)
# Add to apis array
apis = [api]The Python helper strategy is the authoritative guide for notebook boundaries, helper ownership, supporting-class design, state, lifecycles, promotion criteria, and testing.
Apply this sequence whenever creating or refactoring a notebook:
- Keep educational configuration, scenario definitions, APIM concepts, expected outcomes, and assertions visible in the notebook.
- Extract incidental mechanics behind explicit inputs and typed outputs.
- Start one-consumer behavior in
samples/<sample>/<domain>_helpers.py; promote only after a second active consumer needs the same stable contract. - Compose existing
NotebookHelper,ApimRequests,ApimTesting, andazure_resourcesboundaries without adding forwarding wrappers. - Make the helper own deterministic cleanup for sessions, files, and temporary resources, and inject remote or timing boundaries for tests.
- Add focused tests under
tests/python/test_<sample>_helpers.py, then replace notebook mechanics with a scenario-readable call. - Register actively edited sample-local pure-Python modules with selective autoreload.
Key modules in shared/python/:
| Module | Purpose |
|---|---|
utils.py |
NotebookHelper, policy loading, endpoint helpers |
apimtypes.py |
Type definitions (API, INFRASTRUCTURE, APIM_SKU) |
azure_resources.py |
Azure CLI wrappers for resource management |
console.py |
Formatted console output (print_ok, print_error) |
apimrequests.py |
HTTP request helpers for testing APIs |
apimtesting.py |
Test framework for sample verification |
When extracting notebook mechanics, start with a focused sample-local module. Promote it to shared/python/ only after a second real consumer establishes a stable cross-sample contract.
Shared modules in shared/bicep/modules/:
- Use versioned modules (e.g.,
v1/api.bicep) for stability - Reference with relative paths:
../../shared/bicep/modules/apim/v1/api.bicep - See
apim-bicepskill for APIM-specific patterns
- Every package or GitHub Action release must complete an eight-day waiting period before use.
- Preserve
tool.uv.exclude-newer = "8 days"and Dependabot cooldowns for all configured ecosystems. - Before a locked Python install, run
python setup/verify_dependency_age.py --scope python, thenuv sync --locked. - Generate
uv.lockagainst canonical public PyPI only by runningpython setup/sync_dependencies.py --upgrade. Never commit private mirror URLs, proxy configuration, credentials, or internal endpoints. Do not manually remove the registry and artifact URLs required by uv's lock schema. - If the lock's direct artifact URLs are inaccessible, export the frozen lock without index settings and install the temporary names, versions, markers, and hashes through the approved mirror with
uv pip sync --no-config --require-hashes --strict. Use this fallback only after the age verifier succeeds, and never commit the temporary export. - Keep GitHub Actions pinned to 40-character commit SHAs with version comments and validate them with
python setup/verify_dependency_age.py --scope github-actions. - Do not introduce direct install or upgrade commands that bypass the lockfile, age verifier, or release exclusion.
- Follow Ruff configuration in
pyproject.toml - Use type hints and docstrings
- Run
ruff checkbefore committing - Tests in
tests/python/with pytest
- Follow
bicepconfig.jsonlinter rules - Use
@descriptionfor all parameters - Include Microsoft Learn template reference links above resources
- Follow section structure: Parameters → Constants → Variables → Resources → Outputs
- Clear all cell outputs before committing
- Set
index = 1in the first code cell - Follow the standard cell structure from
_TEMPLATE
- Generate Markdown, including repository instructions, skills, and agents, against
.markdownlint.jsonand.github/markdown.instructions.md. - Preserve semantic heading, list, table, and code-block structure instead of flattening content to satisfy lint rules.
- After any Markdown change, run
npx --no-install markdownlint-cli2 "**/*.md" "#**/.venv/**" "#**/node_modules/**"from the repository root and require zero violations.
# Via Developer CLI
./start.ps1 # Windows
./start.sh # macOS/Linux
# Select "Tests" menu
# Or directly
pytest tests/python/
ruff check shared/python/- Place tests in
tests/python/ - Mock Azure CLI interactions (no live Azure access in tests)
- Target 95%+ code coverage
- Use
test_helpers.pyfor common test utilities
| Task | Skill to Use | Key Files |
|---|---|---|
| Create a new sample | sample-creator | samples/_TEMPLATE/* |
| Write APIM policies | apim-policies | shared/apim-policies/*.xml |
| Create Bicep templates | apim-bicep | shared/bicep/modules/ |
- Troubleshooting: See
TROUBLESHOOTING.mdfor common issues - Contributing: See
CONTRIBUTING.mdfor contribution guidelines - Python instructions:
.github/python.instructions.md - Bicep instructions:
.github/bicep.instructions.md - JSON instructions:
.github/json.instructions.md