docs(azure): replace ARM template deployment with pure az CLI commands by johnsonshi · Pull Request #50700 · openclaw/openclaw

johnsonshi · 2026-03-19T23:38:21Z

Summary

Problem: The Azure install guide referenced ARM templates in infra/azure/templates/ which have been removed upstream. The guide was broken (404 template URIs).
Why it matters: Users following the Azure install guide could not complete the deployment.
What changed: Rewrote docs/install/azure.md to use pure az CLI commands instead of ARM templates. Added cost considerations and cleanup sections. Removed stale redirect from docs.json.
What did NOT change (scope boundary): No Gateway/runtime code, auth logic, provider behavior, or installer execution behavior changed. Security posture (Bastion-only SSH, no public IP, NSG hardening) is identical.

Change Type (select all)

Docs

Scope (select all touched areas)

UI / DX

Linked Issue/PR

Follow-up to docs: add Azure VM deployment guide with in-repo ARM templates and bootstrap script #47898 (addresses review feedback from @BradGroux)

User-visible / Behavior Changes

Azure install guide now uses 13 explicit az CLI steps instead of a single ARM template deployment
New "Cost considerations" section documents Bastion (~~$140/mo) and VM (~~$55/mo) pricing with cost-saving tips
New "Cleanup" section with az group delete for easy teardown
Removed stale /install/azure/azure redirect from docs.json
Removed all references to infra/azure/templates/ (directory no longer exists)

Security Impact (required)

New permissions/capabilities? (No)
Secrets/tokens handling changed? (No)
New/changed network calls? (No)
Command/tool execution surface changed? (No)
Data access scope changed? (No)
If any Yes, explain risk + mitigation: N/A

Repro + Verification

Environment

OS: macOS
Runtime/container: N/A (docs-only)

Steps

Review the diff for docs/install/azure.md — all ARM template references replaced with az CLI commands
Verify docs.json is valid JSON with stale redirect removed
Confirm no remaining references to infra/azure/templates/ in the docs directory
Verify the az CLI commands match the resources previously created by the ARM template (NSG with 3 rules, VNet with 2 subnets, VM with no public IP, Bastion Standard with tunneling)

Expected

Azure guide is self-contained with pure az CLI commands
No broken references to removed ARM templates
Cost and cleanup sections present
Security posture unchanged (Bastion-only SSH, NSG rules, no public IP)

Actual

All above checks passed

Evidence

Prior PR screenshots from docs: add Azure VM deployment guide with in-repo ARM templates and bootstrap script #47898 show the same infrastructure deployed end-to-end
CLI commands verified against Azure CLI documentation

Human Verification (required)

Verified scenarios:
- Reviewed full diff (docs/install/azure.md, docs/docs.json)
- Confirmed az CLI commands create identical resources to the removed ARM template
- Validated docs.json remains valid JSON
- Grep confirmed zero remaining references to infra/azure/templates/ in docs
Edge cases checked:
- NSG rule priority ordering preserved (100 Allow Bastion → 110 Deny Internet → 120 Deny VNet)
- --public-ip-address "" and --nsg "" flags verified for VM creation
- Bastion Standard SKU with --enable-tunneling true for CLI SSH support
What you did not verify:
- Full end-to-end Azure deployment with these exact commands (ARM template version was verified in docs: add Azure VM deployment guide with in-repo ARM templates and bootstrap script #47898)

Review Conversations

I replied to or resolved every bot review conversation I addressed in this PR.
I left unresolved only the conversations that still need reviewer or maintainer judgment.

Compatibility / Migration

Backward compatible? (Yes)
Config/env changes? (No)
Migration needed? (No)

Failure Recovery (if this breaks)

How to disable/revert this change quickly: Revert this PR/commit
Files/config to restore: docs/install/azure.md, docs/docs.json
Known bad symptoms reviewers should watch for: N/A

Risks and Mitigations

None — docs-only change with no runtime impact.

Rewrites the Azure install guide to use individual az CLI commands instead of referencing ARM templates in infra/azure/templates/ (removed upstream). Each Azure resource (NSG, VNet, subnets, VM, Bastion) is now created with explicit az commands, preserving the same security posture (Bastion-only SSH, no public IP, NSG hardening). Also addresses BradGroux review feedback from openclaw#47898: - Add cost considerations section (Bastion ~$140/mo, VM ~$55/mo) - Add cleanup/teardown section (az group delete) - Remove stale /install/azure/azure redirect from docs.json Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

greptile-apps · 2026-03-19T23:40:14Z

Greptile Summary

This PR rewrites docs/install/azure.md to replace a broken ARM template deployment (referencing infra/azure/templates/ which no longer exists) with 13 explicit az CLI steps, and removes a stale redirect from docs.json. The new guide is well-structured, technically accurate, and adds valuable "Cost considerations" and "Cleanup" sections.

Key observations:

NSG rule priority ordering is correct (100 Allow Bastion → 110 Deny Internet → 120 Deny VNet)
--public-ip-address "" and --nsg "" flags are used correctly to prevent public IP assignment and per-NIC NSG creation
AzureBastionSubnet naming requirement is correctly documented
Standard SKU with --enable-tunneling true is correctly required for CLI-based az network bastion ssh
The "Cost considerations" and "Cleanup" sections use hardcoded resource names (rg-openclaw, vm-openclaw) instead of the ${RG} and ${VM_NAME} variables defined in Step 3 — users who customized their deployment names will get errors running those snippets

Confidence Score: 4/5

Safe to merge — docs-only change fixing a broken guide; one minor variable consistency issue in out-of-steps sections.
The core deployment steps are technically accurate and well-organized. The only issue is a minor inconsistency where the Cost considerations and Cleanup sections use hardcoded resource names instead of the shell variables defined earlier, which could trip up users who customized their deployment.
docs/install/azure.md — review the hardcoded resource names in the Cost considerations and Cleanup sections.

Prompt To Fix All With AI

This is a comment left during a code review.
Path: docs/install/azure.md
Line: 277-281

Comment:
**Hardcoded resource names instead of variables**

The guide explicitly encourages users to "Adjust names and CIDR ranges to fit your environment" in Step 3, but these commands use hardcoded `rg-openclaw` and `vm-openclaw` instead of the `${RG}` and `${VM_NAME}` variables defined earlier. A user who customized their resource names will copy these snippets and get a "resource not found" error.

The same issue appears in the Cleanup section at line 290 (`az group delete -n rg-openclaw`).

```suggestion
- **Deallocate the VM** when not in use (stops compute billing; disk charges remain):
  ```bash
  az vm deallocate -g "${RG}" -n "${VM_NAME}"
  az vm start -g "${RG}" -n "${VM_NAME}"   # restart later
  ```
```

And for the Cleanup section:
```bash
az group delete -n "${RG}" --yes --no-wait
```

How can I resolve this? If you propose a fix, please make it concise.

_{Last reviewed commit: "docs(azure): replace..."}

Add Quick path and What you need sections. Split the single Steps block into three (Configure deployment, Deploy Azure resources, Install OpenClaw) so H2 headers appear in the Mintlify sidebar TOC. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

Escape dollar signs to prevent Mintlify LaTeX interpretation. Also escape underscores in VM SKU name within bold text. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

chatgpt-codex-connector

💡 Codex Review

Here are some automated review suggestions for this pull request.

Reviewed commit: 0db332562f

ℹ️ About Codex in GitHub

Your team has set up Codex to review pull requests in this repo. Reviews are triggered when you

Open a pull request for review
Mark a draft as ready
Comment "@codex review".

If Codex has suggestions, it will comment; otherwise it will react with 👍.

Codex can also answer questions or update the PR. Try commenting "@codex address that feedback".

Download then run pattern (no sudo). Clarify that installer handles Node LTS, dependencies, OpenClaw install, and onboarding wizard. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

chatgpt-codex-connector

💡 Codex Review

Here are some automated review suggestions for this pull request.

Reviewed commit: ec1862fb79

ℹ️ About Codex in GitHub

Your team has set up Codex to review pull requests in this repo. Reviews are triggered when you

Open a pull request for review
Mark a draft as ready
Comment "@codex review".

If Codex has suggestions, it will comment; otherwise it will react with 👍.

Codex can also answer questions or update the PR. Try commenting "@codex address that feedback".

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

Replace hardcoded rg-openclaw/vm-openclaw with variables in deallocate/start and group delete commands so users who customized names in step 3 get correct commands. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

johnsonshi · 2026-03-20T01:20:37Z

@BradGroux / @fabianwilliams here are the changes:

Docs Changes Rendered

AZ CLI Install Commands Validated

OpenClaw Install and Onboarding Validated after Bastion SSH

johnsonshi · 2026-03-20T01:21:46Z

      "destination": "/install/azure"
    },
-    {
-      "source": "/install/azure/azure",


@BradGroux removed the redundant redirect as you mentioned in the prior PR #47898

johnsonshi · 2026-03-20T01:23:44Z

@BradGroux I've converted the Azure Linux VM installation scripts to use az CLI instead of ARM templates to avoid external ARM template dependencies, as well as to align with other platform docs that use CLI commands when deploying OpenClaw on cloud instances.

I have also addressed all of the comments in my prior PR: #47898

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

BradGroux

Clean improvement over the ARM template approach, pure az CLI is much easier to follow and debug. Each resource creation step is explicit, the NSG rule priority explanations are helpful, and the cost considerations section is a great addition (Bastion at ~$140/month catches people off guard).

One thing to flag: the ARM templates in infra/azure/templates/ from #47898 are now orphaned since nothing references them. Worth a follow-up PR to remove them or add a note that they're kept as an alternative.

Good job.

openclaw#50700) * docs(azure): replace ARM template deployment with pure az CLI commands Rewrites the Azure install guide to use individual az CLI commands instead of referencing ARM templates in infra/azure/templates/ (removed upstream). Each Azure resource (NSG, VNet, subnets, VM, Bastion) is now created with explicit az commands, preserving the same security posture (Bastion-only SSH, no public IP, NSG hardening). Also addresses BradGroux review feedback from openclaw#47898: - Add cost considerations section (Bastion ~$140/mo, VM ~$55/mo) - Add cleanup/teardown section (az group delete) - Remove stale /install/azure/azure redirect from docs.json Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): split into multiple Steps blocks for richer TOC Add Quick path and What you need sections. Split the single Steps block into three (Configure deployment, Deploy Azure resources, Install OpenClaw) so H2 headers appear in the Mintlify sidebar TOC. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): remove Quick path section Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): fix cost section LaTeX rendering, remove comparison Escape dollar signs to prevent Mintlify LaTeX interpretation. Also escape underscores in VM SKU name within bold text. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): add caveat that deallocated VM stops Gateway Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): simplify install step with clearer description Download then run pattern (no sudo). Clarify that installer handles Node LTS, dependencies, OpenClaw install, and onboarding wizard. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): add Bastion provisioning latency note Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): use deployment variables in cost and cleanup sections Replace hardcoded rg-openclaw/vm-openclaw with variables in deallocate/start and group delete commands so users who customized names in step 3 get correct commands. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> * docs(azure): fix formatting (oxfmt) Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> --------- Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

openclaw-barnacle Bot added docs Improvements or additions to documentation size: XS labels Mar 19, 2026

greptile-apps Bot reviewed Mar 19, 2026

View reviewed changes

Comment thread docs/install/azure.md Outdated

johnsonshi and others added 4 commits March 19, 2026 16:43

docs(azure): remove Quick path section

ffd4e06

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

docs(azure): fix cost section LaTeX rendering, remove comparison

5692154

Escape dollar signs to prevent Mintlify LaTeX interpretation. Also escape underscores in VM SKU name within bold text. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

docs(azure): add caveat that deallocated VM stops Gateway

0db3325

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot reviewed Mar 19, 2026

View reviewed changes

Comment thread docs/install/azure.md Outdated

docs(azure): simplify install step with clearer description

ec1862f

Download then run pattern (no sudo). Clarify that installer handles Node LTS, dependencies, OpenClaw install, and onboarding wizard. Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot reviewed Mar 20, 2026

View reviewed changes

Comment thread docs/install/azure.md Outdated

johnsonshi and others added 2 commits March 19, 2026 17:42

docs(azure): add Bastion provisioning latency note

29dd63d

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

johnsonshi commented Mar 20, 2026

View reviewed changes

docs(azure): fix formatting (oxfmt)

a279e7f

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>

BradGroux self-assigned this Mar 20, 2026

BradGroux approved these changes Mar 20, 2026

View reviewed changes

BradGroux merged commit dc86b6d into openclaw:main Mar 20, 2026
37 of 41 checks passed

Provide feedback

Saved searches

Use saved searches to filter your results more quickly

Uh oh!

docs(azure): replace ARM template deployment with pure az CLI commands#50700

docs(azure): replace ARM template deployment with pure az CLI commands#50700
BradGroux merged 9 commits intoopenclaw:mainfrom
johnsonshi:johnsonshi/azure-install-steps-cli-revamp

johnsonshi commented Mar 19, 2026

Uh oh!

greptile-apps Bot commented Mar 19, 2026

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot left a comment

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot left a comment

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

johnsonshi commented Mar 20, 2026

Uh oh!

johnsonshi Mar 20, 2026

Uh oh!

johnsonshi commented Mar 20, 2026

Uh oh!

BradGroux left a comment •

edited

Loading

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

Reviewers

Assignees

Labels

Projects

Milestone

Development

Uh oh!

2 participants

Uh oh!

Conversation

johnsonshi commented Mar 19, 2026

Summary

Change Type (select all)

Scope (select all touched areas)

Linked Issue/PR

User-visible / Behavior Changes

Security Impact (required)

Repro + Verification

Environment

Steps

Expected

Actual

Evidence

Human Verification (required)

Review Conversations

Compatibility / Migration

Failure Recovery (if this breaks)

Risks and Mitigations

Uh oh!

greptile-apps Bot commented Mar 19, 2026

Greptile Summary

Confidence Score: 4/5

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot left a comment

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

💡 Codex Review

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

chatgpt-codex-connector Bot left a comment

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

💡 Codex Review

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

johnsonshi commented Mar 20, 2026

Docs Changes Rendered

AZ CLI Install Commands Validated

OpenClaw Install and Onboarding Validated after Bastion SSH

Uh oh!

johnsonshi Mar 20, 2026

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

johnsonshi commented Mar 20, 2026

Uh oh!

BradGroux left a comment • edited Loading Uh oh! There was an error while loading. Please reload this page.

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Uh oh!

Reviewers

Assignees

Labels

Projects

Milestone

Development

Uh oh!

2 participants

BradGroux left a comment •

edited

Loading