azure-pipelines

✓ Official★ 187,144

by microsoft · part of microsoft/vscode

Use when validating Azure DevOps pipeline changes for the VS Code build. Covers queueing builds, checking build status, viewing logs, and iterating on pipeline YAML changes without waiting for full CI runs.

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#automation #cloud #git

🔒 Repo-maintenance skill. It exists to help maintain microsoft/vscode itself — it's only useful if you contribute code to that project.

This is the playbook your agent receives when the skill activates — you don't need to read it to use the skill, but it's here to audit before installing.

Validating Azure Pipeline Changes

When modifying Azure DevOps pipeline files (YAML files in build/azure-pipelines/), you can validate changes locally using the Azure CLI before committing. This avoids the slow feedback loop of pushing changes, waiting for CI, and checking results.

VS Code Main Build

The main VS Code build pipeline:

Organization: monacotools
Project: Monaco
Definition ID: 111
URL: https://dev.azure.com/monacotools/Monaco/_build?definitionId=111

VS Code Insider Scheduled Builds

Two Insider builds run automatically on a scheduled basis:

Morning build: ~7:00 AM CET
Evening build: ~7:00 PM CET

These scheduled builds use the same pipeline definition (111) but run on the main branch to produce Insider releases.

Queueing a Build

Use the queue command to queue a validation build:

# Queue a build on the current branch
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue

# Queue with a specific source branch
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue --branch my-feature-branch

# Queue with custom parameters
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_WEB=false" --parameter "VSCODE_PUBLISH=false"

# Parameter value with spaces
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_TYPE=Product Build"

Important: Before queueing a new build, cancel any previous builds on the same branch that you no longer need. This frees up build agents and reduces resource waste:
# Find the build ID from status, then cancel it
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id <id>
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue

Script Options

Option	Description
`--branch <name>`	Source branch to build (default: current git branch)
`--definition <id>`	Pipeline definition ID (default: 111)
`--parameter <entry>`	Pipeline parameter in `KEY=value` format (repeatable); use this when the value contains spaces
`--parameters <list>`	Space-separated parameters in `KEY=value KEY2=value2` format; values must not contain spaces
`--dry-run`	Print the command without executing

Product Build Queue Parameters (`build/azure-pipelines/product-build.yml`)

Name	Type	Default	Allowed Values	Description
`VSCODE_QUALITY`	string	`insider`	`exploration`, `insider`, `stable`	Build quality channel
`VSCODE_BUILD_TYPE`	string	`Product Build`	`Product`, `CI`	Build mode for Product vs CI
`NPM_REGISTRY`	string	`https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/monacotools/Monaco/_packaging/vscode/npm/registry/`	any URL	Custom npm registry
`CARGO_REGISTRY`	string	`sparse+https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/monacotools/Monaco/_packaging/vscode/Cargo/index/`	any URL	Custom Cargo registry
`VSCODE_BUILD_WIN32`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Windows x64
`VSCODE_BUILD_WIN32_ARM64`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Windows arm64
`VSCODE_BUILD_LINUX`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Linux x64
`VSCODE_BUILD_LINUX_SNAP`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Linux x64 Snap
`VSCODE_BUILD_LINUX_ARM64`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Linux arm64
`VSCODE_BUILD_LINUX_ARMHF`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Linux armhf
`VSCODE_BUILD_ALPINE`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Alpine x64
`VSCODE_BUILD_ALPINE_ARM64`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Alpine arm64
`VSCODE_BUILD_MACOS`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build macOS x64
`VSCODE_BUILD_MACOS_ARM64`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build macOS arm64
`VSCODE_BUILD_MACOS_UNIVERSAL`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build macOS universal (requires both macOS arches)
`VSCODE_BUILD_WEB`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Build Web artifacts
`VSCODE_PUBLISH`	boolean	`true`	`true`, `false`	Publish to builds.code.visualstudio.com
`VSCODE_RELEASE`	boolean	`false`	`true`, `false`	Trigger release flow if successful
`VSCODE_STEP_ON_IT`	boolean	`false`	`true`, `false`	Skip tests
`VSCODE_USE_LEGACY_OSS_NOTICE`	boolean	`false`	`true`, `false`	Keep the legacy mixin ThirdPartyNotices.txt instead of the Component Governance notice

Example: run a quick CI-oriented validation with minimal publish/release side effects:

node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue \
   --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_TYPE=CI Build" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_PUBLISH=false" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_RELEASE=false"

Checking Build Status

Use the status command to monitor a running build:

# Get status of the most recent builds
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status

# Get overview of a specific build by ID
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id 123456

# Watch build status (refreshes every 30 seconds)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --watch

# Watch with custom interval (60 seconds)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --watch 60

Script Options

Option	Description
`--build-id <id>`	Specific build ID (default: most recent on current branch)
`--branch <name>`	Filter builds by branch name (shows last 20 builds for branch)
`--reason <reason>`	Filter builds by reason: `manual`, `individualCI`, `batchedCI`, `schedule`, `pullRequest`
`--definition <id>`	Pipeline definition ID (default: 111)
`--watch [seconds]`	Continuously poll status until build completes (default: 30s)
`--download-log <id>`	Download a specific log to /tmp
`--download-artifact <name>`	Download artifact to /tmp
`--json`	Output raw JSON for programmatic consumption

Cancelling a Build

Use the cancel command to stop a running build:

# Cancel a build by ID (use status command to find IDs)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id 123456

# Dry run (show what would be cancelled)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id 123456 --dry-run

Script Options

Option	Description
`--build-id <id>`	Build ID to cancel (required)
`--definition <id>`	Pipeline definition ID (default: 111)
`--dry-run`	Print what would be cancelled without executing

Testing Pipeline Changes

When the user asks to test changes in an Azure Pipelines build, follow this workflow:

Queue a new build on the current branch
Poll for completion by periodically checking the build status until it finishes

Polling for Build Completion

Use a shell loop with sleep to poll the build status. The sleep command works on all major operating systems:

# Queue the build and note the build ID from output (e.g., 123456)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue

# Poll every 60 seconds until complete (works on macOS, Linux, and Windows with Git Bash/WSL)
# Replace <BUILD_ID> with the actual build ID from the queue command
while true; do
  node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id <BUILD_ID> --json 2>/dev/null | grep -q '"status": "completed"' && break
  sleep 60
done

# Check final result
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id <BUILD_ID>

Alternatively, use the built-in --watch flag which handles polling automatically:

node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue
# Use the build ID returned by the queue command
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id <BUILD_ID> --watch

Note: The --watch flag polls every 30 seconds by default. Use --watch 60 for a 60-second interval to reduce API calls.

Common Workflows

1. Quick Pipeline Validation

# Make your YAML changes, then:
git add -A && git commit -m "test: pipeline changes"
git push origin HEAD

# Check for any previous builds on this branch and cancel if needed
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id <id>  # if there's an active build

# Queue and watch the new build
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --watch

2. Investigate a Build

# Get overview of a build (shows stages, artifacts, and log IDs)
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id 123456

# Download a specific log for deeper inspection
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id 123456 --download-log 5

# Download an artifact
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --build-id 123456 --download-artifact unsigned_vscode_cli_win32_x64_cli

3. Test with Modified Parameters

# Customize build matrix for quicker validation
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue \
   --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_TYPE=CI Build" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_WEB=false" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_ALPINE=false" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_BUILD_ALPINE_ARM64=false" \
   --parameter "VSCODE_PUBLISH=false"

4. Cancel a Running Build

# First, find the build ID
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status

# Cancel a specific build by ID
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id 123456

# Dry run to see what would be cancelled
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id 123456 --dry-run

5. Iterate on Pipeline Changes

When iterating on pipeline YAML changes, always cancel obsolete builds before queueing new ones:

# Push new changes
git add -A && git commit --amend --no-edit
git push --force-with-lease origin HEAD

# Find the outdated build ID and cancel it
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts cancel --build-id <id>

# Queue a fresh build and monitor
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts queue
node .github/skills/azure-pipelines/azure-pipeline.ts status --watch

Copy & paste — that's it

npx skills add microsoft/vscode --skill "azure-pipelines" --full-depth

Run this in your project — your agent picks the skill up automatically.

Prerequisites

Check if Azure CLI is installed:

az --version

If not installed, install it:

# macOS
brew install azure-cli

# Windows (PowerShell as Administrator)
winget install Microsoft.AzureCLI

# Linux (Debian/Ubuntu)
curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash

Check if the DevOps extension is installed:
```
az extension show --name azure-devops
```
If not installed, add it:
```
az extension add --name azure-devops
```

Authenticate:

az login
az devops configure --defaults organization=https://dev.azure.com/monacotools project=Monaco

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

# Re-authenticate
az logout
az login

# Check current account
az account show

Extension Not Found

az extension add --name azure-devops --upgrade

Rate Limiting

If you hit rate limits, add delays between API calls or use --watch with a longer interval.

Validating Azure Pipeline Changes

VS Code Main Build

VS Code Insider Scheduled Builds

Queueing a Build

Script Options

Product Build Queue Parameters (build/azure-pipelines/product-build.yml)

Checking Build Status

Script Options

Cancelling a Build

Script Options

Testing Pipeline Changes

Polling for Build Completion

Common Workflows

1. Quick Pipeline Validation

2. Investigate a Build

3. Test with Modified Parameters

4. Cancel a Running Build

5. Iterate on Pipeline Changes

Prerequisites

Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

Extension Not Found

Rate Limiting

Product Build Queue Parameters (`build/azure-pipelines/product-build.yml`)