Azure AI Foundry

Overview

Azure AI Foundry (formerly Azure AI Studio) provides enterprise access to leading AI models. When integrated with Autohand, you get:

• Access to GPT-4, GPT-4o, and OpenAI models on Azure
• Open-source models like Llama 3.1, Mistral, and Phi
• Enterprise security with API Key, Microsoft Entra ID, or Managed Identity
• Data residency in your chosen Azure region
• Compliance certifications (SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR)
• Private endpoints and VNet integration

Setup

Get started with Azure AI Foundry.

Prerequisites

• Azure subscription with AI Foundry access
• Azure AI Foundry project created
• Model deployment in your project

Get your credentials

1. Go to ai.azure.com and sign in
2. Open your AI Foundry project
3. Navigate to Deployments and select your model
4. Copy the endpoint URL and API key

Configure Autohand

# Set environment variables
export AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT="https://your-resource.openai.azure.com"
export AZURE_OPENAI_KEY="xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"
export AZURE_OPENAI_DEPLOYMENT="gpt-4o"
export AZURE_OPENAI_API_VERSION="2024-10-21"

# Or use the interactive wizard
autohand
/model
# Select "azure" from the provider list and follow the prompts

Verify your configuration:

# Start with Azure provider
autohand --provider azure --model gpt-4o

# Test with a prompt
autohand --prompt "Hello, which model are you?"

CLI configuration

Configure Azure AI Foundry in your ~/.autohand/config.json. Autohand supports two styles: structured fields (recommended) or a direct base URL override.

Structured configuration (recommended)

{
  "provider": "azure",
  "azure": {
    "model": "gpt-4o",
    "apiKey": "your-azure-api-key",
    "resourceName": "your-resource",
    "deploymentName": "gpt-4o",
    "apiVersion": "2024-10-21",
    "authMethod": "api-key"
  }
}

Base URL override

For proxies, custom endpoints, or Azure AI Foundry model-as-a-service:

{
  "provider": "azure",
  "azure": {
    "model": "gpt-4o",
    "apiKey": "your-azure-api-key",
    "baseUrl": "https://your-resource.openai.azure.com/openai/deployments/gpt-4o/chat/completions?api-version=2024-10-21"
  }
}

Configuration options

Environment variables

All configuration options can be set via environment variables. These override values in config.json:

Authentication methods

Autohand supports three authentication methods for Azure OpenAI. Choose based on your security requirements.

API Key (default)

The simplest option. Use the API key from your Azure OpenAI resource.

{
  "provider": "azure",
  "azure": {
    "authMethod": "api-key",
    "apiKey": "your-azure-api-key",
    "resourceName": "your-resource",
    "deploymentName": "gpt-4o",
    "apiVersion": "2024-10-21"
  }
}

Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD)

Use OAuth2 client credentials for enterprise environments. Requires an app registration in Microsoft Entra ID.

{
  "provider": "azure",
  "azure": {
    "authMethod": "entra-id",
    "tenantId": "your-tenant-id",
    "clientId": "your-client-id",
    "clientSecret": "your-client-secret",
    "resourceName": "your-resource",
    "deploymentName": "gpt-4o",
    "apiVersion": "2024-10-21"
  }
}

Managed Identity

For workloads running inside Azure (VMs, App Service, AKS, etc.). No credentials needed — Azure handles authentication automatically via the Instance Metadata Service (IMDS).

{
  "provider": "azure",
  "azure": {
    "authMethod": "managed-identity",
    "resourceName": "your-resource",
    "deploymentName": "gpt-4o",
    "apiVersion": "2024-10-21"
  }
}

Available models

Azure AI Foundry supports multiple model families.

OpenAI models

Open-source models

Best practices

• Use Managed Identity: Prefer managed identities over API keys for Azure-hosted production workloads.
• Use Entra ID: For non-Azure environments, use Entra ID app credentials instead of API keys.
• Choose your region: Deploy models in regions that meet your data residency requirements.
• Monitor usage: Use Azure Cost Management to track AI spending.
• Set quotas: Configure TPM (tokens per minute) limits to control costs.
• Rotate API keys: If using API keys, rotate them regularly via the Azure portal.

Resources

• Azure AI Foundry Portal
• Azure AI Services
• Azure OpenAI Documentation
• Azure OpenAI API Reference
• Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) Platform
• Managed Identities for Azure Resources
• Register an Application in Entra ID
• Azure OpenAI Pricing
• Azure Status

Troubleshooting

Common issues

Debug mode

# Enable verbose logging
AUTOHAND_DEBUG=true autohand --provider azure

# Test Azure endpoint directly
curl "https://your-resource.openai.azure.com/openai/deployments/gpt-4o/chat/completions?api-version=2024-10-21" \
  -H "api-key: ${AZURE_OPENAI_KEY}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Hello"}]}'