Azure Bastion Skill

This skill provides expert guidance for Azure Bastion. Covers troubleshooting, best practices, decision making, architecture & design patterns, security, configuration, and integrations & coding patterns. It combines local quick-reference content with remote documentation fetching capabilities.

How to Use This Skill

IMPORTANT for Agent: This file may be large. Use the Category Index below to locate relevant sections, then use read_file with specific line ranges (e.g., L136-L144) to read the sections needed for the user's question This skill requires network access to fetch documentation content. Use mcp_microsoftdocs:microsoft_docs_fetch to retrieve full articles.

• Fallback: Use the built-in WebFetch tool if the Microsoft Learn MCP server is not available.

Category Index

Category	Lines	Description
Troubleshooting	L35-L39	Diagnosing and resolving common Azure Bastion problems, including connection failures, RDP/SSH issues, network/configuration misconfigurations, and basic troubleshooting steps.
Best Practices	L40-L44	Guidance on reducing Azure Bastion costs through sizing, scaling, and usage patterns while maintaining secure remote access and compliance best practices.
Decision Making	L45-L50	Choosing the right Azure Bastion SKU (Basic/Standard/Developer), understanding feature and cost differences, and viewing or upgrading existing Bastion SKU tiers
Architecture & Design Patterns	L51-L57	Architectural options and patterns for Azure Bastion: hub/spoke and peered VNets, private-only deployments, network/topology design, and deployment guidance for secure remote access.
Security	L58-L63	Securing Azure Bastion: configuring NSGs for Bastion-connected VMs, hardening Bastion hosts, locking down access, and following security best practices.
Configuration	L64-L78	Configuring Azure Bastion settings, scaling, IP-based and Kerberos access, monitoring/metrics, session management/recording, native client use, and shareable links.
Integrations & Coding Patterns	L79-L86	How to use Azure Bastion with AKS private clusters, VM scale sets, and native Windows/Linux clients, including SSH/RDP connectivity patterns and file transfer via Bastion native clients.

Troubleshooting

Topic	URL
Diagnose and fix common Azure Bastion issues	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/troubleshoot

Best Practices

Topic	URL
Optimize Azure Bastion costs without reducing security	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/cost-optimization

Decision Making

Topic	URL
Select the appropriate Azure Bastion SKU tier	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/bastion-sku-comparison
View and upgrade Azure Bastion SKU tiers	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/upgrade-sku

Architecture & Design Patterns

Topic	URL
Understand Azure Bastion deployment architectures	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/design-architecture
Design and deploy private-only Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/private-only-deployment
Use Azure Bastion with VNet peering architectures	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/vnet-peering

Security

Topic	URL
Configure NSGs for Azure Bastion-connected VMs	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/bastion-nsg
Harden and secure your Azure Bastion deployment	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/secure-bastion

Configuration

Topic	URL
Reference Azure Bastion configuration settings and options	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/configuration-settings
Scale Azure Bastion hosts using the Azure portal	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/configure-host-scaling
Scale Azure Bastion hosts using PowerShell	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/configure-host-scaling-powershell
Configure IP-based private connections through Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/connect-ip-address
Configure Kerberos authentication for Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/kerberos-authentication-portal
Configure monitoring and diagnostics for Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/monitor-bastion
Reference monitoring metrics and logs for Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/monitor-bastion-reference
Configure Azure Bastion for native client access	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/native-client
Monitor and manage active Azure Bastion sessions	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/session-monitoring
Configure and store Azure Bastion session recordings	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/session-recording
Create and use Azure Bastion shareable links	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/shareable-link

Integrations & Coding Patterns

Topic	URL
Connect to AKS private clusters via Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/bastion-connect-to-aks-private-cluster
Connect to VM scale sets using Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/bastion-connect-vm-scale-set
Connect from Linux native clients through Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/connect-vm-native-client-linux
Connect from Windows native clients through Azure Bastion	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/connect-vm-native-client-windows
Transfer files via Azure Bastion native clients	https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/bastion/vm-upload-download-native