Using Microsoft Copilot in Azure to find the best VM size for you

Co-written with Arushi Sharma, Sr. PM @ Microsoft, Azure Portal UX

Overview

Azure offers many Virtual Machine (VM) size options based on your workload needs.  Selecting precisely which VM size is best suited and optimal for your workload needs can be a challenging task. Microsoft Copilot in Azure (available through the Azure portal) can help you identify the best VM size based on your scenario needs and assess it in the context of your other configuration requirements.

Customers can share their intent and scenario, and Copilot in Azure will help guide them narrow down the right VM size amongst a vast size selection offered by Azure today. Customers are also not required to know exactly the amount of RAM/ CPU they would need, and Copilot in Azure can help them identify those VM SKU requirements based on their scenario. The size recommendations will also take the customer’s quota and offer restrictions into account and surface the most intelligent recommendations pertinently.

Please note that Microsoft Copilot in Azure is in public preview and is not a full replacement of the VM selector tool that was previously available.

Enabling Copilot in Azure in the Azure portal

The Copilot button should appear beside the search bar for customers that can access Azure portal. In the scenario, that a customer is unable see the button and cannot access Copilot in Azure, learn about managing access here.

Using Copilot in Azure to find your best VM sizes

In the Azure portal, click on Copilot on top right and ask: "Help me choose a size for my VM”, or select the Help me choose the right VM size for my workload button near the top of the pane. Microsoft Copilot in Azure asks for some more information to help it determine the best options. It will ask you to select the subscription and desired region for the VM. Depending on your subscription status, it may surface a request to register with a resource provider after which it will ask specific questions about the VM requirements, questions around the use case, expected concurrent users, CPU and RAM specifications and the like. After that, it presents some options that are aligned with the available quota and lets you choose which recommended size to use for your VM.

Other sample prompts:

• "Help me choose a size for my virtual machine"

• "Which VM size will best suit my requirements?"

Watch a demo of size recommendation for Azure in Copilot. 

Copilot in Azure is an easy way to get started with Azure VMs and accelerates your time to deployment by intelligently recommending VM sizes available that are right for your needs. Learn more about Copilot in Azure in the documentation.