GitHub Copilot for Azure Pricing — A Visual Studio Copilot extension

Empower Your Cloud Decisions with Instant Azure Pricing Insights using this VS Code extension

This post is an introduction to my new VS Code extension. This extension is designed to assist you in making informed decisions by providing Microsoft’s extensive Azure pricing catalog at your fingertips. This enables you to focus on what truly matters — building and maintaining efficient, cost-effective cloud solutions.

Here are some of the standout features I built into the extension:

1. Real-time Pricing Information: You can access the latest pricing data without leaving your coding environment. Up-to-date information is crucial for making prudent decisions, and I’ve ensured it’s always available.
2. Comprehensive support for services: It currently allows you to dive deep into Azure’s 120+ services, from virtual machines to databases.
3. Regional Pricing: Understanding cost variations across different regions is critical. With this extension, you get a clear picture of regional pricing, aiding in more strategic decision-making.

What did I use to build?

The code has not yet been open-sourced. The main reason is that it requires some cleanup to be ready for open-source release. I wanted the initial version to be available before focusing on improvements.

The technology stack is simple.

1. Languages: TypeScript
2. VSCode Chat API: The Chat API helps us integrate with Chat window of the VS Code.
3. Prompt-TSX: Assisting me in crafting prompts efficiently while effectively filtering out unnecessary content.