Steven Bucher discusses Azure CLI and PowerShell’s new ‘What if’ and ‘Export Bicep’ features, helping practitioners safely preview command impacts and generate reusable Bicep templates.

Preview and Export Azure Changes with ‘What If’ and Bicep in Azure CLI & PowerShell

Azure practitioners often hesitate before running commands, worrying about unintended changes to resources. To address these concerns, Microsoft has introduced two key features in Azure CLI and PowerShell: What if and Export Bicep. These tools empower users to preview resource modifications and generate reusable Bicep templates—all before executing changes.

Why These Features Matter

  • Reduce risk: Prevent accidental deletions or unwanted resource changes.
  • Increase transparency: See exactly what will change in your environment.
  • Adopt Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Instantly convert CLI/PowerShell commands into Bicep templates.
  • Boost productivity: Validate scripts without trial-and-error deployments.

How It Works

What if Command Preview

  • Azure CLI: Add --what-if to preview the effects of a command.

    az storage account create --name "mystorageaccount" --resource-group "myResourceGroup" --location "eastus" --what-if

  • Azure PowerShell: Use -DryRun to see operation results.

    New-AzVirtualNetwork -Name MyVNET -ResourceGroupName MyResourceGroup -Location eastus -AddressPrefix "10.0.0.0/16" -DryRun

Exporting Commands to Bicep

Use --export-bicep with --what-if to auto-generate a Bicep template representing your CLI/PowerShell command. The template is saved to ~/.azure/whatif. AI services translate your command to Bicep, and the system automatically previews the Bicep execution, showing expected resource changes before any action is taken.

Getting Started with Private Preview

These features are available in private preview:

  1. Visit aka.ms/PreviewSignupPSCLI to request access.
  2. Approved users receive download instructions for the preview packages.

Supported Commands (Private Preview)

Azure CLI:

  • az vm create / update
  • az storage account/container/share create
  • az network vnet create / update
  • az storage account network-rule add
  • az vm disk attach / detach
  • az vm nic remove

Azure PowerShell:

  • New-AzVM / Update-AzVM
  • New-AzStorageAccount
  • New-AzRmStorageShare / New-AzRmStorageContainer
  • New-AzVirtualNetwork / Set-AzVirtualNetwork
  • Add-AzStorageAccountNetworkRule

Next Steps

  • Sign up for the private preview.
  • Install preview packages as instructed.
  • Start using --what-if, -DryRun, and --export-bicep to safely manage Azure changes and accelerate your Infrastructure as Code journey.
  • Share feedback at aka.ms/PreviewFeedbackWhatIf.

Article by Steven Bucher, PM for Azure Client Tools, published Nov 21, 2025.

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