Azure Container Registry CLI

Manage Azure Container Registry (ACR) resources using the az acr command group of the Azure CLI.

CLI: az acr ships with core Azure CLI — no extension required (the acrtransfer extension is only needed for export/import pipelines).

Prerequisites

# Install Azure CLI
brew install azure-cli  # macOS
curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash  # Linux
winget install Microsoft.AzureCLI  # Windows

# Sign in and select subscription
az login
az account set --subscription {subscription-id}

Quick Start

# Create a registry (SKU: Basic | Standard | Premium)
az acr create --resource-group {rg} --name {registry} --sku Standard

# Authenticate Docker/Podman against the registry
az acr login --name {registry}

# Build and push in the cloud — no local Docker needed
az acr build --registry {registry} --image app:v1 .

# Copy an image from another registry without pull/push
az acr import --name {registry} --source mcr.microsoft.com/hello-world:latest

# List repositories and tags
az acr repository list --name {registry} --output table
az acr repository show-tags --name {registry} --repository app --orderby time_desc

# Diagnose registry connectivity and configuration
az acr check-health --name {registry} --yes

Key Principles

• Prefer az acr build / ACR Tasks over local docker build + docker push: builds run in Azure, work without a local daemon, and integrate with triggers.
• Prefer az acr import to move images between registries: it is server-side, faster, and requires no local storage.
• Never enable the admin user for production — use Microsoft Entra identities (RBAC roles AcrPull/AcrPush, or Container Registry Repository Reader/Writer on ABAC-enabled registries), repository-scoped tokens, or managed identities.
• Premium-only features: geo-replication, private endpoints, retention policies, connected registries, agent pools. (Repository-scoped tokens work in all tiers; zone redundancy is automatic in all tiers in supported regions.)

CLI Structure

az acr
├── create / delete / list / show / update   # Registry lifecycle
├── login                  # Docker credential helper (or --expose-token)
├── check-health / check-name / show-usage   # Diagnostics & quota
├── build                  # Cloud image build (quick task)
├── run                    # Run a command / multi-step task once
├── task                   # ACR Tasks (triggers, timers, logs, runs)
├── agentpool              # Dedicated task agent pools (Premium)
├── import                 # Server-side image copy into the registry
├── repository             # List/show/delete/untag repos & tags, lock images
├── manifest               # Manifest metadata, delete, OCI referrers
├── credential             # Admin user credentials (avoid in production)
├── token / scope-map      # Repository-scoped tokens (Premium)
├── replication            # Geo-replication (Premium)
├── network-rule           # IP network rules
├── private-endpoint-connection  # Private Link approvals
├── config                 # content-trust, retention, soft-delete, ...
├── cache / credential-set # Artifact cache (pull-through cache) rules
├── webhook                # Push/delete event webhooks
├── connected-registry     # On-premises / IoT connected registries
└── export-pipeline / import-pipeline / pipeline-run  # acrtransfer extension

Reference Files

Read the relevant reference file based on the user's task. Each file contains complete command syntax and examples for its domain.

File	When to read	Covers
references/auth-and-security.md	Login failures, permissions, CI/CD or AKS pull access	az acr login (incl. --expose-token), Entra RBAC roles, service principals, managed identities, --attach-acr for AKS, repository-scoped tokens & scope maps, admin user, content trust
references/build-and-tasks.md	Building images in Azure, automation, CI triggers	az acr build, az acr run, multi-step task YAML, az acr task (git/base-image/timer triggers, logs, runs), agent pools
references/images-and-artifacts.md	Managing repos, tags, cleanup, storage costs	az acr import, repository & manifest commands, untag vs delete, purge (acr purge), image locking, retention policy, soft delete, artifact cache, show-usage
references/networking-and-geo.md	Multi-region, private access, edge scenarios	Geo-replication, zone redundancy, private endpoints, network rules, dedicated data endpoints, connected registries, registry transfer pipelines