azdoutil

A collection of useful Azure DevOps utilities.

Written by Benjamin Day
Pluralsight Author | Microsoft MVP | Scrum.org Professional Scrum Trainer
https://www.benday.com
https://www.slidespeaker.ai

info@benday.com

Got ideas for Azure DevOps utilities you'd like to see? Found a bug? Let us know by submitting an issue https://github.com/benday-inc/azdoutil/issues. Want to contribute? Submit a pull request.

Command Categories

Azure DevOps Utility Configuration

Commands for setting up this tool and connecting to Azure DevOps

Automated Builds

Commands that help with automated builds and automated releases

Flow Metrics

Tools for forecasting project management details using Flow Metrics such as throughput and cycle time.

Want to learn more about how to use Flow Metrics to run your projects? Check out this course:
Predicting the Future, Estimating, and Running Your Projects with Flow Metrics.

Process Templates

Process template customization and administration utilities

Team Project Administration

Tools for creating, editing, and managing Team Projects in Azure DevOps

Test Data

Utilities for populating Azure DevOps Team Projects with test data

Version Control

Tools for creating, converting, managing version control repositories

Work Items

Utilities for editing work items and working with work item queries (WIQL)

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous commands

Installing

The azdoutil is distributed as a .NET Core Tool via NuGet. To install it go to the command prompt and type
dotnet tool install azdoutil -g

Prerequisites

• You'll need to install .NET Core 7 from https://dotnet.microsoft.com/

Getting Started

Everything starts with a configuration. After you've installed azdoutil, you'll need to run azdoutil addconfig to add a configuration. A configuration is how you store the URL for your Azure DevOps instance and the personal access token (PAT) for authenticating to that instance.

Configurations are named and you can have as many as you'd like.

Set a Default Configuration

There's one default configuration named (default). If you only work with one Azure DevOps instance, then all you'll need to do is to is run azdoutil addconfig /url:{url} /pat:{pat} and that will set your default configuration.

Additional Named Configurations

If you want to add additional named configurations, you'll run azdoutil addconfig /config:{name} /url:{url} /pat:{pat}.

Running Commands

Once you've set a default configuration, you can run any azdoutil command without having to specify any additional URL or PAT info.

If you want to run a command against an Azure DevOps instance that is NOT your default, you'll need to supply the /config:{name}.

Managing Configurations

To add new configuration or modify an existing configuration, use the azdoutil addconfig command. You can list your configurations using the azdoutil listconfig command. To delete a configuration, use the azdoutil removeconfig command.

Commands

Category	Command Name	Description
AzdoUtil Configuration	addconfig	Add or update an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.
AzdoUtil Configuration	listconfig	List an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.
AzdoUtil Configuration	removeconfig	Remove an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.
Builds	exportbuilddef	Export build definition
Builds	listbuilddefs	List build definitions
Flow Metrics	agingwork	Get aging in-progress work items
Flow Metrics	cycletimeconfidence	Get item cycle time for 50% and 85% levels. This helps you understand how items typically are delivered.
Flow Metrics	forecastdurationforitemcount	Use throughput data to forecast likely number of weeks to get given number of items done using Monte Carlo simulation
Flow Metrics	forecastitemsinweeks	Use throughput data to forecast likely number of items done in given number of weeks using Monte Carlo simulation
Flow Metrics	forecastworkitem	Use throughput data to forecast when a work item is likely to be done based on the current backlog priority using Monte Carlo simulation
Flow Metrics	suggest-sle	Calculate a suggested service level expectation (SLE) based on cycle time
Flow Metrics	throughputcycletime	Get cycle time and throughput data for a team project for a date range
Miscellaneous	connectiondata	Get information about a connection to Azure DevOps.
Process Templates	addrefinementprocess	Creates backlog refinement process template as described at https://www.benday.com/2022/09/29/streamlining-backlog-refinement-with-azure-devops/
Process Templates	changeprocess	Change the process for a Team Project
Project Administration	createproject	Create team projects
Project Administration	createteam	Creates a new team in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Project Administration	deleteproject	Delete team project
Project Administration	getproject	Get team project info
Project Administration	listprocesstemplates	List process templates
Project Administration	listprojects	List team projects
Project Administration	listteams	Gets list of teams in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Test Data	createfromexcel	Create work items using Excel script
Test Data	createfromgenerator	Create work items using random data generator
Version Control	creategitrepo	Creates a Git repository in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Version Control	listgitrepos	Gets list of Git repositories from an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Version Control	tfvc-to-git	Converts a Team Foundation Version Control (TFVC) folder to a Git repository.
Work Items	exportprocesstemplate	Exports the process template configuration for one or more projects. This command only works on Windows and requires witadmin.exe to be installed.
Work Items	exportworkitemquery	Export work item query results
Work Items	getareas	Gets a list of areas in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	getfields	Gets a list of work item fields for a work item type in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	getiterations	Gets a list of iterations in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	getworkitem	Get work item by id
Work Items	getworkitemstates	Gets the list of states for a work item type in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	getworkitemtypes	Gets a list of work item types in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	listworkitemqueries	Gets a list of all work item queries in an Azure DevOps Team Project.
Work Items	runworkitemquery	Run work item query
Work Items	setiteration	Create iteration including start and end date
Work Items	setworkitemstate	Set the state value on an existing work item
Work Items	showworkitemquery	Show work item query

AzdoUtil Configuration

addconfig

Add or update an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
config	Optional	String	Name of the configuration
pat	Optional	String	PAT for this collection
windowsauth	Optional	Boolean	Use windows authentication with the current logged in user
url	Required	String	URL for this collection (example: https://dev.azure.com/accountname)

listconfig

List an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
config	Optional	String	Name of the configuration

removeconfig

Remove an Azure DevOps configuration. For example, which server or account plus auth information.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
config	Required	String	Name of the configuration

Builds

exportbuilddef

Export build definition

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
name	Required	String	Build definition name
xaml	Optional	Boolean	List XAML build definitions
showlastruninfo	Optional	Boolean	Show last build run info
csv	Optional	Boolean	Output results in CSV format
csv-noheader	Optional	Boolean	Do not print the CSV column header info
raw	Optional	Boolean	Output raw build definition

listbuilddefs

List build definitions

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
nameonly	Optional	Boolean	Only display the build definition name
xaml	Optional	Boolean	List XAML build definitions

Flow Metrics

agingwork

Get aging in-progress work items

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

cycletimeconfidence

Get item cycle time for 50% and 85% levels. This helps you understand how items typically are delivered.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

forecastdurationforitemcount

Use throughput data to forecast likely number of weeks to get given number of items done using Monte Carlo simulation

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
forecastitemcount	Required	Int32	Number of items to forecast duration for
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

forecastitemsinweeks

Use throughput data to forecast likely number of items done in given number of weeks using Monte Carlo simulation

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
forecastweeks	Required	Int32	Number of weeks into the future to forecast
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

forecastworkitem

Use throughput data to forecast when a work item is likely to be done based on the current backlog priority using Monte Carlo simulation

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
id	Required	Int32	Id of the work item to forecast
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

suggest-sle

Calculate a suggested service level expectation (SLE) based on cycle time

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
teamname	Optional	String	Team name
percent	Optional	Int32	Percentage level to calculate. (For example, 85% of our items complete in X days)

throughputcycletime

Get cycle time and throughput data for a team project for a date range

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
numberofdays	Required	Int32	Number of days of history to compute
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
teamname	Optional	String	Team name

Miscellaneous

connectiondata

Get information about a connection to Azure DevOps.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use

Process Templates

addrefinementprocess

Creates backlog refinement process template as described at https://www.benday.com/2022/09/29/streamlining-backlog-refinement-with-azure-devops/

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use

changeprocess

Change the process for a Team Project

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
processname	Required	String	New process name

Project Administration

createproject

Create team projects

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
processname	Required	String	Process template name

createteam

Creates a new team in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the team
teamname	Required	String	Name of the new team
description	Optional	String	Description for the new team

deleteproject

Delete team project

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name to delete
confirm	Optional	Boolean	Confirm delete

getproject

Get team project info

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name

listprocesstemplates

List process templates

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use

listprojects

List team projects

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use

listteams

Gets list of teams in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the teams

Test Data

createfromexcel

Create work items using Excel script

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
skipfuturedates	Optional	Boolean	Skip script steps that occur in the future
pathtoexcel	Required	String	Path to the Excel script
startdate	Required	DateTime	Date for the start of the Excel script
teamproject	Required	String	Name of the team project
processname	Required	String	Process template name
createproject	Required	Boolean	Creates the team project if it doesn't exist

createfromgenerator

Create work items using random data generator

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
skipfuturedates	Optional	Boolean	Skip script steps that occur in the future
numberofsprints	Required	Int32	Number of sprints to generate
teamproject	Required	String	Name of the team project
processname	Required	String	Process template name
createproject	Required	Boolean	Creates the team project if it doesn't exist
teamcount	Optional	Int32	Creates data for multiple teams. This option is only available when creating a new project.
alldone	Optional	Boolean	All PBIs in a sprint makes it to done
addsessiontag	Optional	Boolean	Add a session tag to work items
output	Optional	String	Save generated script file to disk in this directory. Note the filename will be auto-generated.
scriptonly	Optional	Boolean	Creates the excel export script. Requires an arg value for 'output'

Version Control

creategitrepo

Creates a Git repository in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the git repositories
reponame	Required	String	Name of the new git repository

listgitrepos

Gets list of Git repositories from an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the git repositories

tfvc-to-git

Converts a Team Foundation Version Control (TFVC) folder to a Git repository.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the TFVC and Git repositories
reponame	Required	String	Name of the new git repository
tfvc-path	Required	String	Source TFVC folder to convert

Work Items

exportprocesstemplate

Exports the process template configuration for one or more projects. This command only works on Windows and requires witadmin.exe to be installed.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Optional	String	Team project name to export.
all	Optional	Boolean	Export all projects in the organization or team project collection.
exporttopath	Optional	String	Path to export the process template to. If not specified, the current directory is used.
witadminpath	Optional	String	Specify path to witadmin.exe if it can't be located automatically.

exportworkitemquery

Export work item query results

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name to delete
queryname	Required	String	Work item query name
exporttopath	Required	String	Export to path

getareas

Gets a list of areas in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the iterations
verbose	Optional	Boolean	Verbose output

getfields

Gets a list of work item fields for a work item type in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the work item type
workitemtypename	Required	String	Name of the work item type

getiterations

Gets a list of iterations in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the iterations
verbose	Optional	Boolean	Verbose output

getworkitem

Get work item by id

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
id	Required	Int32	Work item id

getworkitemstates

Gets the list of states for a work item type in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the work item type
workitemtypename	Required	String	Name of the work item type

getworkitemtypes

Gets a list of work item types in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the work item types
nameonly	Optional	Boolean	Only show the name of the work item types in the results.

listworkitemqueries

Gets a list of all work item queries in an Azure DevOps Team Project.

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name that contains the work item queries

runworkitemquery

Run work item query

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name containing the qork item query to run
queryname	Required	String	Work item query name

setiteration

Create iteration including start and end date

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project name
startdate	Required	DateTime	Iteration start date
enddate	Required	DateTime	Iteration end date
name	Required	String	Iteration name

setworkitemstate

Set the state value on an existing work item

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
state	Required	String	Work item state value
id	Required	Int32	Work item id for the work item to be updated
date	Optional	DateTime	Iteration end date
override	Optional	Boolean	Override non-matching state values and force set the value you want

showworkitemquery

Show work item query

Arguments

Argument	Is Optional	Data Type	Description
quiet	Optional	Boolean	Quiet mode
config	Optional	String	Configuration name to use
teamproject	Required	String	Team project that contains the work item query
queryname	Required	String	Work item query name