Finetuning
MicrosoftOfficialCreated by Microsoft
- Skill
- Tool integration
- Data and AI
- MIT
- Low risk
- Has scripts
AutoGineer summary
Written by AutoGineer from the skill’s own files, not by the author
This skill provides the necessary procedures and tools for fine-tuning AI models on Microsoft Foundry. It supports three primary training methodologies: Supervised Fine-Tuning (SFT), Direct Preference Optimization (DPO), and Reinforcement Fine-Tuning (RFT). The skill encompasses the entire lifecycle, including dataset preparation, training job submission, monitoring, model evaluation, and deployment. It also includes specific guidance for agentic RFT, where models are trained to utilize external tools, and provides scripts for data validation, grader calibration, and resource management.
What it does
- Supports SFT, DPO, and RFT training methodologies.
- Provides data validation scripts for SFT, DPO, and RFT formats.
- Facilitates training job submission and monitoring on Microsoft Foundry.
- Enables calibration of RFT graders and pass thresholds.
- Offers tools for model evaluation and deployment via ARM REST API.
- Includes utilities for synthetic data generation and dataset quality scoring.
When to use it
- When you need to adapt a base model to specific tasks or domains.
- When preparing or validating training datasets for SFT, DPO, or RFT.
- When training models for agentic scenarios involving tool calling.
- When you need to evaluate and deploy a fine-tuned model.
- When troubleshooting training jobs or diagnosing poor model performance.
Advantages
- Standardized workflows for different training types.
- Includes built-in validation to prevent common data formatting errors.
- Supports complex agentic RFT training with tool integration.
- Provides robust scripts for monitoring and evaluating training progress.
- Offers clear guidance on grader design and hyperparameter tuning.
Usage examples
- “How do I validate my SFT dataset before training?”
- The agent will instruct you to use the python scripts/validate/validate_sft.py script on your data.jsonl file to ensure it meets the required format.
- “Submit an SFT training job using gpt-4.1-mini.”
- The agent will provide the command using scripts/submit_training.py with the appropriate flags for model, training file, validation file, and type.
- “How can I calibrate my RFT grader?”
- The agent will guide you to use scripts/calibrate_grader.py to find the optimal pass_threshold, aiming for a 25-50% failure rate on the base model.
- “Deploy my fine-tuned model after training.”
- The agent will provide the command to use scripts/deploy_model.py, specifying the model-id and a deployment name.
Install
Download the skill as a ZIP:
https://mp-staging.autogineer.com/agent-skills/microsoft/finetuning/downloadUnzip it into the cross-client skills folder of your project:
mkdir -p .agents/skills && unzip finetuning.zip -d .agents/skills
Documentation by Microsoft
Fine-Tuning on Microsoft Foundry
Fine-tune models using SFT (supervised), DPO (preference), or RFT (reinforcement with graders). Covers dataset prep, training, deployment, and evaluation.
When to Use
Use this sub-skill when the user asks about:
Fine-tuning a model (SFT, DPO, or RFT)
Preparing, validating, or formatting training data
Submitting, monitoring, or diagnosing training jobs
Calibrating graders or pass thresholds for RFT
Deploying or evaluating a fine-tuned model
Choosing between training types (SFT vs DPO vs RFT)
Distillation, synthetic data generation, or dataset quality scoring
Large file uploads for training data
Cleaning up fine-tuning resources (files, deployments)
Do NOT use for: General model deployment without fine-tuning (use deploy-model), agent creation (use agents), prompt optimization without training (use prompt-optimizer).
Workflows
| Stage | Guide |
|---|---|
| Quick start | workflows/quickstart.md |
| Full pipeline | workflows/full-pipeline.md |
| Create data | workflows/dataset-creation.md |
| Iterate | workflows/iterative-training.md |
| Diagnose | workflows/diagnose-poor-results.md |
References
| Topic | File |
|---|---|
| SFT vs DPO vs RFT | references/training-types.md |
| Hyperparameters | references/hyperparameters.md |
| Data formats | references/dataset-formats.md |
| Grader design (RFT) | references/grader-design.md |
| Reward hacking | references/reward-hacking.md |
| Agentic RFT (tools) | references/agentic-rft.md |
| Deployment | references/deployment.md |
| Training curves | references/training-curves.md |
| Evaluation | references/evaluation.md |
| Vision fine-tuning | references/vision-fine-tuning.md |
| Large file uploads | references/large-file-uploads.md |
| Platform gotchas | references/platform-gotchas.md |
Scripts
| Script | Purpose |
|---|---|
scripts/submit_training.py | Submit SFT/DPO/RFT jobs |
scripts/monitor_training.py | Poll job until completion |
scripts/calibrate_grader.py | Find optimal RFT pass_threshold |
scripts/check_training.py | Analyze curves, list checkpoints |
scripts/deploy_model.py | Deploy via ARM REST API |
scripts/evaluate_model.py | LLM judge evaluation |
scripts/convert_dataset.py | Convert between SFT/DPO/RFT formats |
scripts/generate_distillation_data.py | Generate synthetic training data |
scripts/score_dataset.py | Quality scoring on training data |
scripts/cleanup.py | Delete old files and deployments |
scripts/validate/ | Data validators (SFT, DPO, RFT) + stats |
Rules
Always baseline first — evaluate the base model before fine-tuning
Validate data before submitting — run
scripts/validate/validate_sft.pyCalibrate RFT graders — target 25-50% failure rate on the base model
Evaluate checkpoints — don't blindly deploy the final one
Measure token cost alongside accuracy when comparing models
Quick Reference
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Validate SFT data | python scripts/validate/validate_sft.py data.jsonl |
| Submit SFT job | python scripts/submit_training.py --model gpt-4.1-mini --training-file train.jsonl --validation-file val.jsonl --type sft |
| Monitor job | python scripts/monitor_training.py --job-id ftjob-xxx |
| Analyze curves | python scripts/check_training.py --job-id ftjob-xxx |
| Deploy model | python scripts/deploy_model.py --model-id ft:gpt-4.1-mini:... --name my-eval |
| Evaluate model | python scripts/evaluate_model.py --deployment-name my-eval --test-file test.jsonl |
Error Handling
| Error | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| "API version not supported" | Older openai SDK on /v1/ endpoint | Upgrade to openai>=1.0 |
| "does not support fine-tuning with Standard TrainingType" | OSS model needs globalStandard | Use --use-rest flag or script auto-falls back |
| Job stuck in post-training eval | Under-provisioned tool endpoint (RFT) | Scale to S2+, enable Always On |
| "DeploymentNotReady" after ARM succeeds | ARM/data-plane race condition | Delete and recreate deployment, wait 5 min |
| Content safety block at deployment | PII-dense training data | Remove problematic document types |
Files
- ATTRIBUTION.mdAdded by AutoGineer998 B
- LICENSELicence file added by AutoGineer1.1 KiB
- SKILL.md5.4 KiB
- references/agentic-rft.md3.2 KiB
- references/dataset-formats.md3.7 KiB
- references/deployment.md3.4 KiB
- references/evaluation.md5.8 KiB
- references/grader-design.md3.4 KiB
- references/hyperparameters.md3.2 KiB
- references/large-file-uploads.md927 B
- references/platform-gotchas.md2.0 KiB
- references/reward-hacking.md2.9 KiB
- references/training-curves.md4.1 KiB
- references/training-types.md3.1 KiB
- references/vision-fine-tuning.md4.1 KiB
- scripts/calibrate_grader.pyScript9.3 KiB
- scripts/check_training.pyScript7.8 KiB
- scripts/cleanup.pyScript9.5 KiB
- scripts/common.pyScript7.6 KiB
- scripts/convert_dataset.pyScript10.7 KiB
- scripts/deploy_model.pyScript9.4 KiB
- scripts/evaluate_model.pyScript11.4 KiB
- scripts/generate_distillation_data.pyScript10.1 KiB
- scripts/monitor_training.pyScript5.7 KiB
- scripts/score_dataset.pyScript7.7 KiB
- scripts/submit_training.pyScript10.8 KiB
- scripts/validate/__init__.pyScript305 B
- scripts/validate/data_stats.pyScript6.2 KiB
- scripts/validate/validate_dpo.pyScript3.7 KiB
- scripts/validate/validate_rft.pyScript8.6 KiB
- scripts/validate/validate_sft.pyScript4.5 KiB
- workflows/dataset-creation.md3.1 KiB
- workflows/diagnose-poor-results.md2.3 KiB
- workflows/full-pipeline.md3.1 KiB
- workflows/iterative-training.md3.1 KiB
- workflows/quickstart.md4.5 KiB
scripts/cleanup.py
# /// script
# dependencies = [
# "openai>=1.0",
# "azure-identity",
# "azure-ai-projects",
# ]
# ///
"""
cleanup.py — Clean up fine-tuning resources to avoid quota exhaustion.
Lists and optionally deletes uploaded files and cancels pending jobs.
Useful after experimentation to reclaim quota (max 100 files per resource,
deployment slots are limited).
Usage:
python cleanup.py --list # List all resources
python cleanup.py --list --type files # List only files
python cleanup.py --delete-files --older-than 7 # Delete files older than 7 days
python cleanup.py --delete-files --dry-run # Preview what would be deleted
python cleanup.py --cancel-pending # Cancel queued jobs
"""
import argparse
import os
import sys
try:
sys.stdout.reconfigure(encoding="utf-8")
sys.stderr.reconfigure(encoding="utf-8")
except (AttributeError, OSError):
pass # Stream not reconfigurable (older Python or non-tty); default encoding is fine
from datetime import datetime, timezone
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))
from common import HelpOnErrorParser, get_clients
def list_deployments(client):
"""List fine-tuned model deployments. Returns deployment info from jobs."""
deployments = []
for job in _iter_all_jobs(client):
if job.fine_tuned_model and job.status == "succeeded":
deployments.append({
"job_id": job.id,
"model": job.fine_tuned_model,
"base_model": job.model,
"created": datetime.fromtimestamp(job.created_at, tz=timezone.utc),
"tokens": job.trained_tokens,
})
return deployments
def _iter_all_jobs(client, page_size=100):
"""Yield every fine-tuning job, paginating through the API.
The OpenAI/Azure SDK's `jobs.list(limit=N)` returns at most N jobs with no
auto-paging. Users with >100 jobs would otherwise miss older jobs entirely.
"""
after = None
while True:
kwargs = {"limit": page_size}
if after:
kwargs["after"] = after
page = client.fine_tuning.jobs.list(**kwargs)
items = list(page)
if not items:
break
for job in items:
yield job
if len(items) < page_size:
break
# Cursor-based paging: use last job's id as `after`
after = items[-1].id
def list_files(client):
"""List uploaded files."""
files = client.files.list()
result = []
for f in files:
result.append({
"id": f.id,
"filename": f.filename,
"purpose": f.purpose,
"bytes": f.bytes,
"created": datetime.fromtimestamp(f.created_at, tz=timezone.utc),
"status": f.status,
})
return result
def list_jobs(client):
"""List fine-tuning jobs."""
result = []
for job in _iter_all_jobs(client):
result.append({
"id": job.id,
"status": job.status,
"model": job.model,
"fine_tuned_model": job.fine_tuned_model or "—",
"created": datetime.fromtimestamp(job.created_at, tz=timezone.utc),
})
return result
def format_age(dt):
"""Format a datetime as a human-readable age."""
delta = datetime.now(timezone.utc) - dt
if delta.days > 0:
return f"{delta.days}d ago"
hours = delta.seconds // 3600
return f"{hours}h ago"
def format_bytes(b):
"""Format bytes as human-readable size."""
if not b:
return "—"
if b > 1_000_000:
return f"{b/1_000_000:.1f} MB"
if b > 1_000:
return f"{b/1_000:.0f} KB"
return f"{b} B"
def show_list(client, resource_type="all"):
"""Display current resources."""
if resource_type in ("all", "jobs"):
jobs = list_jobs(client)
print(f"\n📋 Fine-tuning jobs ({len(jobs)}):")
if jobs:
print(f" {'ID':<25} {'Status':<12} {'Model':<20} {'Age':<10}")
print(f" {'-'*25} {'-'*12} {'-'*20} {'-'*10}")
for j in jobs:
print(f" {j['id'][:24]:<25} {j['status']:<12} {j['model']:<20} {format_age(j['created'])}")
else:
print(" (none)")
if resource_type in ("all", "deployments"):
deps = list_deployments(client)
print(f"\n🚀 Fine-tuned models ({len(deps)}):")
if deps:
print(f" {'Model':<60} {'Age':<10}")
print(f" {'-'*60} {'-'*10}")
for d in deps:
name = d['model'][:59]
print(f" {name:<60} {format_age(d['created'])}")
else:
print(" (none)")
if resource_type in ("all", "files"):
files = list_files(client)
print(f"\n📁 Uploaded files ({len(files)}):")
if files:
print(f" {'ID':<40} {'Size':>8} {'Purpose':<12} {'Age':<10} {'Status':<10}")
print(f" {'-'*40} {'-'*8} {'-'*12} {'-'*10} {'-'*10}")
for f in files:
print(f" {f['id']:<40} {format_bytes(f['bytes']):>8} {f['purpose']:<12} {format_age(f['created']):<10} {f['status']}")
else:
print(" (none)")
# Quota warning
if len(files) >= 80:
print(f"\n ⚠️ {len(files)}/100 file slots used — approaching quota limit!")
def delete_files(client, older_than_days=None, dry_run=False):
"""Delete uploaded files, optionally filtering by age."""
files = list_files(client)
now = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
to_delete = []
for f in files:
if older_than_days:
age_days = (now - f["created"]).days
if age_days < older_than_days:
continue
to_delete.append(f)
if not to_delete:
print("No files to delete.")
return
label = f"older than {older_than_days} days" if older_than_days else "all"
print(f"\n{'[DRY RUN] ' if dry_run else ''}Deleting {len(to_delete)} files ({label}):")
deleted = 0
for f in to_delete:
print(f" {'Would delete' if dry_run else 'Deleting'}: {f['id']} ({f['filename']}, {format_age(f['created'])})")
if not dry_run:
try:
client.files.delete(f["id"])
deleted += 1
except Exception as e:
print(f" ❌ Failed: {e}")
if not dry_run:
print(f"\n✅ Deleted {deleted}/{len(to_delete)} files")
def cancel_pending_jobs(client, dry_run=False):
"""Cancel any pending or queued jobs."""
jobs = list_jobs(client)
pending = [j for j in jobs if j["status"] in ("pending", "queued", "validating_files")]
if not pending:
print("No pending jobs to cancel.")
return
print(f"\n{'[DRY RUN] ' if dry_run else ''}Cancelling {len(pending)} pending jobs:")
for j in pending:
print(f" {'Would cancel' if dry_run else 'Cancelling'}: {j['id']} ({j['status']})")
if not dry_run:
try:
client.fine_tuning.jobs.cancel(j["id"])
except Exception as e:
print(f" ❌ Failed: {e}")
def build_parser():
parser = HelpOnErrorParser(
description="Clean up fine-tuning resources (deployments, files, jobs)",
epilog=(
"Examples:\n"
" python cleanup.py --list # Show all resources\n"
" python cleanup.py --list --type files # Show files only\n"
" python cleanup.py --delete-files --older-than 7 # Delete files older than 7 days\n"
" python cleanup.py --delete-files --dry-run # Preview what would be deleted\n"
" python cleanup.py --cancel-pending # Cancel queued jobs"
),
formatter_class=argparse.RawTextHelpFormatter,
)
parser.add_argument("--base-url", default=os.environ.get("OPENAI_BASE_URL"), help="Project /v1/ endpoint URL")
parser.add_argument("--endpoint", default=os.environ.get("AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT"),
help="Azure OpenAI endpoint (fallback)")
parser.add_argument("--api-key", default=os.environ.get("AZURE_OPENAI_API_KEY"), help="API key")
parser.add_argument("--project-endpoint", default=os.environ.get("AZURE_AI_PROJECT_ENDPOINT"),
help="Azure AI project endpoint")
parser.add_argument("--list", action="store_true", help="List resources")
parser.add_argument("--type", choices=["all", "jobs", "deployments", "files"], default="all",
help="Resource type to list (default: all)")
parser.add_argument("--delete-files", action="store_true", help="Delete uploaded files")
parser.add_argument("--older-than", type=int, default=None,
help="Only delete files older than N days (use with --delete-files)")
parser.add_argument("--cancel-pending", action="store_true", help="Cancel pending/queued jobs")
parser.add_argument("--dry-run", action="store_true", help="Preview changes without executing")
return parser
if __name__ == "__main__":
parser = build_parser()
if len(sys.argv) == 1:
parser.print_help()
sys.exit(0)
args = parser.parse_args()
client, method = get_clients(base_url=args.base_url, azure_endpoint=args.endpoint, project_endpoint=args.project_endpoint, api_key=args.api_key)
if args.list:
show_list(client, args.type)
if args.delete_files:
delete_files(client, older_than_days=args.older_than, dry_run=args.dry_run)
if args.cancel_pending:
cancel_pending_jobs(client, dry_run=args.dry_run)
Requirements and compatibility
Works with: Claude Code, Claude apps, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, Kiro, OpenCode, Goose, Amp, Roo Code, JetBrains Junie, Factory Droid, Devin (ex-Windsurf), Mistral Vibe, OpenHands, Letta
“Works with” means the tool reads the open Agent Skills format; a skill written for one tool may use features others lack.
Needs: Needs Python
Security
What our scanner noticed· Low risk
- Scripts that your agent may run
This skill includes scripts that your agent may run. Read them before you use it.
A static scan is not a guarantee. Skills are third-party content: review a skill before you let an agent use it.
Attribution and licence
- Created by
- Microsoft
- Publisher
- Microsoft (Official)
- Source
- microsoft/skills · .github/plugins/azure-skills/skills/microsoft-foundry/finetuning · commit 0696600
- Licence
- MIT License (redistribution allowed)
- LICENSE (added by AutoGineer from .github/plugins/azure-skills/LICENSE)
- ATTRIBUTION.md (written by AutoGineer)
- Synced
- Also distributed in
- microsoft/azure-skills
AutoGineer is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.
Download ZIP
The ZIP holds the skill’s files, its licence files and an ATTRIBUTION.md. Download finetuning.zip