Fine-tune models on Azure AI Foundry using SFT (supervised), DPO (preference), or RFT (reinforcement with graders). Covers dataset preparation, training job submission, deployment, and evaluation. USE FOR: fine-tune, SFT, DPO, RFT, training data, grader, distillation, fine-tuned model, training job, large file upload, calibrate grader, deploy fine-tuned model, evaluate fine-tuned model. DO NOT USE FOR: general model deployment without fine-tuning (use deploy-model), agent creation (use agents),
Install with the open skills CLI (global, non-interactive — available in every Claude Code session):
npx skills add microsoft/azure-skills --skill "finetuning" -g -a claude-code -yOr manually — clone and copy the skill directory (SKILL.md + companion files):
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/microsoft/azure-skills /tmp/azure-skills && cp -r /tmp/azure-skills/.github/plugins/azure-skills/skills/microsoft-foundry/finetuning ~/.claude/skills/finetuning-microsoftPart of the microsoft-foundry skill collection — installing the parent includes this skill.
This skill is a directory: SKILL.md is the entry point; the files below ship with it.
---
name: finetuning
description: "Fine-tune models on Azure AI Foundry using SFT (supervised), DPO (preference), or RFT (reinforcement with graders). Covers dataset preparation, training job submission, deployment, and evaluation. USE FOR: fine-tune, SFT, DPO, RFT, training data, grader, distillation, fine-tuned model, training job, large file upload, calibrate grader, deploy fine-tuned model, evaluate fine-tuned model. DO NOT USE FOR: general model deployment without fine-tuning (use deploy-model), agent creation (use agents), prompt optimization without training (use prompt-optimizer)."
license: MIT
metadata:
author: Microsoft
version: "0.0.0-placeholder"
---
# Fine-Tuning on Azure AI 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](workflows/quickstart.md) |
| **Full pipeline** | [workflows/full-pipeline.md](workflows/full-pipeline.md) |
| **Create data** | [workflows/dataset-creation.md](workflows/dataset-creation.md) |
| **Iterate** | [workflows/iterative-training.md](workflows/iterative-training.md) |
| **Diagnose** | [workflows/diagnose-poor-results.md](workflows/diagnose-poor-results.md) |
## References
| Topic | File |
|-------|------|
| SFT vs DPO vs RFT | [references/training-types.md](references/training-types.md) |
| Hyperparameters | [references/hyperparameters.md](references/hyperparameters.md) |
| Data formats | [references/dataset-formats.md](references/dataset-formats.md) |
| Grader design (RFT) | [references/grader-design.md](references/grader-design.md) |
| Reward hacking | [references/reward-hacking.md](references/reward-hacking.md) |
| Agentic RFT (tools) | [references/agentic-rft.md](references/agentic-rft.md) |
| Deployment | [references/deployment.md](references/deployment.md) |
| Training curves | [references/training-curves.md](references/training-curves.md) |
| Evaluation | [references/evaluation.md](references/evaluation.md) |
| Vision fine-tuning | [references/vision-fine-tuning.md](references/vision-fine-tuning.md) |
| Large file uploads | [references/large-file-uploads.md](references/large-file-uploads.md) |
| Platform gotchas | [references/platform-gotchas.md](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
1. **Always baseline first** — evaluate the base model before fine-tuning
2. **Validate data** before submitting — run `scripts/validate/validate_sft.py`
3. **Calibrate RFT graders** — target 25-50% failure rate on the base model
4. **Evaluate checkpoints** — don't blindly deploy the final one
5. **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 |
Use when facing 2+ independent tasks that can be worked on without shared state or sequential dependencies
Use when encountering any bug, test failure, or unexpected behavior, before proposing fixes
Use when implementing any feature or bugfix, before writing implementation code