Microsoft Azure WindowsESU
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AI ReadinessNon-Ready (F)38/100
Community OpenAPI document · agent-readySecurityComplianceoauth27 EndpointsREST
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For Agents
Provision and manage Multiple Activation Keys (MAKs) for Windows Extended Security Updates so legacy Windows machines can keep receiving security patches.
Use for: Create a Multiple Activation Key for Windows Server 2008 ESU, List all WindowsESU keys in my subscription, Get a specific Multiple Activation Key by name, Delete an unused ESU activation key
Not supported: Does not handle Windows patch delivery, OS activation on individual machines, or non-Windows ESU programmes - use for issuing and managing Multiple Activation Keys only.
The Azure WindowsESU API manages Multiple Activation Keys (MAK) that enable Windows Extended Security Updates for end-of-support Windows versions such as Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7. It exposes 7 operations across 4 resource paths under the Microsoft.WindowsESU provider, covering MAK creation, retrieval, listing per resource group or subscription, and deletion. Use it to script ESU key issuance, audit existing keys, and decommission keys that are no longer needed for compliance reporting.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the WindowsESU to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the WindowsESU, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
1
Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fazure.com%2Fwindowsesu" | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fazure.com%2Fwindowsesu" | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with WindowsESU API.
Create Multiple Activation Keys for Windows Extended Security Updates in a chosen region
Retrieve a MAK by name to inspect its activation count and supported OS type
List MAKs in a resource group or across the entire subscription for audit
Delete a Multiple Activation Key when the underlying machines have been retired
Enumerate available WindowsESU management operations for tooling and discovery
Use Cases
Patterns agents use WindowsESU API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Issue ESU keys for legacy Windows fleets
Provision Multiple Activation Keys for fleets of end-of-support Windows Server 2008 or Windows 7 machines so they continue receiving security patches under the Extended Security Updates programme. The PUT operation on multipleActivationKeys/{name} creates the key with the appropriate OS type, support type, and agreement number for licensing.
Create a MAK named legacy-srv2008-prod in resource group esu-rg covering Windows Server 2008 R2 with the agreement number on file.
Compliance audit of ESU coverage
Inventory every Multiple Activation Key across a subscription to confirm legacy machines remain covered by ESU. The list-by-subscription and list-by-resource-group endpoints make it possible to feed audit dashboards with current key counts, OS types, and activation counts without manual portal checks.
List all Multiple Activation Keys in subscription 00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000 and report any without remaining activations.
Retire ESU keys for decommissioned machines
When a legacy Windows machine is decommissioned, an agent can delete its associated Multiple Activation Key with DELETE on /multipleActivationKeys/{name} to keep the licensing inventory tidy and avoid ongoing ESU charges. The list endpoints make it straightforward to find keys that no longer correspond to running fleets.
Delete the MAK named legacy-srv2008-archive in resource group esu-rg and confirm the operation succeeds.
Agent-driven legacy OS support
Let an AI agent answer questions like 'are all my Windows 2008 machines still covered by ESU?' by listing keys, correlating against inventory, and creating new keys where coverage is missing. Jentic exposes the WindowsESU operations as agent tools so this becomes a single-prompt workflow instead of a manual portal session.
Search Jentic for 'list azure windows esu activation keys', load the schema, and execute it for the target subscription, then report any resource groups missing coverage.
Key Endpoints
7 endpoints — the azure windowsesu api manages multiple activation keys (mak) that enable windows extended security updates for end-of-support windows versions such as windows server 2008 and windows 7.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
PUT
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Create or update a Multiple Activation Key
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Get a Multiple Activation Key by name
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys
List MAKs in a resource group
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys
List MAKs in a subscription
DELETE
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Delete a Multiple Activation Key
GET
/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/operations
List available WindowsESU operations
PUT
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Create or update a Multiple Activation Key
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Get a Multiple Activation Key by name
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys
List MAKs in a resource group
GET
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys
List MAKs in a subscription
DELETE
/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}
Delete a Multiple Activation Key
GET
/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/operations
List available WindowsESU operations
Jentic AI Readiness Score
This API is usable in Jentic One now. Its AI-readiness score against Jentic's framework shows where it stands today and where improvements would make it even easier for agents to use.
W
windowsesu
- Non-Ready (F)38/100
72
Foundational Compliance63
Developer Experience & Jentic Compatibility16
AI-Readiness & Agent Experience94
Agent Usability35
Security100
AI DiscoverabilityPowered by JenticScoring Framework 1.0.0 | Scoring Engine 0.4.0
Show dimension breakdown
72
Foundational Compliance
Base layer of spec validity and structural soundness.
Grade: A-Signals: 4
89%
Lint Results
Aggregated quality score from linter diagnostics, weighted by severity.
100%
Resolution Completeness
Percentage of `$ref` references that resolve successfully.
0%
Specification Validity
Checks whether the API description parses successfully and conforms to its declared specification (e.g., OpenAPI).
100%
Structural Integrity
Structural correctness score based on schema issues using logarithmic dampening.
63
Developer Experience & Jentic Compatibility
Clarity, completeness, and ingestion readiness for developers and tooling.
Grade: B-Signals: 4
0%
Example Density
How richly the API is illustrated with examples.
100%
Example Validity
Percentage of examples that conform to their schemas.
50%
Response Coverage
Percentage of operations with complete response definitions (success, client error, server error).
100%
Tooling Readiness
Health of API ingestion, bundling, and resolution within Jentic pipelines.
16
AI-Readiness & Agent Experience
Semantic breadth, depth, and agent comprehension for AI systems.
Grade: FSignals: 4
65%
Description Coverage
Coverage of descriptions across API elements.
0%
Error Standardization
Coverage of RFC 9457 Problem Details for error responses.
0%
OperationId Quality
Coverage, uniqueness, and casing consistency of operationIds for AI inference.
0%
Summary Coverage
Coverage of summaries across operations/tags/info.
94
Agent Usability
Functional utility, complexity comfort, and AI orchestration readiness.
Grade: A+Signals: 1
94%
Complexity Comfort
Agent comfort level based on API operational and structural complexity.
35
Security
Trust, risk posture, and security compliance.
Grade: FSignals: 1
35%
Authentication Strength
Average quality of security schemes based on authentication method strength (weakest link for OAuth2).
100
AI Discoverability
Findability, semantic richness, and reasoning readiness.
Grade: A+Signals: 1
100%
Descriptive Richness
Clarity and depth of descriptions across API elements.
Score it yourself
Every API in the directory is allowlisted, so you can re-score it with no key required.
npx @jentic/api-scorecard-cli score <openapi-url>Why Jentic?
What agents get from Jentic-routed access to this vendor.
Setup
Issuing Windows ESU Multiple Activation Keys by hand means acquiring Azure Active Directory OAuth 2.0 tokens, targeting the management.azure.com ARM control plane, and threading subscription, resource group, and key names through every Microsoft.WindowsESU path yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import Windows ESU from the API Directory, store the Azure AD credential once, and your agent calls it.
Permission scoping
This API carries the subscription, resource group, and key name in the URL path (/subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName}), so a rule can pin your agent to one activation key or resource group and nothing else. You choose the operations it may call, so key deletion is not included unless you add it.
Credential isolation
Your Azure AD token is stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. It never enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'create a Windows ESU activation key' or 'list multiple activation keys', and Jentic returns the matching MultipleActivationKeys operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right ARM endpoint without hand-coding URIs.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using WindowsESU API through Jentic.
What authentication does the WindowsESU API use?
The API uses Azure Active Directory OAuth 2.0 via the implicit flow scheme `azure_auth`, scoped to user_impersonation against https://management.azure.com. Through Jentic the OAuth token stays in the vault and only short-lived scoped bearer tokens are exposed to the agent.
Can I create a Multiple Activation Key with this API?
Yes. PUT on /subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/resourceGroups/{resourceGroupName}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys/{multipleActivationKeyName} creates a MAK with fields for OS type, support type, agreement number, customer information, and number of installations covered.
What are the rate limits for the WindowsESU API?
The spec does not declare explicit rate limits. Calls go through Azure Resource Manager, which applies standard ARM throttling per subscription. Inspect the x-ms-ratelimit-remaining-subscription-* response headers to track quota.
How do I list all my ESU keys through Jentic?
Search Jentic for 'list azure windows esu activation keys', load the schema for GET /subscriptions/{subscriptionId}/providers/Microsoft.WindowsESU/multipleActivationKeys, and execute it. Install with `pip install jentic` and use the async search/load/execute pattern.
Does this API actually patch Windows machines?
No. The API issues and manages activation keys only. Patches are delivered through Windows Update or WSUS once the MAK has been applied to a machine using slmgr.vbs or a configuration management tool - that step happens on the machine, not via this API.
Which OS versions are covered by Windows ESU?
The osType field on a Multiple Activation Key accepts the supported end-of-support Windows versions covered by the ESU programme - primarily Windows Server 2008 / 2008 R2 and Windows 7. The exact accepted enum values are defined in the request schema for the multipleActivationKeys PUT operation.
Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the WindowsESU API?
Yes. Because Jentic One is self-hosted, your own rules decide which WindowsESU operations and which Azure AD credential the agent may use. Since the subscription, resource group, and key name all live in the request path, you can pin the agent to a single Multiple Activation Key or resource group and no other. You also choose the allowed operations, so you can grant create, get, and list while withholding delete unless you explicitly add it.
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