Before any delete: locks, dependencies, and soft-delete afterlife.

Why this rule exists

Deletes in Azure are rarely instant or total. Locks abort them halfway, hidden dependents break loudly later, and soft-deleted vaults keep name reservations and bills alive after the group is "gone".

In practice

The pre-delete ritual: list what's inside, list locks, check what references the group from outside, and know which resource types in it have soft-delete (Key Vault, Recovery Services, Cognitive/OpenAI accounts).

Sources

• Microsoft Learn — Key Vault soft-delete — Why deleted vaults linger