Microsoft Bicep is a domain-specific language (DSL) that is used to define Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates. ARM templates are JSON files that describe the infrastructure and services that need to be provisioned in Azure.

Bicep is designed to simplify the creation and management of ARM templates by providing a cleaner syntax and a set of built-in functions and modules that can be used to define resources and properties. It is an open-source project that is hosted on GitHub and is maintained by Microsoft.

Some of the benefits of using Bicep include:

• Simplified syntax that makes it easier to create and maintain ARM templates.
• Reusability of code through the use of modules.
• Built-in functions that can be used to create complex expressions.
• Type safety that helps catch errors early in the development process.
• Integration with Visual Studio Code and other development tools.

Bicep is a popular tool for deploying and managing resources in Azure and is recommended for anyone who works with ARM templates on a regular basis. Bicep files have a .bicep extension, and they are essentially a more concise and easier-to-read version of ARM templates, which can be quite verbose and complex.

Bicep is intended to replace ARM templates eventually, and Microsoft is actively encouraging users to adopt it. Bicep is compatible with existing ARM templates, so users can easily convert their existing infrastructure code to Bicep. Bicep can be used with various Azure tools, including Azure CLI, Azure PowerShell, and Azure DevOps.