Why and When to make use of Azure Capabilities
When architecting a brand new cloud software program or functions, one of many key selections architects and builders should make is a means to hook up with the backend companies, working backend duties, and background processing, and even some easy duties resembling scheduling and sending emails with out affecting the primary utility processing. That is the place azure capabilities app can come helpful and helpful.
This text focuses on deciding when and why you need to use Azure capabilities as a substitute of Internet API and different companies.
Earlier than we begin with when and why Azure capabilities, allow us to attempt to perceive key traits of Azure capabilities.
- Azure capabilities are language impartial. Azure capabilities is a chunk of code that’s written to do a selected duties. Azure capabilities is platform and language agnostic. You possibly can write an Azure capabilities in one of many in style programming languages together with C#, Java, JavaScript, TypeScript, and Python. You possibly can deploy and execute Azure capabilities on any platform that may run .NET Core.
- Azure capabilities are scalable. Azure capabilities makes use of compute-on-demand, which is scalable by design. When demand of execution will increase, extra assets are allotted robotically to the service and when requests fall, all further assets and utility cases drop off robotically.
- Azure capabilities are light-weight and serverless. An Azure capabilities app is designed to a selected process and therefore it’s light-weight by design. Azure capabilities are serverless and don’t require any Internet servers or digital machines to deploy and run.
- Azure capabilities are platform agnostic and run in their very own course of and setting. You possibly can deploy Azure capabilities in any type of configurations together with Linux, Home windows, or containers however Azure capabilities can be found and will be consumed from any functions so long as they’ve entry to the perform.
- Azure capabilities are simpler to jot down and deploy. Due to the character of the Azure capabilities, they’re straightforward to code, take a look at, debug, and deploy. You don’t want a big staff of builders to try this. A single developer can do every thing.
- Azure capabilities are quick to execute as a result of there isn’t a massive utility, startup time, initialization, and different occasions fired earlier than the code is executed.
- Azure capabilities’ execution is triggered when an occasion is fired. Azure capabilities setup supplies dozens of triggers that may be configured when an azure capabilities is executed.
- Azure perform will be constructed, examined, and deployed in Azure portal utilizing a browser.
- Azure capabilities are impartial. Azure capabilities are straightforward to improve and doesn’t have an effect on different elements of an internet site or different functions.
- Azure capabilities use trade normal and may talk with different APIs, databases, and libraries. This makes Azure capabilities extra accessible in cloud native functions.
- Azure capabilities will be value efficient as a result of if their nature of working on demand.
When to make use of Azure Capabilities?
Azure capabilities service is a light-weight and serverless compute service that has its personal use. You possibly can’t substitute a big web site with Azure capabilities.
Listed below are a number of the use circumstances of Azure capabilities:
- Scheduled Duties
- Reminders and Notifications
- Light-weight Internet API
- Sending background emails
- Operating background backup duties
- Doing backend calculations
Azure capabilities are finest suited to smaller apps have occasions that may work independently of different web sites. A number of the widespread azure capabilities are sending emails, beginning backup, order processing, process scheduling resembling database cleanup, sending notifications, messages, and IoT knowledge processing.
Let’s say, you need to ship a birthday e-mail to your prospects. You’re an ASP.NET internet developer. As a substitute of constructing an internet site in ASP.NET, deploy and internet hosting it on IIS, only for one characteristic, you possibly can merely write an azure perform and put your e-mail login within the perform and deploy it on azure cloud. The azure capabilities will direct connect with your knowledge supply, get your prospects emails, and ship them an e-mail on a scheduled date and time.
Azure capabilities are finest suited to smaller apps have occasions that may work independently of different web sites. A number of the widespread azure capabilities are sending emails, beginning backup, order processing, process scheduling resembling database cleanup, sending notifications, messages, and IoT knowledge processing.
When to not use Azure Capabilities?
Azure capabilities should not for every thing. Not all functions must be utilizing Azure capabilities apps. As I discussed earlier, Azure capabilities makes use of triggers and as soon as an occasion is triggered, the duty will probably be executed within the background.
- Azure capabilities should not a alternative of Internet APIs. In case your internet functions use Internet APIs as middleware to bunch of information and enterprise logic associated duties.
- Not like Internet API or companies, Azure Capabilities should not designed to a number of duties. An Azure capabilities app must be designed to do one process solely.
- Azure capabilities should not designed to work in tightly coupled techniques which might be depending on different elements of utility.
- Azure capabilities should not for front-end functions the place knowledge is being accessed and saved forwards and backwards within the backend databases.
- Azure capabilities shouldn’t have an excessive amount of complicated logic within the perform code.
- Azure capabilities are compute-on-demand. Changing an API with bunch of Azure capabilities apps could improve your value of improvement, upkeep, and compute.
References
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-functions/functions-best-practices
