Unlocking the Power of Azure App Service

Azure App Service is a powerful platform for building, deploying, and scaling web applications. It supports multiple programming languages and frameworks, including .NET, Node.js, and Python.

One of the key benefits of Azure App Service is its scalability, which allows your application to automatically scale up or down based on traffic demand. This means you can handle sudden spikes in traffic without worrying about performance.

With Azure App Service, you can also take advantage of auto-healing, which automatically detects and fixes issues with your application. This means you can focus on building and improving your application, rather than troubleshooting and debugging.

Azure App Service also integrates with other Azure services, such as Azure Storage and Azure Database, to provide a comprehensive platform for building and deploying web applications.

Azure App Service is a fully managed platform as a service (PaaS) offering for developers. It supports multiple languages and frameworks, including ASP.NET, ASP.NET Core, Java, Node.js, PHP, and Python.

You can also run PowerShell and other scripts or executables as background services. This flexibility makes it an attractive choice for developers.

With App Service, you don't have to worry about patching and maintaining the OS and language frameworks - it's all taken care of automatically. This allows you to focus on writing great apps.

Here are some of the key features of App Service:

Azure App Service is a fully managed platform as a service (PaaS) offering that supports multiple languages and frameworks, including ASP.NET, ASP.NET Core, Java, Node.js, PHP, and Python.

With App Service, you can run your app in a managed production environment, where the OS and language frameworks are automatically patched and maintained for you. This means you can focus on writing great apps, while Azure takes care of the platform.

App Service also offers containerization and Docker support, allowing you to host a custom Windows or Linux container in App Service and run sidecar containers of your choice.

You can set up continuous integration and deployment with Azure DevOps, GitHub, BitBucket, Docker Hub, or Azure Container Registry, promoting updates through test and staging environments.

App Service provides global scale with high availability, allowing you to scale up or out manually or automatically, and host your apps anywhere in the global Microsoft datacenter infrastructure.

Here are some key benefits of using App Service:

Microsoft has been recognized as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Cloud Application Platform. This is a significant achievement, especially considering that Microsoft was placed furthest in Completeness of Vision by Gartner.

Microsoft's position as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Cloud Application Platform is a testament to the company's expertise in cloud application platforms. This recognition can give businesses confidence in choosing Azure App Service for their cloud application needs.

The Gartner Magic Quadrant is a well-respected report that evaluates vendors based on their completeness of vision and ability to execute. Microsoft's placement as a Leader in this report suggests that the company has a clear and well-executed vision for cloud application platforms.

Azure App Service is a key part of Microsoft's cloud application platform, and its recognition as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant can be a major advantage for businesses considering this platform.

Azure App Service offers a range of plans to suit different needs, from small projects to large enterprises.

The Free Plan is a great option for small projects, providing 1 GB of RAM, 1 GB of storage, and shared cores. You can also pay as you go with this plan.

The Basic plan is designed for workloads with low traffic requirements, offering 1.75 GB of RAM, 10 GB of storage, and 1 core with the B1 tier, or 2 cores with the B2 tier.

You can scale your plan up or down at any time to suit your needs, starting with a lower pricing tier and upgrading later when necessary.

Here are the key features of the Basic plan:

For larger projects, the Premium plan offers high-performance, high-reliability, and highly scalable services with a range of compute choices, including memory-optimized options.

App Service on Linux is a great option for hosting web apps natively on Linux for supported application stacks.

You can also run custom Linux containers, also known as Web App for Containers, which is a convenient feature.

App Service on Linux supports a number of language-specific built-in images, including Node.js, Java, PHP, Python, and .NET Core.

These languages are supported out of the box, so you can just deploy your code and start running.

If the runtime your application requires isn't supported in the built-in images, you can deploy it with a custom container.

Outdated runtimes are periodically removed from the Web Apps Create and Configuration blades in the portal, but existing sites using those versions will continue to run.

If a runtime is fully removed from the App Service platform, your Azure subscription owner(s) will receive an email notice before the removal.

You can use the Azure CLI to create another site with the same runtime, or use the Export Template button on the web app blade in the portal to export an ARM template of the site.

ASP.NET Core is supported on both Windows and Linux, and ASP.NET is supported on Windows only.

PHP is supported on both Windows and Linux, and Node.js is supported on both Windows and Linux as well.

Java is supported on both Windows and Linux, and Python is supported on Linux only.

Deploying a holistic view of your workload can be a game-changer for your app's performance and scalability. You can do this by using Azure Native Dynatrace Service, which provides a native integrated experience for monitoring Azure workloads. This means you can create and manage Dynatrace environments directly from Azure.

To get started, you can upgrade to App Service Environment v3, which unlocks new capabilities and is a strategic move for your organization. This is especially important since previous versions of Azure App Service Environment are sunsetting at the end of August 2024.

One of the benefits of using Azure Native Dynatrace Service is that it provides a native integrated experience, allowing you to create and manage Dynatrace environments from Azure. This can help you get a more comprehensive view of your workload and its performance.

If you're looking to scale up your app's performance, you can consider moving it to a separate App Service plan. This can help isolate the compute resources and improve your app's performance. You can do this by scaling up your App Service plan, which can be done at any time and is as simple as changing the pricing tier of the plan.

Here are some key features of the Basic service plan, which is designed to run workloads with low traffic requirements:

This plan is a good option if you don't need advanced auto-scale and traffic management features, and you can save money by using Azure savings such as savings plan and reserved instances. However, keep in mind that additional Azure savings are not available with this plan.

Azure App Service pricing can be complex, but it's essential to understand the costs involved. You can estimate your expected monthly costs using the Pricing calculator.

There are several pricing tiers for App Service, including Shared, Basic, Standard, Premium, PremiumV2, PremiumV3, Isolated, and IsolatedV2. Each tier has its own pricing structure, with some tiers charging per CPU quota and others charging per VM instance. In the dedicated compute tiers, the App Service plan defines the number of VM instances the apps are scaled to, so each VM instance in the App Service plan is charged.

Some App Service features are free, such as configuring custom domains, TLS/SSL certificates, deployment slots, backups, etc. However, you do pay for App Service Domains and App Service Certificates, which are purchased in Azure and renewed each year. Additionally, there's an hourly charge for IP-based TLS connections, but some Standard tiers or above give you one IP-based TLS connection for free.

To optimize and save on your cloud spending, you can use Azure Cost Management to set budgets and configure alerts to keep spending under control. Analyze, manage, and optimize your Azure costs with Cost Management.

Limitations can be a bit of a bummer, but it's essential to know what to expect. App Service on Linux isn't supported on the Shared pricing tier, which means you'll need to consider other options if you're on a budget.

You might notice that the Azure portal only shows features that currently work for Linux apps. This can be a bit confusing, but rest assured that new features will be activated on the portal as they become available.

Apps that require heavy read-only access to content files might benefit from the custom container option. This places files in the container filesystem instead of on the content volume, which can improve performance and reduce latency.

If you're a Visual Studio subscriber, you're in luck - dev/test pricing is available for you. This pricing model is billed at the same rate as Azure Hybrid Benefit pricing.

With dev/test pricing, you can save up to 55% on License Included prices. This is a significant cost savings that can add up quickly.

You can take advantage of dev/test rates on Windows App Service Basic, Standard, and now Premium v2 and Premium v3. This means you can run development and testing workloads with ease and at a lower cost.

You can save up to 55% on License Included prices with the dev/test offer, available for Visual Studio subscribers.

Azure offers a pricing calculator to estimate your expected monthly costs for using any combination of Azure products.

The PremiumV3 pricing tier includes multiple VM sizes, such as P0v3 (1 vCPU, 4 GiB of memory) and P5mv3 (32 vCPU, 256 GiB of memory).

The PremiumV3 pricing tier guarantees machines with faster processors, SSD storage, and memory-optimized options.

To avoid unexpected charges, it's essential to understand how App Service plans are billed, especially in the dedicated compute tiers.

In the Shared tier, each app receives a quota of CPU minutes, and in the dedicated compute tiers, each VM instance is charged the same regardless of how many apps are running on it.

You don't get charged for using App Service features like configuring custom domains, TLS/SSL certificates, deployment slots, and backups, but you do pay for App Service Domains, App Service Certificates, and IP-based TLS connections.

The Premium v3 Service Plan offers various options, including the P0v3 plan with 1 core, 4 GB of RAM, and 250 GB of storage, which is available for a pay-as-you-go price of $-.

Here are the Premium v3 Service Plan options:

When configuring your Azure App Service, you'll want to take a closer look at the configuration and settings options available. You can edit app settings in bulk by creating a JSON array of settings, which is a convenient way to manage multiple settings at once.

One way to get started is by saving your existing settings into a JSON file using the az webapp config appsettings list command. This will give you a head start on configuring your app.

If you're planning to use custom containers, you'll need to configure a custom container for Azure App Service, which involves adding custom storage for your containerized app. This will allow you to run your app in a more flexible and scalable environment.

Here's a brief overview of the custom container configuration process:

Configuring custom containers is an essential step in setting up your Azure App Service. You can configure a custom container for Azure App Service.

To do this, you'll need to add custom storage for your containerized app. This will give you more control over how your app is stored and managed.

Here are the specific steps to follow:

By following these steps, you'll be able to tailor your container setup to meet the specific needs of your app.

In an App Service Environment, you get a fully isolated and dedicated environment for running App Service apps with improved security at high scale.

This environment is unlike the standard App Service offering, where the supporting infrastructure is shared. With an App Service Environment, you have control over inbound and outbound application network traffic.

You can establish high-speed secure connections to on-premises corporate resources, which is a big plus for companies with sensitive data.

An App Service Environment can host applications from a single customer directly integrated into their virtual networks.

Here are some key features of an App Service Environment plan:

You can edit app settings in bulk by saving existing settings into a JSON file with az webapp config appsettings list. This is a convenient way to manage your settings.

The file format needed is a JSON array of settings where the slot setting field is optional. You can save existing settings into a JSON file with az webapp config appsettings list.

To edit connection strings in bulk, run az webapp config connection-string set with the name of the JSON file. This will update your connection strings in one go.

The file format needed is a JSON array of connection strings where the slot setting field is optional. You can save existing connection strings into a JSON file with az webapp config connection-string list.

To configure default documents, you need to tell Azure which file to display when users access your app's root URL. This is done in the Azure portal under Configuration > Default documents.

You can add a default document by selecting New document in the Default documents page. To remove a default document, simply select Delete next to it.

In the Azure portal, navigate to App Services, select your app, and then click on Configuration > Default documents. From there, you can add, edit, or remove default documents as needed.

You can also add a default document using PowerShell by modifying the app's object. This involves using the az resource update command.

Here's a step-by-step guide to adding a default document using the Azure portal:

Remember to save your changes after modifying the default documents.

To configure handler mappings for your Windows app, start by searching for and selecting App Services in the Azure portal, then select your app.

You can customize the IIS handler mappings and virtual applications and directories, which let you add custom script processors to handle requests for specific file extensions.

In the app's left menu, select Configuration > Path mappings. From there, you can create a new handler mapping.

To add a custom handler, select New handler mapping and configure the handler as follows: select OK, and don't forget to select Save in the Configuration page.

Here's a step-by-step guide to adding a custom handler: