Azure SDK for Net: Complete Guide to Data Access and Management

The Azure SDK for .NET is a powerful tool that allows you to interact with Azure services from your .NET applications. It simplifies the process of accessing and managing data in Azure.

The SDK provides a unified API for accessing various Azure services, including Azure Storage, Azure Cosmos DB, and Azure SQL Database. This means you can use a single API to interact with multiple services, making your code more efficient and easier to maintain.

With the Azure SDK for .NET, you can perform various data operations such as creating, reading, updating, and deleting data in Azure Storage. You can also use the SDK to manage Azure Cosmos DB databases and collections, including creating, updating, and deleting them.

The SDK is designed to be highly scalable and performant, making it suitable for large-scale applications.

For data access in Azure SDK for .NET, Microsoft recommends using version 12.x.x for new applications. This is the latest version of the Azure Storage client library for data access.

If you're not able to update to version 12.x.x, then you should use version 11.x.x instead.

For resource management, the latest version of the Azure Storage client library is version 1.x.x, which is also recommended for new applications.

The latest version of the Azure Storage client library for data access is version 12.x.x, which Microsoft recommends using for new applications.

Using version 12.x.x provides the best data access experience. If you're working with an existing application, you can use version 11.x.x as a fallback.

Microsoft specifically recommends version 12.x.x for new applications, indicating its superiority in data access.

If you're unable to update to version 12.x.x, it's still possible to use version 11.x.x, but it's not the preferred choice.

The Azure Storage client library is a crucial tool for data access, and choosing the right version can make a big difference in your application's performance.

For resource management, Microsoft recommends using the Azure Storage client library, specifically version 1.x.x for new applications.

This version is the latest and provides the most up-to-date features and functionality.

If you're unable to update your existing applications to version 1.x.x, then version 25.x.x is a suitable alternative.

It's worth noting that version 25.x.x is still supported, but it's not the recommended choice for new applications.

When defining fields, you can use the base SearchField class, or you can use derivative helper models that serve as templates, with pre-configured properties.

The SearchField class is the base class, with most properties set to null, except Name which is required, and AnalyzerName which defaults to standard Lucene.

You can also use helper models like SimpleField and SearchableField, which are pre-configured with specific properties.

The SimpleField is a helper model that can be any data type, is always non-searchable, and is retrievable. It's often used for document IDs or fields used only in filters, facets, or scoring profiles.

Here's a comparison of the three field types:

To use these field types, you must explicitly enable filter, facet, and sort attributes. For example, IsFilterable, IsSortable, and IsFacetable must be explicitly attributed.

Troubleshooting and Debugging is a crucial part of developing with the Azure SDK for .NET. You can use the CreateTraceLogger method to log to the standard .NET event tracing mechanism (System.Diagnostics.Tracing).

If you're encountering issues, consider implementing trace listeners to capture detailed information about your application's behavior. This can help you identify and debug problems more efficiently. You can use the CreateTraceLogger method to log to diagnostic traces, specifying a log level of verbose.

By utilizing trace listeners and the CreateTraceLogger method, you can gain valuable insights into your application's performance and behavior, making it easier to troubleshoot and debug issues.

Diagnostic Traces can be a powerful tool for troubleshooting and debugging issues with your Azure applications. You can use the CreateTraceLogger method to log to the standard .NET event tracing mechanism (System.Diagnostics.Tracing).

To implement trace listeners, you'll need to use the CreateTraceLogger method, which allows you to specify a log level. For example, you can specify a log level of verbose, which provides detailed messages.

You can also use the AzureEventSourceListener class to configure custom logging. To do this, set the level constructor parameter to EventLevel.Verbose or EventLevel.LogAlways. This will allow you to customize the logging behavior to suit your needs.

Here's a summary of the available log levels:

By using Diagnostic Traces and configuring custom logging, you can gain a deeper understanding of what's happening in your application and identify issues more quickly.

To configure custom logging with the Azure SDK for .NET, you can register an event listener to receive log messages from the Azure SDK. This can be done by constructing an instance of the AzureEventSourceListener class and passing it a callback method that will receive the log messages.

You can filter the logs to include only events emitted from the Azure Core client library with a level of verbose. The Azure Core library uses an event source name of Azure-Core. This means you can specify the log levels to include when constructing the instance of the AzureEventSourceListener class.

To store configuration separately from code, you can use environment-dependent JSON files. For example, you can have an appsettings.Development.json file containing development environment settings, and an appsettings.Production.json file containing production environment settings. The settings in the JSON configuration file can be retrieved using IConfiguration.

Here are some key configuration settings you can store in the JSON files:

These settings map to the Uri- and string-typed arguments of the Azure client library constructor overloads.

Logging to the console window is a straightforward process. You can use the CreateConsoleLogger method to send logs to the console with a single line of code.

The CreateConsoleLogger method allows you to view comprehensive logs in real time. This is a core tenet of the Azure SDK for .NET client libraries.

To log to the console, you'll need to use the CreateConsoleLogger method. This method is designed to simplify the process of viewing logs in real time.

The logging level can be set to informational, warning, or verbose. The verbose level includes detailed messages and content logging.

Here's a summary of the logging levels:

Configuring multiple service clients is a crucial step in setting up your Azure services. This can be achieved by using the WithName extension method to differentiate between clients.

You can have multiple storage accounts, such as one for private information and another for public information, and use two storage service clients to transfer data between them. This is done using the WithName extension method.

Named clients are additive, meaning the unnamed service client is still available in the same way as before. This allows you to use the same code to access both clients.

To register clients and subclients, you can use the AddAzureClients extension method in the Program.cs file. This method allows you to register a client for each service, such as Key Vault Secrets, Blob Storage, and Service Bus clients.

Here are some examples of how to register clients and subclients:

DefaultAzureCredential is used to satisfy the TokenCredential argument requirement for each registered client. This is done automatically when creating a client instance.

Service Bus subclients can be registered for each queue on the service using the subclient and corresponding options types. The queue names for the subclients are retrieved using a separate method outside of the service registration because the GetQueuesAsync method must be run asynchronously.

With the clients registered, you can now use them in your code. In an ASP.NET Core API controller, you can use constructor injection to obtain the Blob Storage client and a factory for Service Bus sender subclients.

To configure a retry policy, you can change it to suit your needs by modifying the retry policy settings. This allows you to fine-tune the policy to meet your specific requirements.

You can place retry policy overrides in the appsettings.json file. This is a convenient way to make changes without having to delve into the code.

Storing configurations in environment-dependent JSON files is a recommended approach to avoid problems when running code against different environments during development and production.

The .NET team suggests using files like appsettings.Development.json for development environment settings and appsettings.Production.json for production environment settings.

You can add properties from the ClientOptions class into the JSON file, and the settings in the JSON configuration file can be retrieved using IConfiguration.

The file format is flexible, allowing you to add any properties you need.

Key-value pairs in the JSON file map to the Uri- and string-typed arguments of specific constructor overloads, such as Azure.Security.KeyVault.Secrets.SecretClient and Azure.Messaging.ServiceBus.ServiceBusClient.

Here are some examples of top-level key names and their significance: