Azure Functions are a serverless, event driven experience that extends the existing Azure App Service platform, by building “nanoservices” that can scale based on demand and you only pay for the resources you use.
Azure Functions is a solution for easily running small pieces of code, or "functions," in the cloud. You can write just the code you need for the problem at hand, without worrying about a whole application or the infrastructure to run it.
Supported Languages and Tools
Azure Functions can be created in C#, Node/JavaScript, Python, F#, PHP and scripting languages like Bash, Batch and PowerShell. You can even run executables.
Common Scenarios
Azure Functions is a great solution for building nanoservices, simple API’s, processing data and integration with systems. Here are some common scenarios for Azure Functions:
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Integrations
Azure Functions can be triggered by virtually any event in Azure, any 3rd party services, or any on premise systems. The following service integrations are supported by Azure Functions:
- Azure DocumentDB
- Azure Event Hubs
- Azure Mobile Apps (tables)
- Azure Notification Hubs
- Azure Service Bug (queues and topics)
- Azure Storage (blob, queues and tables)
- GitHub (webhooks)
- On-premises (using Service Bug)
Getting Started
You can quickly get started with creating an Azure Function by going to the Azure Functions Get Started Portal. After logging in you will be taken to the Azure Functions getting started portal as shown below.
Or create a function app from Azure Portal. This can be found under New –> Web + Mobile –> Function App:
Once you’ve created your Function App, you will be taken to the Function App blade in the Azure Portal. From this blade you can create new functions by clicking on the New Function button on the top left, which will bring us to pre-built templates. If you click on an existing function, which are listed along the left side, you can edit the function, look at logs and even test the function.
Have fun and take a look at Azure Functions and how they might help you. In my next post I’ll dive deeper and walk you through creating, running and testing the function app.
Enjoy!
References
Azure Functions
Azure Functions Documentation
Build 2016 Video: Introducing Azure Functions
The Flying Maverick 
[…] first article of this series, Introduced what Azure Functions are and the capabilities they offer when used by themselves or combined with other Azure resources. […]