Build ASP.NET apps with .NET Framework

Azure DevOps Services | Azure DevOps Server | Azure DevOps Server 2022

This article describes how to build a .NET Framework project with Azure Pipelines. This guide is intended for Azure DevOps users who are building and deploying ASP.NET applications using the .NET Framework. For .NET Core projects, see Build, test, and deploy .NET Core apps.

Prerequisites

Create an Azure DevOps project

1. In your Azure DevOps organization or collection, select New project or Create project.
2. Enter a Project name.
3. Select the Visibility for your project.
4. Select Create.

Get the sample app

If you do not have an existing ASP.NET project, follow the App Service guide to Create an ASP.NET 4.8 web app.

Create and build the pipeline

After you add the sample code to your own repository, create a pipeline in your Azure DevOps project. For more information, see Create your first pipeline.

Select the ASP.NET template. This choice automatically adds the azure-pipelines.yml file with the tasks required to build the code to the sample repository. The template includes the VSTest@3 task to run tests. The sample repository doesn't contain tests, so you can remove the VSTest@3 task from the pipeline.

Your pipeline should look like the following example:

# ASP.NET
# Build and test ASP.NET projects.
# Add steps that publish symbols, save build artifacts, deploy, and more:
# https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/devops/pipelines/apps/aspnet/build-aspnet-4

trigger:
- main

pool:
  vmImage: 'windows-latest'

variables:
  solution: '**/*.sln'
  buildPlatform: 'Any CPU'
  buildConfiguration: 'Release'

steps:
- task: NuGetToolInstaller@1

- task: NuGetCommand@2
  inputs:
    restoreSolution: '$(solution)'

- task: VSBuild@1
  inputs:
    solution: '$(solution)'
    msbuildArgs: '/p:DeployOnBuild=true /p:WebPublishMethod=Package /p:PackageAsSingleFile=true /p:SkipInvalidConfigurations=true /p:PackageLocation="$(build.artifactStagingDirectory)"'
    platform: '$(buildPlatform)'
    configuration: '$(buildConfiguration)'

# ASP.NET
# Build and test ASP.NET projects.
# Add steps that publish symbols, save build artifacts, deploy, and more:
# https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/devops/pipelines/apps/aspnet/build-aspnet-4

trigger:
- main

pool: 
  name: default

variables:
  solution: '**/*.sln'
  buildPlatform: 'Any CPU'
  buildConfiguration: 'Release'

steps:
- task: NuGetToolInstaller@1

- task: NuGetCommand@2
  inputs:
    restoreSolution: '$(solution)'

- task: VSBuild@1
  inputs:
    solution: '$(solution)'
    msbuildArgs: '/p:DeployOnBuild=true /p:WebPublishMethod=Package /p:PackageAsSingleFile=true /p:SkipInvalidConfigurations=true /p:PackageLocation="$(build.artifactStagingDirectory)"'
    platform: '$(buildPlatform)'
    configuration: '$(buildConfiguration)'

Select Save and run and select Jobs to see the pipeline in action.

To publish the build artifacts, add the following task to the end of your YAML file:

- task: PublishPipelineArtifact@1
  inputs:
    targetPath: '$(Pipeline.Workspace)'
    artifact: 'myartifact'
    publishLocation: 'pipeline'

- task: PublishBuildArtifacts@1
  inputs:
    pathToPublish: '$(Build.ArtifactStagingDirectory)'
    artifactName: drop

Build environment

Build multiple configurations

You might need to build your app in multiple configurations. The following steps build the example app on four configurations: Debug, x86, Debug, x64, Release, x86, and Release, x64.

1. In the pipeline UI, select the Variables tab and modify the following variables:

   • BuildConfiguration = debug, release
   • BuildPlatform = x86, x64

2. Select Tasks and then select agent job to change the following options for the job:

   • Select Multi-configuration.
   • Specify Multipliers: BuildConfiguration, BuildPlatform

3. Select Parallel if you have multiple build agents and want to build your configuration and platform pairings in parallel.

Restore dependencies

Use the NuGet task to install and update NuGet package dependencies. You can also use the NuGet task to download NuGet packages from Azure Artifacts, NuGet.org, or other external or internal NuGet repositories.

The following example restores a solution from a project-scoped feed in the same organization.

- task: NuGetCommand@2
  inputs:
    command: 'restore'
    feedsToUse: 'select'
    vstsFeed: 'my-project/my-project-scoped-feed'
    includeNuGetOrg: false
    restoreSolution: '**/*.sln'

Related content

• Publish NuGet packages with Azure Pipelines
• Quickstart: Get started with NuGet packages in Azure Artifacts
• Azure Pipelines agents