Welcome to the Azure Functions .NET Worker Repository. Introduced in 2020, Azure Functions' **Isolated Worker Model** moves function execution into a separate language worker process. Isolating function execution from the Azure Functions runtime allows you to have full control over your application's dependencies and easily incorporate advanced .NET features such as middleware and dependency injection.
A .NET Isolated worker process function works differently from a .NET in-process function. For .NET Isolated, you build an executable that imports the .NET Isolated language worker as a NuGet package. Your app includes a [`Program.cs`](samples/FunctionApp/Program.cs) that starts the worker.
.NET Isolated introduces a new binding model, slightly different from the binding model exposed in .NET in-process Azure Functions. More information can be [found here](https://github.com/Azure/azure-functions-dotnet-worker/wiki/.NET-Worker-bindings). Please review our samples for usage information.
The Azure Functions .NET Isolated supports middleware registration, following a model similar to what exists in ASP.NET and giving you the ability to inject logic into the invocation pipeline, pre and post function executions.
You can find samples on how to use different features of the .NET Worker under `samples` ([link](https://github.com/Azure/azure-functions-dotnet-worker/tree/main/samples)).
**Note: Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code support is on the way. In the meantime, please use `azure-functions-core-tools` or the sample projects as a starting point.**
> NOTE: To debug your Worker, you must be using the Azure Functions Core Tools version 3.0.3381 or higher. You must also have the [Azure Toolkit for Rider](https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/11220-azure-toolkit-for-rider) installed.
In Rider, make sure a Run Configuration is generated for your Azure Functions project is active. You can also create a custom Run Configuration from the **Run \| Edit Configurations...** menu.
To start debugging, select the run configuration and start debugging. This will compile your project, run the Core Tools, and attach the debugger to your project.
Under the hood, Rider launches the Core Tools with the `--dotnet-isolated-debug` argument, and attached to the process ID for your worker process.
You can place a breakpoint in any function, and inspect your code as it is running. Note that [debugging startup code may timeout (#434)](https://github.com/Azure/azure-functions-dotnet-worker/issues/434).
4. Create a resource group, Storage account, and Azure Functions app. If you would like to use an existing Windows .NET Core 3 function app, please skip this step.
