Microsoft released the NET Aspire 8.1 version at the end of July. The latest version introduces a series of enhancements and new features designed for use in production environments. The most notable addition in this release is support for building container images and the also capability to orchestrate Python code.
Various improvements to the .NET Aspire dashboard and telemetry tools accompany these two major features. Enhancements include support for metrics exemplars, span links, and better instance ID names, which are also part of this release.
Introducing the AddDockerfile and WithDockerfile extension methods is a key feature of .NET Aspire 8.1. Adding these methods enables developers to edit and build Dockerfiles directly within .NET Aspire, eliminating the need for manual builds.
Additionally, .NET Aspire 8.1 expands its support for polyglot microservices by adding the AddPythonProject(...) extension method. This new feature, contributed by community member Willem Meints, allows developers to launch Python-based services alongside existing support for Node.js applications. To utilize this feature, developers must ensure that the Python hosting package is installed.
The release introduces additional resource types and components, expanding the platform’s functionalities. Key community contributions include support for Keycloak, Elasticsearch (in preview), Garnet, Valkey, and Kafka UI. Contributions from Microsoft include new support for Milvus, a vector database, along with Azure Web PubSub and the EventHubs Emulator, enhancing the local development and testing capabilities.
Improvements in testing within .NET Aspire include the new WaitForResourceAsync(...) API, which streamlines the creation of test scripts that require resource initialization. Moreover, community contributor @Evangelink has extended support to MSTest and NUnit in test project templates, increasing the range of available testing frameworks beyond just xUnit.
Telemetry enhancements are also a highlight of this release, particularly with the integration of metrics exemplars in the .NET Aspire Dashboard. This addition offers exemplar data points for aggregated metrics, connecting metrics telemetry to distributed tracing, which is available on histogram graphs and improves visibility of critical data points like HTTP request durations.
This update also resolves the issue with instance ID names previously displayed as GUIDs in the dashboard. The revised method now presents clearer and more intelligible instance ID names, bettering the user interface for developers monitoring their applications through the dashboard.
Lastly, full release notes are available and the .NET team has released numerous tutorial videos and sessions on the .NET Aspire platform, available on the official YouTube channel for developers seeking to enhance their skills and understanding of the platform.
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