async-patterns

name	async-patterns
description	Use when writing async code, propagating CancellationTokens, or fixing async/await pitfalls.
metadata	{"category":"core","agent":"dotnet-architect","alwaysApply":true}

Async/Await Best Practices

Core Principles

• Always propagate CancellationToken through the call chain
• Use async/await throughout — do not mix blocking and async code
• Prefer ValueTask<T> for hot paths that often complete synchronously
• Use ConfigureAwait(false) in library code, not in ASP.NET Core app code
• Never use async void except for event handlers
• Avoid capturing context unnecessarily

Patterns

CancellationToken Propagation

// Always accept and forward CancellationToken
public sealed class OrderService(
    IOrderRepository repository,
    ILogger<OrderService> logger)
{
    public async Task<Order?> GetOrderAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken ct)
    {
        logger.LogInformation("Fetching order {OrderId}", id);
        return await repository.FindAsync(id, ct);
    }

    public async Task<List<Order>> GetOrdersAsync(
        OrderFilter filter, CancellationToken ct)
    {
        var orders = await repository.ListAsync(filter, ct);
        return orders;
    }
}

// Controller / endpoint — ct comes from framework
app.MapGet("/orders/{id}", async (
    Guid id, ISender sender, CancellationToken ct) =>
{
    var result = await sender.Send(new GetOrderQuery(id), ct);
    return result is not null ? Results.Ok(result) : Results.NotFound();
});

Parallel Operations with Task.WhenAll

public async Task<DashboardData> GetDashboardAsync(CancellationToken ct)
{
    // Run independent queries in parallel
    var ordersTask = _orderRepository.GetRecentAsync(10, ct);
    var statsTask = _statsService.GetSummaryAsync(ct);
    var alertsTask = _alertService.GetActiveAsync(ct);

    await Task.WhenAll(ordersTask, statsTask, alertsTask);

    return new DashboardData(
        Orders: ordersTask.Result,
        Stats: statsTask.Result,
        Alerts: alertsTask.Result);
}

ValueTask for Hot Paths

// Use ValueTask when result is often cached / synchronous
public ValueTask<Product?> GetProductAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken ct)
{
    if (_cache.TryGetValue(id, out Product? cached))
        return ValueTask.FromResult(cached);

    return LoadFromDatabaseAsync(id, ct);
}

private async ValueTask<Product?> LoadFromDatabaseAsync(
    Guid id, CancellationToken ct)
{
    var product = await _repository.FindAsync(id, ct);
    if (product is not null)
        _cache.Set(id, product, TimeSpan.FromMinutes(5));
    return product;
}

Async Enumerable for Streaming

// IAsyncEnumerable for large datasets
public async IAsyncEnumerable<OrderResponse> StreamOrdersAsync(
    [EnumeratorCancellation] CancellationToken ct)
{
    await foreach (var order in _repository.StreamAllAsync(ct))
    {
        yield return order.ToResponse();
    }
}

// Consuming
await foreach (var order in service.StreamOrdersAsync(ct))
{
    await ProcessOrderAsync(order, ct);
}

Async Initialization with SemaphoreSlim

public sealed class ExpensiveResourceService : IAsyncDisposable
{
    private readonly SemaphoreSlim _initLock = new(1, 1);
    private ExpensiveResource? _resource;

    public async Task<ExpensiveResource> GetResourceAsync(CancellationToken ct)
    {
        if (_resource is not null)
            return _resource;

        await _initLock.WaitAsync(ct);
        try
        {
            // Double-check after acquiring lock
            _resource ??= await ExpensiveResource.CreateAsync(ct);
            return _resource;
        }
        finally
        {
            _initLock.Release();
        }
    }

    public async ValueTask DisposeAsync()
    {
        _initLock.Dispose();
        if (_resource is not null)
            await _resource.DisposeAsync();
    }
}

Timeout with CancellationToken

public async Task<Result<OrderResponse>> ProcessOrderAsync(
    Guid orderId, CancellationToken ct)
{
    // Create a linked token with timeout
    using var timeoutCts = CancellationTokenSource
        .CreateLinkedTokenSource(ct);
    timeoutCts.CancelAfter(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(30));

    try
    {
        var order = await _repository.FindAsync(orderId, timeoutCts.Token);
        if (order is null)
            return Result<OrderResponse>.Failure(
                Error.NotFound("Order.NotFound", "Order not found"));

        await _processor.ProcessAsync(order, timeoutCts.Token);
        return Result<OrderResponse>.Success(order.ToResponse());
    }
    catch (OperationCanceledException) when (!ct.IsCancellationRequested)
    {
        // Timeout occurred, not caller cancellation
        return Result<OrderResponse>.Failure(
            Error.Unexpected("Order.Timeout", "Order processing timed out"));
    }
}

Background Service Scoped Work

public sealed class OrderProcessorService(
    IServiceScopeFactory scopeFactory,
    ILogger<OrderProcessorService> logger) : BackgroundService
{
    protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken stoppingToken)
    {
        while (!stoppingToken.IsCancellationRequested)
        {
            try
            {
                // Create a scope for each unit of work
                using var scope = scopeFactory.CreateScope();
                var processor = scope.ServiceProvider
                    .GetRequiredService<IOrderProcessor>();

                await processor.ProcessPendingOrdersAsync(stoppingToken);
            }
            catch (Exception ex) when (ex is not OperationCanceledException)
            {
                logger.LogError(ex, "Error processing orders");
            }

            await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(30), stoppingToken);
        }
    }
}

Channel for Producer/Consumer

public sealed class OrderChannel
{
    private readonly Channel<OrderEvent> _channel =
        Channel.CreateBounded<OrderEvent>(new BoundedChannelOptions(1000)
        {
            FullMode = BoundedChannelFullMode.Wait,
            SingleReader = false,
            SingleWriter = false
        });

    public ChannelWriter<OrderEvent> Writer => _channel.Writer;
    public ChannelReader<OrderEvent> Reader => _channel.Reader;
}

Anti-Patterns

// BAD: async void — exceptions are unobservable
async void ProcessOrder(Order order) { }

// BAD: blocking on async code — can deadlock
var result = GetOrderAsync(id).Result;
var result2 = GetOrderAsync(id).GetAwaiter().GetResult();

// BAD: not propagating CancellationToken
public async Task<Order?> GetAsync(Guid id)
{
    return await _repository.FindAsync(id); // missing ct!
}

// BAD: unnecessary async state machine
public async Task<Order?> GetAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken ct)
{
    return await _repository.FindAsync(id, ct); // just return the Task
}

// GOOD: elide async when simply forwarding
public Task<Order?> GetAsync(Guid id, CancellationToken ct)
    => _repository.FindAsync(id, ct);

// BAD: Task.Run in ASP.NET Core (steals thread pool thread)
await Task.Run(() => ComputeExpensiveSync());

Detect Existing Patterns

1. Search for async Task and async ValueTask method signatures
2. Check if CancellationToken is accepted and forwarded consistently
3. Look for .Result or .GetAwaiter().GetResult() blocking calls
4. Search for async void methods (should only be event handlers)
5. Check for ConfigureAwait(false) usage patterns (library vs app code)
6. Look for Task.Run usage in ASP.NET Core request handlers

Adding to Existing Project

1. Audit CancellationToken propagation — add ct parameter to all async methods
2. Replace blocking calls — find .Result and .Wait() calls and convert to await
3. Add cancellation to endpoints — ensure all controller actions accept CancellationToken
4. Review background services — ensure proper scope creation with IServiceScopeFactory
5. Check for fire-and-forget — replace _ = DoAsync() with proper background processing

Decision Guide

Scenario	Recommendation
Return type	Task<T> for most cases, ValueTask<T> for hot paths
Multiple independent calls	Task.WhenAll for parallel execution
Large result sets	IAsyncEnumerable<T> for streaming
Background work in web app	BackgroundService with IServiceScopeFactory
Thread-safe lazy init	SemaphoreSlim with double-check pattern
Producer/consumer queue	System.Threading.Channels
Timeout	CancellationTokenSource.CreateLinkedTokenSource + CancelAfter

References

• https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/csharp/asynchronous-programming/
• https://devblogs.microsoft.com/dotnet/configureawait-faq/
• https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/standard/asynchronous-programming-patterns/