dotnet-cicd-patterns

name	dotnet-cicd-patterns
description	Implement CI/CD for .NET applications with GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, Docker, Kubernetes deployments, automated testing, and release pipelines. Use when setting up continuous integration and deployment for .NET projects.

.NET CI/CD Patterns

Master CI/CD for .NET 8+ with GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, Docker, and Kubernetes.

GitHub Actions - .NET CI/CD

# .github/workflows/dotnet-ci.yml
name: .NET CI/CD

on:
  push:
    branches: [ main, develop ]
  pull_request:
    branches: [ main ]

env:
  DOTNET_VERSION: '8.0.x'
  AZURE_WEBAPP_NAME: myapp

jobs:
  build-and-test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v4

    - name: Setup .NET
      uses: actions/setup-dotnet@v4
      with:
        dotnet-version: ${{ env.DOTNET_VERSION }}

    - name: Restore dependencies
      run: dotnet restore

    - name: Build
      run: dotnet build --no-restore --configuration Release

    - name: Test
      run: dotnet test --no-build --configuration Release --verbosity normal --collect:"XPlat Code Coverage"

    - name: Upload coverage
      uses: codecov/codecov-action@v3
      with:
        files: '**/coverage.cobertura.xml'

  build-docker:
    needs: build-and-test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v4

    - name: Set up Docker Buildx
      uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3

    - name: Login to Container Registry
      uses: docker/login-action@v3
      with:
        registry: ghcr.io
        username: ${{ github.actor }}
        password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

    - name: Build and push
      uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
      with:
        context: .
        push: true
        tags: |
          ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:latest
          ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }}
        cache-from: type=gha
        cache-to: type=gha,mode=max

  deploy-azure:
    needs: build-docker
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
    steps:
    - name: Azure Login
      uses: azure/login@v1
      with:
        creds: ${{ secrets.AZURE_CREDENTIALS }}

    - name: Deploy to Azure Web App
      uses: azure/webapps-deploy@v2
      with:
        app-name: ${{ env.AZURE_WEBAPP_NAME }}
        images: 'ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}:${{ github.sha }}'

Azure DevOps Pipeline

# azure-pipelines.yml
trigger:
  branches:
    include:
    - main
    - develop

pool:
  vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest'

variables:
  buildConfiguration: 'Release'
  dotnetSdkVersion: '8.x'

stages:
- stage: Build
  displayName: 'Build and Test'
  jobs:
  - job: BuildJob
    steps:
    - task: UseDotNet@2
      displayName: 'Use .NET SDK'
      inputs:
        version: $(dotnetSdkVersion)

    - task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
      displayName: 'Restore packages'
      inputs:
        command: 'restore'

    - task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
      displayName: 'Build'
      inputs:
        command: 'build'
        arguments: '--configuration $(buildConfiguration) --no-restore'

    - task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
      displayName: 'Run tests'
      inputs:
        command: 'test'
        arguments: '--configuration $(buildConfiguration) --no-build --collect:"XPlat Code Coverage"'
        publishTestResults: true

    - task: PublishCodeCoverageResults@1
      displayName: 'Publish code coverage'
      inputs:
        codeCoverageTool: 'Cobertura'
        summaryFileLocation: '$(Agent.TempDirectory)/**/*coverage.cobertura.xml'

    - task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
      displayName: 'Publish'
      inputs:
        command: 'publish'
        publishWebProjects: true
        arguments: '--configuration $(buildConfiguration) --output $(Build.ArtifactStagingDirectory)'

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

- stage: Deploy
  displayName: 'Deploy to Azure'
  dependsOn: Build
  condition: and(succeeded(), eq(variables['Build.SourceBranch'], 'refs/heads/main'))
  jobs:
  - deployment: DeployJob
    environment: 'production'
    strategy:
      runOnce:
        deploy:
          steps:
          - task: AzureWebApp@1
            displayName: 'Deploy to Azure Web App'
            inputs:
              azureSubscription: '$(azureSubscription)'
              appName: '$(webAppName)'
              package: '$(Pipeline.Workspace)/drop/**/*.zip'

Docker Multi-Stage Build

# Dockerfile
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:8.0 AS build
WORKDIR /src

# Copy csproj and restore
COPY ["src/MyApp.Api/MyApp.Api.csproj", "src/MyApp.Api/"]
COPY ["src/MyApp.Application/MyApp.Application.csproj", "src/MyApp.Application/"]
COPY ["src/MyApp.Domain/MyApp.Domain.csproj", "src/MyApp.Domain/"]
COPY ["src/MyApp.Infrastructure/MyApp.Infrastructure.csproj", "src/MyApp.Infrastructure/"]
RUN dotnet restore "src/MyApp.Api/MyApp.Api.csproj"

# Copy everything and build
COPY . .
WORKDIR "/src/src/MyApp.Api"
RUN dotnet build "MyApp.Api.csproj" -c Release -o /app/build

# Publish
FROM build AS publish
RUN dotnet publish "MyApp.Api.csproj" -c Release -o /app/publish /p:UseAppHost=false

# Runtime
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/aspnet:8.0 AS final
WORKDIR /app
EXPOSE 80
EXPOSE 443

# Non-root user
RUN adduser --disabled-password --gecos '' appuser && chown -R appuser /app
USER appuser

COPY --from=publish /app/publish .
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "MyApp.Api.dll"]

Kubernetes Deployment

# k8s/deployment.yaml
apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: myapp
spec:
  replicas: 3
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: myapp
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: myapp
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: api
        image: ghcr.io/myorg/myapp:latest
        ports:
        - containerPort: 80
        env:
        - name: ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT
          value: "Production"
        - name: ConnectionStrings__DefaultConnection
          valueFrom:
            secretKeyRef:
              name: myapp-secrets
              key: db-connection-string
        resources:
          requests:
            memory: "256Mi"
            cpu: "250m"
          limits:
            memory: "512Mi"
            cpu: "500m"
        livenessProbe:
          httpGet:
            path: /health/live
            port: 80
          initialDelaySeconds: 30
          periodSeconds: 10
        readinessProbe:
          httpGet:
            path: /health/ready
            port: 80
          initialDelaySeconds: 5
          periodSeconds: 5
---
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: myapp
spec:
  selector:
    app: myapp
  ports:
  - protocol: TCP
    port: 80
    targetPort: 80
  type: LoadBalancer

Database Migrations in CI/CD

# .github/workflows/db-migration.yml
name: Database Migration

on:
  workflow_dispatch:
  push:
    branches: [main]
    paths:
      - 'src/**/Migrations/**'

jobs:
  migrate:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v4

    - name: Setup .NET
      uses: actions/setup-dotnet@v4
      with:
        dotnet-version: '8.0.x'

    - name: Install EF Core tools
      run: dotnet tool install --global dotnet-ef

    - name: Apply migrations
      run: |
        dotnet ef database update \
          --project src/MyApp.Infrastructure \
          --startup-project src/MyApp.Api \
          --connection "${{ secrets.DB_CONNECTION_STRING }}"
      env:
        ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT: Production

Automated Versioning

# Using GitVersion
- name: Install GitVersion
  uses: gittools/actions/gitversion/setup@v0
  with:
    versionSpec: '5.x'

- name: Determine Version
  uses: gittools/actions/gitversion/execute@v0
  id: gitversion

- name: Display version
  run: |
    echo "Version: ${{ steps.gitversion.outputs.semVer }}"
    echo "AssemblyVersion: ${{ steps.gitversion.outputs.assemblySemVer }}"

- name: Build with version
  run: dotnet build -p:Version=${{ steps.gitversion.outputs.semVer }}

Release Management

# GitHub Release
- name: Create Release
  if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
  uses: actions/create-release@v1
  env:
    GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
  with:
    tag_name: v${{ steps.gitversion.outputs.semVer }}
    release_name: Release v${{ steps.gitversion.outputs.semVer }}
    body: |
      Changes in this release:
      ${{ github.event.head_commit.message }}
    draft: false
    prerelease: false

Best Practices

1. Separate Build and Deploy - Build once, deploy many
2. Use Secrets Management - Never hardcode credentials
3. Implement Health Checks - For readiness and liveness probes
4. Version Everything - Code, containers, deployments
5. Test Before Deploy - Run all tests in CI
6. Use Caching - Cache NuGet packages and Docker layers
7. Monitor Deployments - Track deployment success rates