Azure Functions

Azure Functions is a solution for easily running small pieces of code, or "functions," in the cloud. You can write just the code you need for the problem at hand, without worrying about a whole application or the infrastructure to run it. Functions can make development even more productive, and you can use your development language of choice, such as C#, F#, Node.js, Python or PHP. Pay only for the time your code runs and trust Azure to scale as needed. Azure Functions lets you develop serverless applications on Microsoft Azure.

Here are some key features of Azure Functions:

• Choice of language - Write functions using C#, F#, Node.js, Python, PHP, batch, bash, or any executable.
• Pay-per-use pricing model - Pay only for the time spent running your code. See the Consumption hosting plan option in the pricing section.
• Bring your own dependencies - Functions supports NuGet and NPM, so you can use your favorite libraries.
• Integrated security - Protect HTTP-triggered functions with OAuth providers such as Azure Active Directory, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Microsoft Account.
• Simplified integration - Easily leverage Azure services and software-as-a-service (SaaS) offerings. See the integrations section for some examples.
• Flexible development - Code your functions right in the portal or set up continuous integration and deploy your code through GitHub, Visual Studio Team Services, and other supported development tools.
• Open-source - The Functions runtime is open-source and available on GitHub.

Azure Functions integrates with various Azure and 3rd-party services. These services can trigger your function and start execution, or they can serve as input and output for your code.

Azure Functions has two kinds of pricing plans:

• Consumption plan - When your function runs, Azure provides all of the necessary computational resources. You don't have to worry about resource management, and you only pay for the time that your code runs.
• App Service plan - Run your functions just like your web, mobile, and API apps. When you are already using App Service for your other applications, you can run your functions on the same plan at no additional cost.