Creating a Windows Azure Project

Visual Studio 2010 provides integrated tools for developing Windows Azure platform applications. Developers can use VS 2010 to build applications targeted for the Windows Azure platform and run and debug those applications locally using the Development Fabric and Development Storage services, which simulate the Azure environment on the developer’s computer without requiring online deployment and associated fees.

Applications written for Windows Azure are divided into components known as Web roles and worker roles. Web roles primarily contain code that provides user interfaces or Web service interfaces through HTTP and HTTPS connections outside the data center. Worker roles are intended to perform tasks such as calculations or data manipulation after all required user input has been obtained by Web roles.

A developer can choose to create a cloud project from the New Project dialog box in VS 2010. If a new Azure SDK is available, the developer will be prompted to download it. A specific dialog box (shown here) then appears, allowing the developer to select the number, type, and language of roles to include in the new application. In this example, the developer is about to create an application with one ASP.NET Web role that will be written using C# and one worker role that will be written using the new F# language.