Azure Mobile Apps with .NET

Welcome to the Azure Mobile Apps tutorial for .NET developers. This guide walks you through building a mobile backend using Azure Mobile Apps SDK, setting up authentication, and connecting a Xamarin.Forms client.

Prerequisites

1. Create the Azure Mobile App Backend

  1. Open Visual Studio → Create a new project.
  2. Select ASP.NET Core Web API and click Next.
  3. Configure the project:
    • Name: MyMobileBackend
    • Location: choose a folder
    • Framework: .NET 8.0
  4. Click Create.

After the project is generated, add the Azure Mobile Apps SDK via NuGet:

dotnet add package Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server

Now, modify Program.cs to configure the Mobile App service:

using Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server;
using Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server.Config;

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);

builder.Services.AddControllers();
builder.Services.AddMobileApp();

var app = builder.Build();

app.UseMobileApp(); // Enables mobile middleware
app.MapControllers();

app.Run();

2. Define a Data Model

Create a TodoItem.cs model in the Models folder:

using Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server;
using System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations;

public class TodoItem : EntityData
{
    [Required]
    public string Text { get; set; }

    public bool Complete { get; set; }
}

Then, add a controller for the model:

using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;
using Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server;
using Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Server.Config;

[MobileAppTable]
[Route("tables/[controller]")]
public class TodoItemController : TableController<TodoItem>
{
    private readonly MobileServiceContext _context = new MobileServiceContext();

    public override IQueryable<TodoItem> GetAll()
    {
        return Query(); // Returns all items
    }

    public override async Task<SingleResult<TodoItem>> Lookup(string id)
    {
        return await LookupAsync(id);
    }

    public override async Task<TodoItem> InsertAsync(TodoItem item)
    {
        item = await InsertAsync(item);
        return item;
    }

    public override async Task<TodoItem> UpdateAsync(string id, TodoItem item)
    {
        await UpdateAsync(id, item);
        return item;
    }

    public override async Task DeleteAsync(string id)
    {
        await DeleteAsync(id);
    }
}

Make sure to create MobileServiceContext inheriting from DbContext and configuring the TodoItems DbSet.

3. Publish to Azure

  1. Right‑click the project → Publish.
  2. Select Azure → Azure App Service (Linux) → Create New.
  3. Fill out the App Service details (choose a unique name, region, pricing tier).
  4. Click Finish then Publish.

After deployment, the service will be available at https://<your-app-name>.azurewebsites.net.

4. Connect a Xamarin.Forms Client

Add the Mobile Apps client SDK to the Xamarin project:

dotnet add package Microsoft.Azure.Mobile.Client

Initialize the client in your shared project:

using Microsoft.WindowsAzure.MobileServices;

public static class MobileService
{
    public static MobileServiceClient Client { get; } =
        new MobileServiceClient("https://<your-app-name>.azurewebsites.net");
}

Create a service to handle TodoItem operations:

public class TodoService
{
    private readonly IMobileServiceTable<TodoItem> _table;

    public TodoService()
    {
        _table = MobileService.Client.GetTable<TodoItem>();
    }

    public async Task<IEnumerable<TodoItem>> GetItemsAsync()
    {
        return await _table.ToEnumerableAsync();
    }

    public async Task AddItemAsync(TodoItem item)
    {
        await _table.InsertAsync(item);
    }

    public async Task UpdateItemAsync(TodoItem item)
    {
        await _table.UpdateAsync(item);
    }

    public async Task DeleteItemAsync(TodoItem item)
    {
        await _table.DeleteAsync(item);
    }
}

Bind the service to your UI using MVVM or code‑behind as preferred.

Next Steps