Consume Packages from Azure Artifacts

Azure Artifacts allows you to host your own private package feeds for various package managers like NuGet, npm, Maven, and Python. This tutorial will guide you through the process of consuming a package that you've published to an Azure Artifacts feed from your development projects.

Prerequisites

An Azure DevOps organization and project.
An Azure Artifacts feed created within your project.
A package published to your Azure Artifacts feed (e.g., a custom NuGet package).
The appropriate package management tool installed (e.g., .NET SDK for NuGet, Node.js for npm).

Connecting to Your Feed

Before you can consume packages, your development environment needs to be configured to point to your Azure Artifacts feed. This usually involves setting up a credentials provider or directly configuring your package manager.

NuGet Configuration

For NuGet, the recommended way to authenticate is by using the Azure Artifacts Credential Provider. This tool automatically handles authentication for Visual Studio, `dotnet CLI`, and `msbuild`.

Installation (Example: PowerShell)

Install-PackageProvider -Name NuGet -MinimumVersion 2.8.5.201
# Download and install the credential provider from the official Azure DevOps documentation.
# Refer to the documentation for platform-specific installation steps.

Adding Your Feed to `nuget.config`

Once the credential provider is installed, you can add your feed to your NuGet configuration file. This can be a global `NuGet.Config` or one specific to your solution.

<configuration>
  <packageSources>
    <!-- Add this to your nuget.config file -->
    <add key="MyAzureArtifactsFeed" value="https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/{your-organization}/{your-project}/_packaging/{your-feed-name}/nuget/v3/index.json" />
  </packageSources>
</configuration>

                    Note: Replace placeholders like `{your-organization}`, `{your-project}`, and `{your-feed-name}` with your actual Azure DevOps details.
                

npm Configuration

For npm, you can configure your `.npmrc` file to point to your Azure Artifacts feed and handle authentication.

Adding Your Feed to `.npmrc`

Create or edit the `.npmrc` file in your project's root directory (or your user directory for global configuration).

# .npmrc
registry=https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/{your-organization}/{your-project}/_packaging/{your-feed-name}/npm/registry/
always-auth=true

                    Note: Ensure you have the Azure Artifacts Credential Provider for npm installed or use PATs for authentication. The `always-auth=true` setting ensures authentication is attempted.
                

Authentication (using PAT)

You can use a Personal Access Token (PAT) with the 'Packaging (Read)' scope. Log in using the PAT:

npm login --registry https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/{your-organization}/{your-project}/_packaging/{your-feed-name}/npm/registry/ --scope=@your-scope

You'll be prompted for a username (use `anything`, like `az`), password (your PAT), and email (use `anything`).

Python (Pip) Configuration

For Python packages, you'll configure `pip` to use your Azure Artifacts feed.

Adding Your Feed to `pip.conf` or `pip.ini`

Create or edit `pip.conf` (Linux/macOS) or `pip.ini` (Windows) in your user's config directory.

# pip.conf or pip.ini
[global]
index-url = https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/{your-organization}/{your-project}/_packaging/{your-feed-name}/pypi/simple/
extra-index-url = https://pypi.org/simple/

                    Note: You might need to set up authentication, often using a PAT with 'Packaging (Read)' scope. The Azure Artifacts Credential Provider for Pip can help with this.
                

Authentication (using PAT)

You can use a PAT with the 'Packaging (Read)' scope. Store your credentials securely, for example, in the same config file or using an environment variable, and `pip` will use them.

# In pip.conf or pip.ini (use with caution, consider environment variables)
[global]
index-url = https://{username}:{pat}@pkgs.dev.azure.com/{your-organization}/{your-project}/_packaging/{your-feed-name}/pypi/simple/
extra-index-url = https://pypi.org/simple/

Alternatively, install the Azure Artifacts credential provider for Pip.

Consuming the Package

Once your feed is configured and authenticated, consuming a package is as simple as using your standard package manager commands.

Using NuGet

To install a package from your feed using the .NET CLI:

dotnet add package YourPackageName --version 1.0.0

Or using the Package Manager Console in Visual Studio:

Install-Package YourPackageName -Version 1.0.0

NuGet will automatically look for `YourPackageName` in the feeds configured in your `nuget.config`, including your Azure Artifacts feed.

Using npm

To install a package from your feed:

npm install your-package-name

If your feed is scoped correctly (e.g., using `@your-scope/your-package-name`), npm will resolve it from your configured Azure Artifacts registry.

Using Pip

To install a package from your feed:

pip install your-package-name

Pip will search your configured `index-url` and `extra-index-url` sources to find and install the package.

If you encounter authentication issues, double-check your feed URL, PAT permissions, and ensure the credential provider is correctly installed and configured for your environment.

Publish a Package