page:recipes:ai workflow runner:asp net core:response streaming

Host ai workflow runner with ASP.NET Core: streamed responses

Summary

Deploy a ai workflow runner built with ASP.NET Core on Ample using the streaming response service pattern. Compute runs the app in an isolated microVM behind a public HTTPS URL, a managed PostgreSQL 16 database is auto-provisioned and injected as DATABASE_URL. Verified on ASP.NET Core: a Server-Sent Events endpoint read incrementally through the public HTTPS gateway: five one-second chunks arrived spread over time with the first within seconds (not buffered), a 70-second stream of 36 chunks completed past common 60-second idle timeouts, and a client that disconnected after two chunks was observed and recorded by the server (disconnected=true). Not separately tested: your event schema, reconnection strategy and any per-request duration ceiling beyond the 70 seconds measured; treat the ai workflow runner-specific behavior as your application code.

Prerequisites

• A ASP.NET Core project that builds and starts with the documented commands (dotnet publish -c Release -o out in the builder, then dotnet .dll on the dotnet-10 template with ASPNETCORE_URLS bound to PORT)
• A PostgreSQL driver reading DATABASE_URL at runtime (auto-provisioned when omitted, or supplied with --env)
• An Ample account token with servers:write, databases:read

Framework

• ASP.NET Core

Workload

• AI workflow runner

Resource Requirements

• Compute
• Postgres

Infrastructure Requirements

• Compute: Apps run in isolated x86_64 Firecracker microVMs that auto-pause when idle and wake on request; sizes are the priced VM sizes.
• Postgres: Managed PostgreSQL 16 runs in its own microVM and is auto-provisioned when an app needs a database and no DATABASE_URL is supplied.

Workflow Steps

1. Build and start: dotnet publish -c Release -o out in the builder, then dotnet .dll on the dotnet-10 template with ASPNETCORE_URLS bound to PORT. The server must bind 0.0.0.0 on PORT.
2. Implement the pattern on PostgreSQL: The fixture's module implements streaming response service: a Server-Sent Events endpoint read incrementally through the public HTTPS gateway: five one-second chunks arrived spread over time with the first within seconds (not buffered), a 70-second stream of 36 chunks completed past common 60-second idle timeouts, and a client that disconnected after two chunks was observed and recorded by the server (disconnected=true). Copy the approach into your schema; keep migrations idempotent and run them with --release-command.
3. Deploy: Run the synchronous deploy once and read the result (exit 0 live, 1 failed, 2 blocked). Re-running with no change is a no-op. Command: ample deploy . --name <name> --public
4. Verify: Fetch the live URL and the pattern self-test route(s) (/p/streaming-response-service) from the example; then run your own checks. On failure read ample logs <project_id> --kind build then --kind runtime. Command: ample logs <project_id> --kind build

Next Steps

• Browse the catalog index to explore further options.
• Search published recipes by intent, stack and constraints.
• Prepare a side-effect-free deployment plan for an authorized project.

Limitations

• Verified on the dotnet-10 template at s-1vcpu-1gb with the example fixture; other sizes, templates and ASP.NET Core major versions are not verified.
• The ai workflow runner itself (your event schema, reconnection strategy and any per-request duration ceiling beyond the 70 seconds measured) is application code and was not separately tested; the pattern checks are what was verified.

Cost Estimate

• Monthly Amount: $10.00 (USD)
  • App Server: s-1vcpu-1gb - $5.00
  • Managed PostgreSQL Database: s-1vcpu-1gb - $5.00

Evidence Summary

• Canary Run: ASP.NET Core pattern fixture deployed on Ample; checks passed for streaming-response-service and configuration-secrets.
  • Summary: A Server-Sent Events endpoint read incrementally through the public HTTPS gateway.
  • Observed At: 2026-09-21T01:15:54Z

Example

• ASP.NET Core pattern fixture: Multi-pattern ASP.NET Core app whose streaming response service module was checked live.