# Host GraphQL API with ASP.NET Core: Worker Execution and Job State

## Summary
Deploy a GraphQL API built with ASP.NET Core as a public web service plus a dedicated worker process on Ample. `ample plan --write` discovers both services and their shared database and writes ample.toml; `ample up` reconciles the topology: a managed PostgreSQL 16 database, a public web microVM and a private worker microVM (kind worker, no public URL), both reading DATABASE_URL. Verified on ASP.NET Core: a separately deployed worker service (kind worker, no public URL) sharing a declared managed PostgreSQL database with the web service, consuming a jobs table with row locks and marking jobs done once (worker=done attempts=1). Not separately tested: your job payloads, retry policy and scheduling; treat the GraphQL API-specific behavior as your application code.

## Representative Queries
- Host GraphQL API with ASP.NET Core: worker execution and job state
- Where can I host GraphQL API built with ASP.NET Core?
- I need a separately runnable worker, durable job records, and idempotent retries; not a managed queue.

## Resource Requirements
- **Primitive 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.

## Framework
**ASP.NET Core**

## Workload
**GraphQL API**

## Release Status
**Published**

## Support Status
**Verified**

## Execution Status
**Ready**

## Prerequisites
- A repository with the web app and the worker as separate service directories (the fixture uses apps/web and apps/worker), each building and starting 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; the worker starts with dotnet of its own console project (plain Npgsql) and binds no port).
- Both services read DATABASE_URL at runtime and share one jobs table; the worker claims rows with SELECT ... FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED and marks them done once.
- An Ample account token with servers:write and databases:write (ample up creates the database).

## Tested Configuration
- **Template**: dotnet-10
- **Runtime**: dotnet
- **Size**: s-1vcpu-1gb
- **Build**: dotnet publish -c Release -o out
- **Start**: ASPNETCORE_URLS=http://0.0.0.0:$PORT dotnet out/$(basename $(ls out/*.runtimeconfig.json | head -n 1) .runtimeconfig.json).dll

## Workflow Steps
1. **Plan the topology**  
   Run the planner once. It discovers the web and worker services, infers kind = "worker" for the process without a port, declares the database each service needs, and writes ample.toml. Exit 2 means it left questions in the manifest; answer them with --answer or by editing the file.  
   **Command**: ample plan --write .

2. **Share one database**  
   Keep a single [databases.main] with engine = "postgres", drop any per-service database the planner added, and set DATABASE_URL = { database = "main" } under both [services.web.env] and [services.worker.env].  
   **Command**: ample plan --offline .

3. **Apply**  
   Reconcile the whole manifest in dependency order: the database first, then both services. It is idempotent and never destructive; exit 0 means everything applied, 2 needs input, 1 a failed resource (independent siblings still proceed and re-running resumes).  
   **Command**: ample up .

4. **Verify**  
   Fetch the web service URL and its worker status route (/p/worker-queue/status in the example) and confirm the worker processed the enqueued job; on failure read the worker service's runtime logs.  
   **Command**: ample logs --kind runtime

## Examples
- **ASP.NET Core Web + Worker Fixture**: A ASP.NET Core web app (apps/web) and a worker process (apps/worker) sharing one managed PostgreSQL database; the queue module is under tests/deploy-canaries/_pattern-modules.  
   **Source Reference**: tests/deploy-canaries/asp-net-core-worker

## Success Checks
- **Web service responds on its public URL**  
   **Kind**: http_get  
   **Path**: /  
   **Expect**: ample canary asp net core patterns

- **Worker consumed the enqueued job**  
   **Kind**: http_get  
   **Path**: /p/worker-queue/status  
   **Expect**: worker=done attempts=1 result=processed-by-worker

## Limitations
- Verified on the dotnet-10 template at s-1vcpu-1gb for both services with the example fixture; other sizes, templates, and ASP.NET Core major versions are not verified.
- The GraphQL API itself (your job payloads, retry policy, and scheduling) is application code and was not separately tested; the worker-queue check is what was verified.
- The worker is a single long-running process supervised in its own microVM; there is no scheduler, cron, or horizontal worker scaling in this recipe, and the check ran immediately after deployment so idle behavior of the worker VM is not verified.
- The worker service is private: it has no public URL and is reached only through the shared database; both services are placed with their database.
- Managed PostgreSQL 16 only; extensions, connection limits, and backup or restore procedures are not verified; apps and their databases are placed together.
- Region, compliance attestations, and request-duration limits are unknown and not claimed.

## Cost Estimate
- **Currency**: USD  
- **Monthly Amount**: 15.0  
- **Authoritative**: true  
- **Basis**: size prices from pricing.toml (loaded by the API) at build revision 1ac5595375130d45290090e82ed0f554ccd45405-dirty  
- **Components**:
  - **Web server** : s-1vcpu-1gb : 1.0 : 5.0  
  - **Worker server** : s-1vcpu-1gb : 1.0 : 5.0  
  - **Managed PostgreSQL database** : s-1vcpu-1gb : 1.0 : 5.0  
- **Note**: Always-on monthly price of the tested sizes for the web service, the worker service, and the database; apps auto-pause when idle.

## Evidence Summary
- **Kind**: canary_run  
- **Summary**: ASP.NET Core web service plus a separate ASP.NET Core worker process deployed on Ample with `ample plan --write` then `ample up` (dotnet publish -c Release -o out in the builder, then dotnet .dll on the dotnet-10 template with ASPNETCORE_URLS bound to PORT); the web service enqueued a job that the private worker service consumed from the shared managed PostgreSQL database. Pattern proof: a separately deployed worker service (kind worker, no public URL) sharing a declared managed PostgreSQL database with the web service, consuming a jobs table with row locks and marking jobs done once (worker=done attempts=1).
- **Observed At**: 2026-09-20T23:09:18Z  
- **Implementation Revision**: deb0e34-dirty (CLI 0.1.21)  
- **Expires At**: 2027-03-19T23:09:18Z

## Last Verified At
2026-09-20T23:09:18Z

## Unknowns
- region availability is unknown until a verified region fact is recorded
- compliance attestations are unknown; none are claimed

## Formats
- **HTML**: https://ample.computer/recipes/graphql-api/asp-net-core/worker-state  
- **Markdown**: https://ample.computer/recipes/graphql-api/asp-net-core/worker-state.md  
- **JSON**: https://api.ample.computer/v1/catalog/recipes/page%3Arecipes%3Agraphql-api%3Aasp-net-core%3Aworker-state