05 - Infrastructure as Code (Dedicated)¶

Describe your Java Function App platform using Bicep so provisioning is deterministic and easy to review.

Prerequisites¶

Tool	Version	Purpose
JDK	17+	Compile and run Java functions locally
Maven	3.6+	Build and package Java artifacts
Azure Functions Core Tools	v4	Start local host and publish artifacts
Azure CLI	2.61+	Provision Azure resources and inspect app state

Dedicated plan basics

Dedicated (App Service Plan) runs Functions on reserved VM instances with fixed monthly cost. B1 provides 1 vCPU and 1.75 GB memory. AlwaysOn keeps the function host loaded, eliminating cold starts. Choose Dedicated when you already operate App Service workloads or need predictable billing.

What You'll Build¶

You will create a Bicep template that provisions a Dedicated B1 Function App with Java 17 runtime, AlwaysOn enabled, and Application Insights — all in a single repeatable deployment. Unlike Premium, Dedicated does not require Azure Files content share settings.

flowchart TD
    A[Bicep template] --> B[az deployment group create]
    B --> C[App Service Plan B1]
    B --> D[Storage Account]
    B --> E[Application Insights]
    C --> F["Function App\nJava 17 Linux\nAlwaysOn"]
    D --> F
    E --> F
    F --> G["func azure functionapp publish"]

Steps¶

Step 1 - Author Bicep parameters¶

param location string = resourceGroup().location
param baseName string

var appServicePlanName = 'plan-${baseName}'
var functionAppName = 'func-${baseName}'
var storageAccountName = toLower(replace('st${baseName}', '-', ''))
var appInsightsName = 'ai-${baseName}'
var logAnalyticsName = 'log-${baseName}'

Step 2 - Define storage account¶

resource storageAccount 'Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts@2023-05-01' = {
  name: storageAccountName
  location: location
  kind: 'StorageV2'
  sku: {
    name: 'Standard_LRS'
  }
  properties: {
    supportsHttpsTrafficOnly: true
    minimumTlsVersion: 'TLS1_2'
  }
}

Step 3 - Define Log Analytics and Application Insights¶

resource logAnalytics 'Microsoft.OperationalInsights/workspaces@2022-10-01' = {
  name: logAnalyticsName
  location: location
  properties: {
    sku: {
      name: 'PerGB2018'
    }
    retentionInDays: 30
  }
}

resource appInsights 'Microsoft.Insights/components@2020-02-02' = {
  name: appInsightsName
  location: location
  kind: 'web'
  properties: {
    Application_Type: 'web'
    WorkspaceResourceId: logAnalytics.id
  }
}

Step 4 - Define Dedicated plan and Function App¶

resource appServicePlan 'Microsoft.Web/serverfarms@2024-04-01' = {
  name: appServicePlanName
  location: location
  kind: 'linux'
  sku: {
    name: 'B1'
    tier: 'Basic'
  }
  properties: {
    reserved: true
  }
}

resource functionApp 'Microsoft.Web/sites@2024-04-01' = {
  name: functionAppName
  location: location
  kind: 'functionapp,linux'
  properties: {
    serverFarmId: appServicePlan.id
    siteConfig: {
      linuxFxVersion: 'JAVA|17'
      alwaysOn: true
      appSettings: [
        { name: 'FUNCTIONS_WORKER_RUNTIME'; value: 'java' }
        { name: 'FUNCTIONS_EXTENSION_VERSION'; value: '~4' }
        { name: 'AzureWebJobsStorage'; value: 'DefaultEndpointsProtocol=https;AccountName=${storageAccount.name};AccountKey=${storageAccount.listKeys().keys[0].value};EndpointSuffix=core.windows.net' }
        { name: 'APPLICATIONINSIGHTS_CONNECTION_STRING'; value: appInsights.properties.ConnectionString }
        { name: 'JAVA_OPTS'; value: '-Xmx512m -XX:+UseContainerSupport' }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Dedicated does not use Azure Files content share

Unlike Premium and Consumption plans, Dedicated plans store deployment artifacts directly on the App Service file system. There is no need for WEBSITE_CONTENTAZUREFILECONNECTIONSTRING or WEBSITE_CONTENTSHARE settings. This simplifies the Bicep template and removes the dependency on shared key access to Azure Files.

AlwaysOn eliminates cold starts

The alwaysOn: true setting keeps the function host process loaded. This is a Dedicated-plan exclusive feature that eliminates cold starts entirely. Consumption and Flex Consumption do not support AlwaysOn.

Step 5 - Deploy infrastructure¶

az deployment group create \
  --resource-group "$RG" \
  --template-file infra/dedicated/main.bicep \
  --parameters baseName="jded-demo"

Step 6 - Deploy application artifact¶

cd apps/java
mvn clean package

cd target/azure-functions/azure-functions-java-guide
func azure functionapp publish "func-jded-demo"

Must publish from staging directory

Always cd target/azure-functions/azure-functions-java-guide before running func azure functionapp publish. Publishing from the project root uploads the package but functions will not be indexed — the host finds 0 functions.

Verification¶

Deployment output:

ProvisioningState    Timestamp
-----------------    --------------------------
Succeeded            2026-04-10T02:20:00.000Z

Verify the deployed resources:

az resource list \
  --resource-group "$RG" \
  --output table \
  --query "[].{name:name, type:type, location:location}"

Expected resources:

Name                    Type                                     Location
----------------------  ---------------------------------------  -------------
plan-jded-demo          Microsoft.Web/serverfarms                koreacentral
func-jded-demo          Microsoft.Web/sites                      koreacentral
stjdeddemo              Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts         koreacentral
ai-jded-demo            Microsoft.Insights/components            koreacentral
log-jded-demo           Microsoft.OperationalInsights/workspaces  koreacentral

Verify AlwaysOn and plan configuration:

az functionapp show \
  --name "$APP_NAME" \
  --resource-group "$RG" \
  --query "{state:state, alwaysOn:siteConfig.alwaysOn, linuxFxVersion:siteConfig.linuxFxVersion}" \
  --output table

State    AlwaysOn    LinuxFxVersion
-------  ----------  ----------------
Running  True        Java|17

Next Steps¶

Next: 06 - CI/CD