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Python Language Guide

Python is the reference implementation in this guide and currently contains the most complete end-to-end content set.

If you are new to Azure Functions, this track is the fastest way to understand hosting plans, deployment workflows, and production operations with concrete examples.

flowchart TD
    A[Tutorial Overview]
    A --> B[Consumption Track]
    A --> C[Flex Consumption Track]
    A --> D[Premium Track]
    A --> E[Dedicated Track]
    A --> F[Recipes]
    A --> G[Runtime and Reference]

Architecture first

Before diving into Python-specific details, review Platform for language-agnostic guidance on hosting, scaling, networking, reliability, and security.

Why Python is the reference track

  • Full tutorial coverage across all four hosting plans.
  • Complete recipe set for common Azure integrations.
  • Dedicated runtime/reference docs for operational concerns.
  • Backed by a populated reference app in apps/python/.

Start here

  1. Choose your hosting plan in Tutorial Overview & Plan Chooser.
  2. Follow one full tutorial track from local run through CI/CD.
  3. Use recipes to add integrations (Storage, Cosmos DB, Key Vault, Event Grid, and more).
  4. Keep runtime/reference docs open during production hardening.

What's Covered

Area Document Scope
Tutorial Overview & Plan Chooser Select Consumption, Flex Consumption, Premium, or Dedicated
Tutorial track Consumption (Y1) 7-step flow for classic serverless
Tutorial track Flex Consumption (FC1) 7-step flow for modern default serverless
Tutorial track Premium (EP) 7-step flow for always-warm/VNet scenarios
Tutorial track Dedicated (App Service) 7-step flow for fixed-capacity hosting
Recipes Recipes Index 11 practical implementation recipes
Runtime model v2 Programming Model Decorators, function app structure, binding patterns
Runtime internals Python Runtime Python worker behavior and version/runtime specifics
CLI CLI Cheatsheet az and func operational commands
Host settings host.json Reference Concurrency, retry, logging, and extension settings
Configuration Environment Variables Key app and platform environment settings
Limits Platform Limits Timeouts, payloads, scaling, and service constraints
Diagnostics Troubleshooting Common failures and troubleshooting flow

Tutorial structure at a glance

The tutorial library provides 4 plans × 7 tutorials = 28 tutorials.

Each plan follows the same sequence:

  1. Run locally
  2. First deploy
  3. Configuration
  4. Logging and monitoring
  5. Infrastructure as code
  6. CI/CD
  7. Extending with triggers

This consistent sequence helps teams compare plan behavior without relearning the workflow.

Recipes coverage

The Python recipes section contains production-oriented patterns for:

  • HTTP API design and authentication
  • Storage integrations (Blob, Queue)
  • Data integrations (Cosmos DB)
  • Security patterns (Managed Identity, Key Vault)
  • Event and workflow patterns (Timer, Event Grid, Durable Functions)
  • Edge/network concerns (custom domains and certificates)

See Recipes Index for full links and category grouping.

Reference application

The Python guide is backed by a working reference app:

Use it to validate tutorial steps, copy implementation patterns, and test hosting-plan-specific behavior.

Microsoft Learn alignment

This guide aligns to the official Python developer documentation.

Runtime and feature truth source

If you find any mismatch between this guide and official service behavior, treat Microsoft Learn as authoritative and open a docs issue in this repository.

Cross-language context

If your team supports multiple stacks, compare Python with:

Use Language Guides Overview for a side-by-side worker/programming model matrix.

See Also

Sources