create-and-run-durable-agent

title: Create and run a durable agent
description: Learn how to create and run a durable AI agent with Azure Functions and the durable task extension for Microsoft Agent Framework
zone_pivot_groups: programming-languages
author: anthonychu
ms.topic: tutorial
ms.author: antchu
ms.date: 11/05/2025
ms.service: agent-framework

Create and run a durable agent

This tutorial shows you how to create and run a [durable AI agent](../../user-guide/agents/agent-types/durable-agent/create-durable-agent.md) using the durable task extension for Microsoft Agent Framework. You'll build an Azure Functions app that hosts a stateful agent with built-in HTTP endpoints, and learn how to monitor it using the Durable Task Scheduler dashboard.

Durable agents provide serverless hosting with automatic state management, allowing your agents to maintain conversation history across multiple interactions without managing infrastructure.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following prerequisites:

::: zone pivot="programming-language-csharp"

• [.NET 9.0 SDK or later](https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download)
• [Azure Functions Core Tools v4.x](/azure/azure-functions/functions-run-local#install-the-azure-functions-core-tools)
• [Azure Developer CLI (azd)](/azure/developer/azure-developer-cli/install-azd)
• [Azure CLI installed](/cli/azure/install-azure-cli) and [authenticated](/cli/azure/authenticate-azure-cli)
• [Docker Desktop](https://www.docker.com/products/docker-desktop/) installed and running (for local development with Azurite and the Durable Task Scheduler emulator)
• An Azure subscription with permissions to create resources

> [!NOTE] > Microsoft Agent Framework is supported with all actively supported versions of .NET. For the purposes of this sample, we recommend the .NET 9 SDK or a later version.

::: zone-end

::: zone pivot="programming-language-python"

• [Python 3.10 or later](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
• [Azure Functions Core Tools v4.x](/azure/azure-functions/functions-run-local#install-the-azure-functions-core-tools)
• [Azure Developer CLI (azd)](/azure/developer/azure-developer-cli/install-azd)
• [Azure CLI installed](/cli/azure/install-azure-cli) and [authenticated](/cli/azure/authenticate-azure-cli)
• [Docker Desktop](https://www.docker.com/products/docker-desktop/) installed and running (for local development with Azurite and the Durable Task Scheduler emulator)
• An Azure subscription with permissions to create resources

::: zone-end

Download the quickstart project

Use Azure Developer CLI to initialize a new project from the durable agents quickstart template.

::: zone pivot="programming-language-csharp"

1. Create a new directory for your project and navigate to it:

[Bash](#tab/bash)

   mkdir MyDurableAgent
   cd MyDurableAgent

[PowerShell](#tab/powershell)

   New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path MyDurableAgent
   Set-Location MyDurableAgent

---

1. Initialize the project from the template:

   azd init --template durable-agents-quickstart-dotnet

When prompted for an environment name, enter a name like `my-durable-agent`.

This downloads the quickstart project with all necessary files, including the Azure Functions configuration, agent code, and infrastructure as code templates.

::: zone-end

::: zone pivot="programming-language-python"

1. Create a new directory for your project and navigate to it:

[Bash](#tab/bash)

   mkdir MyDurableAgent
   cd MyDurableAgent

[PowerShell](#tab/powershell)

   New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path MyDurableAgent
   Set-Location MyDurableAgent

---

1. Initialize the project from the template:

   azd init --template durable-agents-quickstart-python

When prompted for an environment name, enter a name like `my-durable-agent`.

1. Create and activate a virtual environment:

[Bash](#tab/bash)

   python3 -m venv .venv
   source .venv/bin/activate

[PowerShell](#tab/powershell)

   python3 -m venv .venv
   .venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1

---

1. Install the required packages:

   python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

This downloads the quickstart project with all necessary files, including the Azure Functions configuration, agent code, and infrastructure as code templates. It also prepares a virtual environment with the required dependencies.

::: zone-end

Provision Azure resources

Use Azure Developer CLI to create the required Azure resources for your durable agent.

1. Provision the infrastructure:

   azd provision

This command creates:

• An Azure OpenAI service with a gpt-4o-mini deployment
• An Azure Functions app with Flex Consumption hosting plan
• An Azure Storage account for the Azure Functions runtime and durable storage
• A Durable Task Scheduler instance (Consumption plan) for managing agent state
• Necessary networking and identity configurations

1. When prompted, select your Azure subscription and choose a location for the resources.

The provisioning process takes a few minutes. Once complete, azd stores the created resource information in your environment.

Review the agent code

Now let's examine the code that defines your durable agent.

::: zone pivot="programming-language-csharp"

Open `Program.cs` to see the agent configuration:

using Azure.AI.OpenAI;
using Azure.Identity;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI;
using Microsoft.Agents.AI.Hosting.AzureFunctions;
using Microsoft.Azure.Functions.Worker.Builder;
using Microsoft.Extensions.AI;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
using OpenAI;

var endpoint = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT") 
    ?? throw new InvalidOperationException("AZURE_OPENAI_ENDPOINT environment variable is not set");
var deploymentName = Environment.GetEnvironmentVaria