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Can I Run IronXL with .NET on Azure?

Chaknith Bin

Updated:June 22, 2025

Yes, IronXL can be used on Azure to generate QR & Barcodes in C# & VB .NET Applications, and also read Barcodes & QR Codes from scanned images.

IronXL has been thoroughly tested on multiple Azure platforms including MVC websites, Azure Functions, and many more.

Step 1

1. Install IronXL to Get Started

First install with NuGet: https://www.nuget.org/packages/IronXL.Excel

Install-Package IronXL.Excel

How to Tutorial

2. Performance and Azure Tiers

We recommend that Azure B1 hosting levels are very suitable for our end users' Library needs. If they are creating a high throughput system, this may need to be upgraded.

3. Framework Choice

We have found that IronXL for Core and for Framework both work on Azure. .NET Standard applications seem to have a small performance advantage on speed and stability, but use more memory in process.

Azure free tier hosting is slow

Azure free and shared tiers, and the consumption plan, are not suitable for QR processing. We recommend Azure B1 hosting/Premium plan, which is what we use ourselves.

4. Docker on Azure

One way to gain the ability to control performance on Azure is to use IronXL applications and Functions from within Docker Containers.

We have a comprehensive IronXL Azure Docker tutorial for Linux and Windows instances and it is recommended reading.

5. Official Azure Function Support

IronXL supports Azure Function (Azure Functions V3). It hasn't been tested with V4 till now, but it is in our queue.

Working Azure Function Code Example

Tested on Azure Functions v3.3.1.0+. Here is a sample code:

using System.Net;
using Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs;
using Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs.Extensions.Http;
using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Http;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;
using IronXL;
using System.Net.Http.Headers;

// This is an Azure Function that processes an HTTP request and returns an Excel file
[FunctionName("excel")]
public static HttpResponseMessage Run(
    [HttpTrigger(AuthorizationLevel.Anonymous, "get", "post", Route = null)] HttpRequest req,
    ILogger log)
{
    // Log the processing of the request
    log.LogInformation("C# HTTP trigger function processed a request.");

    // Set the IronXL license key
    IronXL.License.LicenseKey = "Key";

    // Load an existing workbook
    var workBook = WorkBook.Load("test-wb.xlsx");

    // Create a response with the workbook content as an attachment
    var result = new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.OK);
    result.Content = new ByteArrayContent(workBook.ToByteArray());
    result.Content.Headers.ContentDisposition = new ContentDispositionHeaderValue("attachment")
    { 
        FileName = $"{DateTime.Now:yyyyMMddmm}.xlsx" 
    };
    result.Content.Headers.ContentType = new MediaTypeHeaderValue("application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet");

    // Return the response
    return result;
}

using System.Net;
using Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs;
using Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs.Extensions.Http;
using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Http;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;
using IronXL;
using System.Net.Http.Headers;

// This is an Azure Function that processes an HTTP request and returns an Excel file
[FunctionName("excel")]
public static HttpResponseMessage Run(
    [HttpTrigger(AuthorizationLevel.Anonymous, "get", "post", Route = null)] HttpRequest req,
    ILogger log)
{
    // Log the processing of the request
    log.LogInformation("C# HTTP trigger function processed a request.");

    // Set the IronXL license key
    IronXL.License.LicenseKey = "Key";

    // Load an existing workbook
    var workBook = WorkBook.Load("test-wb.xlsx");

    // Create a response with the workbook content as an attachment
    var result = new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.OK);
    result.Content = new ByteArrayContent(workBook.ToByteArray());
    result.Content.Headers.ContentDisposition = new ContentDispositionHeaderValue("attachment")
    { 
        FileName = $"{DateTime.Now:yyyyMMddmm}.xlsx" 
    };
    result.Content.Headers.ContentType = new MediaTypeHeaderValue("application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet");

    // Return the response
    return result;
}

Imports System.Net
Imports Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs
Imports Microsoft.Azure.WebJobs.Extensions.Http
Imports Microsoft.AspNetCore.Http
Imports Microsoft.Extensions.Logging
Imports IronXL
Imports System.Net.Http.Headers

' This is an Azure Function that processes an HTTP request and returns an Excel file
<FunctionName("excel")>
Public Shared Function Run(<HttpTrigger(AuthorizationLevel.Anonymous, "get", "post", Route := Nothing)> ByVal req As HttpRequest, ByVal log As ILogger) As HttpResponseMessage
	' Log the processing of the request
	log.LogInformation("C# HTTP trigger function processed a request.")

	' Set the IronXL license key
	IronXL.License.LicenseKey = "Key"

	' Load an existing workbook
	Dim workBook = WorkBook.Load("test-wb.xlsx")

	' Create a response with the workbook content as an attachment
	Dim result = New HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.OK)
	result.Content = New ByteArrayContent(workBook.ToByteArray())
	result.Content.Headers.ContentDisposition = New ContentDispositionHeaderValue("attachment") With {.FileName = $"{DateTime.Now:yyyyMMddmm}.xlsx"}
	result.Content.Headers.ContentType = New MediaTypeHeaderValue("application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet")

	' Return the response
	Return result
End Function

Chaknith Bin

  Chat with engineering team now

Software Engineer

Chaknith works on IronXL and IronBarcode. He has deep expertise in C# and .NET, helping improve the software and support customers. His insights from user interactions contribute to better products, documentation, and overall experience.

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