What Are Health Checks and Why Do We Use Them?

2025-02-13

Health checks provide a way to monitor and verify the health of various components of an application, including:

• APIs
• Caches
• Databases
• External services

ASP .NET Core has built-in support for implementing health checks. The application’s health is returned from a health check endpoint. You can integrate health checks with a cloud monitoring system. The cloud service can use this information to reroute requests from unhealthy app instances and even replace unhealthy instances altogether.

Learn more about health checks here: https://lnkd.in/eZBV56yA

Practical Implementation of Health Checks in ASP .NET Core

To implement health checks in ASP .NET Core, follow these steps:

1. Install the Health Checks Package

Use the following NuGet command to install the required package:

dotnet add package Microsoft.Extensions.Diagnostics.HealthChecks

2. Configure Health Checks in Startup.cs

Add health checks services in the `ConfigureServices` method:

public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
services.AddHealthChecks()
.AddCheck<ExampleHealthCheck>("example_health_check");
}

3. Create a Custom Health Check

Implement a custom health check by creating a class:

public class ExampleHealthCheck : IHealthCheck
{
public Task<HealthCheckResult> CheckHealthAsync(
HealthCheckContext context, 
CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
{
var healthCheckResult = HealthCheckResult.Healthy("Everything is OK!");
return Task.FromResult(healthCheckResult);
}
}

4. Map Health Check Endpoint

Add a health check endpoint in the `Configure` method:

public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IHostingEnvironment env)
{
app.UseEndpoints(endpoints =>
{
endpoints.MapHealthChecks("/health");
});
}

5. Test the Health Check

Run your application and navigate to `/health` to see the health status.

What Undercode Say

Health checks are an essential part of modern application development, ensuring that your system remains robust and reliable. By integrating health checks into your ASP .NET Core applications, you can proactively monitor the health of critical components like APIs, databases, and external services. This allows for quick identification and resolution of issues, minimizing downtime and improving user experience.

In addition to ASP .NET Core, health checks are widely used in other technologies. For example, in Linux-based systems, you can use commands like `systemctl status` to check the health of services or `curl` to test API endpoints. Similarly, in Windows, PowerShell commands like `Test-NetConnection` can be used to verify network connectivity.

For cloud-based systems, integrating health checks with monitoring tools like Azure Monitor or AWS CloudWatch can provide real-time insights into your application’s performance. This enables automated scaling and failover mechanisms, ensuring high availability.

To further enhance your knowledge, explore these resources:

• ASP .NET Core Health Checks Documentation
• Linux System Monitoring Commands
• Windows PowerShell for IT Professionals

By mastering health checks and related monitoring techniques, you can build resilient systems that stand the test of time. Keep experimenting with different tools and commands to deepen your understanding and stay ahead in the ever-evolving world of IT and cybersecurity.

References:

Hackers Feeds, Undercode AI