A release notes generator for Azure DevOps.

Rendered markdown file of example release notes

The generator is a function app containing a HTTP triggered function that creates a Markdown file whenever a new release is created in Azure DevOps, using Azure Blob Storage.

• Azure account.
• Azure DevOps Project
• Azure Storage Explorer
• Visual Studio
• Azure Functions and WebJob Tools for Visual Studio

The following tutorial shows how to run locally and deploy the function app via Visual Studio.

1. Clone this repo and open the project in Visual Studio.
2. Rename dev.settings.json to local.settings.json and update the settings. Refer to the application settings table for details. You can ignore AzureWebJobsStorage, AzureWebJobsStorage. Leave StorageAccountConnectionString as is to work with the local storage account in Storage Explorer.
3. In the Storage Explorer, open Local And Attached > Storage Accounts > Right click on Blob Containers > Create Blob Container. Enter the name releases
4. In your command line interface of choice, execute ngrok command ngrok http 7071. Leave open for the remainder of local development.
5. Follow the instructions to create a webhook in Azure DevOps and paste the generated ngrok url so that it reads http://___.ngrok.io/api/ReleaseNotesWebHook
6. Run the app with F5
7. You can test the function without making a new release by editing the webhook, clicking Next to go to the Action dialog, then Test.
8. Check your releases container to find generated release notes.

You'll need a tool that exposes your local function to Azure DevOps. This quickstart uses ngrok.

1. Clone this repo and open the project in Visual Studio.
2. In Solution Explorer, right-click the project, then click Publish.
3. On the right of the publish dialog, select Azure Function App, choose Create New, and then click Create Profile.
4. Connect your Azure account to Visual Studio if you haven't already. When connected, fill out the application hosting settings. Refer to the table for host settings:

Publishing from Visual Studio

5. Click Create Storage Account and follow the account dialog to set your storage account name. Make sure the Account Type is Standard. Click Ok.
6. In the publish dialog click Create

1. When deployment is completed, you'll be directed to a view of of your new function app's details. Click on Manage Application Settings.
2. Refer to the table below to configure your application settings:

3. Click Ok then copy the Site URL. Save for later.

1. In Azure Storage Explorer, expand the newly created storage account.
2. Right click on Blob Containers > Create Blob Container and enter the name releases

1. In your Azure DevOps project, select the project you'd like to generate notes from. On the bottom left hand side, open Project Settings.
2. To the left of the settings, select Service hooks. Click the green button to add a new webhook.
3. In the dialog, select Web Hooks, click Next.
4. In the next dialog, select Release created from the dropdown, click Next.

3. Paste, then update the copied url by so that it reads https://functionappname.azurewebsites.net/api/ReleaseNotesWebHook.
4. Click Finish to save your changes.

Create a new release in Azure DevOps to generate notes. You can also test the function without making a new release by editing the webhook, clicking Next to go to the Action dialog, then Test. Check your releases container to find generated release notes.

• Overview of Azure DevOps Project
• Develop Azure Functions using Visual Studio
• Azure Functions Documentation
• Code and test Azure Functions Locally
• WebHooks with Azure DevOps Services
• Quickstart: Use .NET to create a blob in object storage
• Get started with Storage Explorer