Benzene

Getting Started: Project Templates

Benzene.Templates is a dotnet new template pack with starter projects for every host Benzene supports out of the box: ASP.NET Core, self-hosted HTTP, AWS Lambda (API Gateway, SQS, SNS), Azure Functions (HTTP, Service Bus, Event Hub, Event Grid, Queue Storage), and self-hosted workers (Kafka, RabbitMQ, Azure Service Bus). Each one generates a complete, buildable project with a single demo handler (HelloWorldMessageHandler) wired end to end — the fastest way to get a real Benzene service running before you write a line of your own code.

Prerequisites

1. Install the template pack

dotnet new install Benzene.Templates

One-time, per machine. Confirm it installed correctly:

dotnet new list --author Benzene

2. Generate a project

dotnet new benzene.asp -n MyOrderService -o ./MyOrderService
cd MyOrderService
dotnet build

Swap benzene.asp for any of the short names below. -n sets the project/namespace name (every occurrence of the placeholder gets renamed); -o sets the output directory.

Short name What it generates
benzene.asp ASP.NET Core service — no cloud account needed, the quickest way to try Benzene locally
benzene.aws.apigateway AWS Lambda triggered by API Gateway, with a SAM template.yaml
benzene.aws.sqs AWS Lambda triggered by an SQS queue
benzene.aws.sns AWS Lambda triggered by an SNS topic
benzene.azure.http Azure Functions (isolated worker), HTTP trigger
benzene.azure.servicebus Azure Functions (isolated worker), Service Bus trigger
benzene.azure.eventhub Azure Functions (isolated worker), Event Hub trigger
benzene.azure.eventgrid Azure Functions (isolated worker), Event Grid trigger — routes by event type
benzene.azure.queuestorage Azure Functions (isolated worker), Queue Storage trigger
benzene.kafka.worker Self-hosted Kafka consumer (Confluent.Kafka), for a long-running worker/container
benzene.rabbitmq.worker Self-hosted RabbitMQ consumer, for a long-running worker/container
benzene.servicebus.worker Self-hosted Azure Service Bus consumer (Benzene owns the process), for a long-running worker/container

Every generated project has its own README.md with run/deploy instructions and links back to the matching getting-started guide for that host — the template gets you to a buildable starting point; the guide covers everything beyond it (validation, other event sources, testing, observability).

Newer transports, publish cadence: benzene.rabbitmq.worker, benzene.servicebus.worker, benzene.azure.eventgrid, and benzene.azure.queuestorage reference Benzene packages (Benzene.RabbitMq, Benzene.Azure.ServiceBus, Benzene.Azure.Function.EventGrid, Benzene.Azure.Function.QueueStorage) that are complete in the repo but publish to nuget.org on the next release. Until then those four generate fine but won't restore/build (you'll see an NU1101 for the missing package). The other nine work today.

What you get

The HTTP-shaped and Lambda templates (benzene.asp, benzene.aws.apigateway, benzene.aws.sqs, benzene.aws.sns, benzene.azure.http) generate the identical request/response starter handler:

[Message("hello:world")]
[HttpEndpoint("GET", "/hello/{name}")]
public class HelloWorldMessageHandler : IMessageHandler<HelloWorldRequest, HelloWorldResponse>
{
    public Task<IBenzeneResult<HelloWorldResponse>> HandleAsync(HelloWorldRequest message)
    {
        var response = new HelloWorldResponse { Message = $"Hello {message.Name}!" };
        return Task.FromResult(BenzeneResult.Ok(response));
    }
}

That's deliberate — it's the same handler shape that runs unchanged behind every transport Benzene supports (see Getting Started's "core idea in 60 seconds"), so trying a second template after your first one feels familiar rather than like starting over.

The fire-and-forget worker templates (benzene.rabbitmq.worker, benzene.servicebus.worker, benzene.azure.servicebus, benzene.azure.eventhub, benzene.azure.queuestorage) generate the same handler minus the [HttpEndpoint] — a queue/topic message has no HTTP route, so it routes on [Message("hello:world")] alone. benzene.kafka.worker (literal Kafka topic-name routing) and benzene.azure.eventgrid (routes by event type, [Message("hello.world")]) are each a deliberately different shape — see their generated READMEs.

Visual Studio

Not yet independently verified against a real Visual Studio 2026 install from this repo — confirm the exact click-path before treating this as final.

Templates installed via dotnet new install are expected to surface automatically in File → New → Project, without a separate Visual Studio extension:

  1. dotnet new install Benzene.Templates from any terminal (once).
  2. Visual Studio → File → New → Project → type "Benzene" in the search box.
  3. Pick a template (e.g. "Benzene AWS Lambda (API Gateway)"), name the project, choose a location, Create.

Rider

Not yet independently verified against a real Rider install from this repo — confirm the exact click-path before treating this as final.

JetBrains Rider is expected to discover dotnet new-installed templates directly, without a plugin:

  1. dotnet new install Benzene.Templates from a terminal (once) — Rider's own terminal panel works too.
  2. Rider → New Solution → search "Benzene" in the template list.
  3. Pick a template, configure the name/location, Create. If Rider was already open when you ran dotnet new install, reopen the New Solution dialog (or restart Rider) to pick up the newly-installed template.

Troubleshooting

See Also