Microsoft introduced AppCAT, an Azure Migration tool aimed at helping users migrate on-premises .NET applications to the company’s Azure cloud.
Introduced on January 3, the Azure Migrate app and code evaluation tool for .NET, or AppCAT for short, allows users to evaluate .NET source code, binaries, and configurations of an application to find potential issues and opportunities when migrating a .NET application to Azure. . Microsoft said the tool helps discover issues an application might encounter when moved to Azure and recommends modern, cloud-native solutions, improving performance, security and scalability.
Once an analysis is run, AppCAT will report things to check or change to ensure that an application is working properly after moving from on-premises to Azure. Available as a Visual Studio extension or .NET CLI tool, AppCAT explores application technology usage through static analysis of code and dependencies. Microsoft has published instructions for the CLI tool. Both the CLI tool and the Visual Studio extension allow users to save analysis results in HTML, CSV, and JSON formats.
With AppCAT, users can jump to a row that needs attention, troubleshoot issues, mark it as fixed, and save the current status. The tool provides an estimate of how much effort will be required to fix each issue, including estimates for components of applications and projects. Plans call for infusing the vehicle with artificial intelligence capabilities and adding integration with the help of Copilot AI. A more specific evaluation based on the selected Azure target is also planned.
Users can provide feedback on AppCAT through the Visual Studio feedback channel.