Teams App Developer

teams-dotnet

purpose

Microsoft Teams SDK for .NET (C#) patterns — app initialization, activity handling, AI integration, and Adaptive Cards for Tier 3 C# projects.

rules

1. Add the NuGet packages: Microsoft.Teams.Apps, Microsoft.Teams.AI, Microsoft.Teams.AI.Models.OpenAI, and Microsoft.Teams.Plugins.AspNetCore. The SDK targets .NET 8+ and uses the modern minimal API pattern. [teams.net source: Libraries/]

2. Initialize with ASP.NET Core dependency injection: builder.AddTeams() registers core Teams services, then app.UseTeams() returns the App instance for handler registration. When no ClientId is configured, pass skipAuth: true to disable auth validation: builder.AddTeams(skipAuth: true). This replaces the TS Application.create() pattern. [teams.net source: HostApplicationBuilder.cs]

3. Register activity handlers using fluent methods: teams.OnMessage(async (context, ct) => { ... }). Supports pattern matching: teams.OnMessage(@"^hi$", async (context, ct) => { ... }). Handlers are checked in registration order — first match wins. [teams.net source: App.cs]

4. All handlers receive IContext<TActivity> and CancellationToken. Access the activity via context.Activity, the API client via context.Api, storage via context.Storage, and logger via context.Log. This replaces the TS TurnContext pattern. [teams.net source: Context.cs]

5. Send messages with await context.Send("text", ct) or await context.Reply("reply", ct). The Send method accepts strings, ActivityParams, or AdaptiveCard objects. For typing indicators, use await context.Typing(cancellationToken: ct). [teams.net source: Context.cs]

6. Handle Adaptive Card actions with teams.OnAdaptiveCardAction(async (context, ct) => { ... }). Return ActionResponse.Message("text") from the handler. Access submitted data via context.Activity.Value?.Action?.Data. [teams.net source: App.cs]

7. For AI integration, create an OpenAIChatModel (from Microsoft.Teams.AI.Models.OpenAI) with Azure OpenAI or OpenAI credentials. Create a prompt with new OpenAIChatPrompt(model) and call await prompt.Send(input, ct). [teams.net source: OpenAIChatPrompt.cs]

8. Define AI functions using C# attributes: decorate a class with [Prompt] and methods with [Function]. Parameters use [Param]. Or use the fluent API: prompt.Function("name", "desc", async (string param) => result). This replaces TS function-calling with type-safe C# patterns. [teams.net source: Annotations/]

9. Use IContext tuple deconstruction for concise handler code: var (log, api, activity) = context;. This is idiomatic C# that has no TS equivalent. [teams.net source: Context.cs]

10. For OAuth/SSO, call await context.SignIn(new OAuthOptions { ConnectionName = "name" }, ct). Check context.IsSignedIn and access context.UserGraphToken for Microsoft Graph calls. Access Graph via context.UserGraph (user) or context.AppGraph (app-only). [teams.net source: activity_context.py]

11. The SDK uses a plugin architecture. AspNetCorePlugin handles HTTP ingestion (registered by AddTeams()). Add DevToolsPlugin for development. Custom plugins implement IPlugin with lifecycle hooks (OnInit, OnStart, OnActivity). [teams.net source: IPlugin.cs]

12. Default endpoint is POST /api/messages on port 5000 (ASP.NET default) or the PORT/ASPNETCORE_URLS environment variable. This replaces the TS Express endpoint pattern. [teams.net source: AspNetCorePlugin]

patterns

Basic echo bot with ASP.NET Core

using Microsoft.Teams.Apps.Activities;
using Microsoft.Teams.Apps.Extensions;
using Microsoft.Teams.Plugins.AspNetCore.Extensions;

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);
builder.AddTeams(skipAuth: true);

var app = builder.Build();
var teams = app.UseTeams();

teams.OnMessage(async (context, ct) =>
{
    await context.Send($"Echo: {context.Activity.Text}", ct);
});

app.Run();

AI bot with function calling

using Azure.AI.OpenAI;
using System.ClientModel;
using Microsoft.Teams.AI.Models.OpenAI;
using Microsoft.Teams.Apps.Activities;
using Microsoft.Teams.Apps.Extensions;
using Microsoft.Teams.Plugins.AspNetCore.Extensions;

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);
builder.AddTeams(skipAuth: true);

var azureClient = new AzureOpenAIClient(
    new Uri(builder.Configuration["AzureOpenAIEndpoint"]!),
    new ApiKeyCredential(builder.Configuration["AzureOpenAIKey"]!)
);
var model = new OpenAIChatModel("gpt-4", azureClient);

var app = builder.Build();
var teams = app.UseTeams();

teams.OnMessage(async (context, ct) =>
{
    await context.Typing(cancellationToken: ct);

    var prompt = new OpenAIChatPrompt(model);
    prompt.Function("get_weather", "Get weather for a location",
        async (string location) => $"Sunny, 72F in {location}");

    var result = await prompt.Send(context.Activity.Text, ct);
    if (result.Content != null)
    {
        await context.Send(result.Content, ct);
    }
});

app.Run();

Attribute-based prompt class

using Microsoft.Teams.AI.Annotations;

[Prompt]
[Prompt.Instructions("You are a helpful assistant that can search and summarize.")]
public class AssistantPrompt(IContext<IActivity> context)
{
    [Function]
    [Function.Description("Search the knowledge base")]
    public async Task<string> Search([Param] string query)
    {
        // Call your search API
        return $"Found 3 results for: {query}";
    }

    [Function]
    [Function.Description("Get the current user's name")]
    public string GetUserName()
    {
        return context.Activity.From?.Name ?? "Unknown";
    }
}

// Usage in handler:
teams.OnMessage(async (context, ct) =>
{
    var prompt = OpenAIChatPrompt.From(model, new AssistantPrompt(context));
    var result = await prompt.Send(context.Activity.Text, ct);
    if (result.Content != null)
        await context.Send(result.Content, ct);
});

pitfalls

• .NET 8+ required: The SDK uses modern C# features (primary constructors, collection expressions) that require .NET 8 or later.

• No Slack SDK for C#: No official Slack SDK exists for .NET. For the Slack side in Tier 3 C# projects, use REST API patterns from experts/bridge/rest-only-integration-ts.md.

• CancellationToken everywhere: All async methods require passing CancellationToken. Forgetting it compiles but prevents graceful shutdown.

• AddTeams() before Build(): The builder.AddTeams() call must happen before builder.Build(). Calling UseTeams() without AddTeams() throws at startup.

• Handler registration order matters: Handlers are checked in order. Put specific patterns (OnMessage(@"^help$")) before generic handlers (OnMessage(...)) or the generic handler catches everything.

• ActionResponse return type: OnAdaptiveCardAction handlers must return an ActionResponse, not just call Send. Returning null causes a 500 error.

references

• teams.net source: Libraries/Microsoft.Teams.Apps/App.cs

• teams.net source: Libraries/Microsoft.Teams.AI.Models.OpenAI/OpenAIChatPrompt.cs

• teams.net source: Samples/Samples.AI/Program.cs

• teams.net source: Samples/Samples.Echo/Program.cs

instructions

This expert covers the Microsoft Teams SDK for .NET — the C# equivalent of @microsoft/teams-ai. Use it for Tier 3 C# projects that need Teams SDK patterns. C# projects have SDK support for Teams but not Slack. For the Slack side, pair with experts/bridge/rest-only-integration-ts.md to implement REST-based Slack integration.

Pair with: bridge/rest-only-integration-ts.md for REST-based Slack integration (the unsupported side). TS Teams experts for conceptual architecture reference.

research

Deep Research prompt:

"Write a micro expert on Microsoft Teams SDK for .NET (C#). Cover ASP.NET Core setup (AddTeams, UseTeams, minimal API), activity handler registration (OnMessage with regex, OnAdaptiveCardAction, OnConversationUpdate), IContext<TActivity> (Send, Reply, Typing, Activity, Api, Storage, Log, SignIn, IsSignedIn), OpenAIChatModel/OpenAIChatPrompt for AI, function calling (attribute-based [Prompt][Function][Param] and fluent API), Adaptive Cards (creating and handling actions), plugin architecture (IPlugin lifecycle), state management (IStorage), and context tuple deconstruction. Source from teams.net Libraries source code and Samples."