CRITICAL OUTAGE: Azure WebApp not finding ODBC Driver

Genesis 76

I am running an app service on Azure which is connected to an Azure SQL database. I have used the same configuration for over 2 years with similar apps and have had no problems. Up until 2 days ago, this app was working without problems as well.

Now, I am getting the error

sqlalchemy.exc.DBAPIError: (pyodbc.Error) ('01000', "[01000] [unixODBC][Driver Manager]Can't open lib 'ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server' : file not found (0) (SQLDriverConnect)")

I have tried drivers 13 and 18 as well as FreeTDS and get the same error. Please advise on a fix. This app is currently in production and experiencing downtime because of the issue.

Thanks and looking forward to the response.

Ben

2 answers

Genesis 76 Reputation points

2022-08-12T09:52:20.69+00:00
I have been informed by Azure support that the problem is a known platform issue that came up after the Antares 99 upgrade. They're working on a solution but as a (temporary) they suggest adding a startup script with

#!/bin/bash apt-get update apt-get install -y unixodbc-dev ACCEPT_EULA=Y apt-get install msodbcsql17 <startup command to launch your application>

This has got the application up and running again.
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7 people found this answer helpful.
Matteo Tadiello 6 Reputation points

2022-08-20T11:10:43.543+00:00

If I have a python app how should I insert that code to install the odbc drivers before starting the app?

Roman Sitelew 1 Reputation point

2022-09-01T16:32:52.733+00:00

This could help:

"Configure a custom startup file for Python apps on Azure App Service":

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/developer/python/configure-python-web-app-on-app-service

Maibücher Stefan 1 Reputation point

2022-09-19T10:33:29.063+00:00

Is there an issue tracker or a site where I can see when the issue will be solved?

SupportProfSwo 31 Reputation points

2022-09-20T11:05:49.203+00:00

Is there any official document for Anteras 99 upgrade related to Azure Web App.

Ryan Hill 25,666 Reputation points Microsoft Employee

2022-09-20T17:22:25.09+00:00

Feature updates are normally posted on https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/updates/?category=web. You can also check out https://azure.github.io/AppService/ for further details. These are the best options currently available.

LEANDRO DARIVA PINTO 11 Reputation points

2022-09-21T17:02:01.447+00:00

I am having this problem too but when I try to add this startup file my app stop working and I receive the following messages.

2022-09-21T16:55:35.216554607Z Unpacking msodbcsql17 (17.10.1.1-1) ...

2022-09-21T16:55:35.566536529Z Setting up msodbcsql17 (17.10.1.1-1) ...

2022-09-21T16:55:35.588650540Z odbcinst: Driver installed. Usage count increased to 1.

2022-09-21T16:55:35.589470392Z Target directory is /etc

as exited, failing site start

2022-09-21T16:55:36.546Z INFO - Initiating warmup request to container ampsystem_0_c98e7188_middleware for site ampsystem

2022-09-21T16:55:36.915Z INFO - Container ampsystem_0_c98e7188_middleware for site ampsystem initialized successfully and is ready to serve requests.

2022-09-21T16:55:36.977Z ERROR - Container ampsystem_0_c98e7188 didn't respond to HTTP pings on port: 8000, failing site start. See container logs for debugging.
2022-09-21T16:55:37.014Z INFO - Stopping site ampsystem because it failed during startup.

But I don't have any clue why it is not starting. Do I need to add a custom startup command on the startup file?

LEANDRO DARIVA PINTO 11 Reputation points

2022-09-21T17:26:44.117+00:00

I found it.
the startup file should containg the following

apt-get update
apt-get install -y unixodbc-dev
ACCEPT_EULA=Y apt-get install msodbcsql17
gunicorn --bind=0.0.0.0 --timeout 600 app:app
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Bjoern Peters 8,781 Reputation points

2022-08-10T11:39:06.767+00:00

As we don't know any details about your system, your application nor your ODBC connection, we just can guess...

It seems (from the error message) that you are running a linux server where your application is running, so something must have been changed on that server, causing trouble with the ODBC driver... Please check your ODBC connection, correct driver, correct path, and correct version, ...

Do you have followed all the steps from this instruction to install your ODBC connector?
Update it/re-install it and try again

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/connect/odbc/linux-mac/installing-the-microsoft-odbc-driver-for-sql-server?view=sql-server-ver15
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Genesis 76 Reputation points

2022-08-10T12:02:19.34+00:00

Hey there

Thanks for the quick response. The way I understand it, installing the driver only allows me to interact with the database from a local instance of the application. The documentation I've read says that the driver should be in Azure WebApps without needing to download or configure this anywhere. Since using these technologies, I have never downloaded a driver into Azure (wouldn't even know where to start) yet this problem only started this week.

Nothing had changed in the application between the time when it was working and when it broke.

Thanks again and hope this helps you better understand my problem

Bjoern Peters 8,781 Reputation points

2022-08-10T17:01:45.55+00:00

Sorry, maybe I hadn't read the "app" in Azure App Services :-(

But this github issue might be a better fit to your problem
https://github.com/mkleehammer/pyodbc/issues/717#issuecomment-1168644166

How do you deploy your app, pure code or as a container?
Maybe - if you read the complete thread on Github - you'll find other tips how to solve your problem.

Genesis 76 Reputation points

2022-08-11T06:13:34.49+00:00

The app is deployed as pure code so most of what is on the GitHub seems irrelevant. I run the commands suggested and the expected output appears. What really confuses me is I've been under the opinion that these drivers do not have to be installed on the Azure Cloud:

https://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/75982c97-1210-491f-a424-49faa4b6601a/azure-app-service-odbc-driver?forum=windowsazurewebsitespreview

I've never installed one into the cloud and its always previously worked.
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