How do you create an asynchronous method in C#?

Question

Every blog post I've read tells you how to consume an asynchronous method in C#, but for some odd reason never explain how to build your own asynchronous methods to consume. So I have this code right now that consumes my method:

private async void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    var now = await CountToAsync(1000);
    label1.Text = now.ToString();
}

And I wrote this method that is CountToAsync:

private Task<DateTime> CountToAsync(int num = 1000)
{
    return Task.Factory.StartNew(() =>
    {
        for (int i = 0; i < num; i++)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("#{0}", i);
        }
    }).ContinueWith(x => DateTime.Now);
}

Is this, the use of Task.Factory, the best way to write an asynchronous method, or should I write this another way?

Answer 1

I don't recommend StartNew unless you need that level of complexity.

If your async method is dependent on other async methods, the easiest approach is to use the async keyword:

private static async Task<DateTime> CountToAsync(int num = 10)
{
  for (int i = 0; i < num; i++)
  {
    await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(1));
  }

  return DateTime.Now;
}

If your async method is doing CPU work, you should use Task.Run:

private static async Task<DateTime> CountToAsync(int num = 10)
{
  await Task.Run(() => ...);
  return DateTime.Now;
}

You may find my async/await intro helpful.