When you need to execute periodic tasks like calling a URL endpoint (http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run) in an MVC application, .NET provides several native solutions before considering third-party libraries.

The simplest approach is using Windows Task Scheduler combined with a PowerShell script:

# Save this as RunBackgroundTask.ps1
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run" -UseDefaultCredentials

Then create a scheduled task that runs daily using:

# Command to create the task
$Action = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "PowerShell.exe" -Argument "-File C:\Path\To\RunBackgroundTask.ps1"
$Trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -Daily -At 3am
Register-ScheduledTask -TaskName "AD Sync Task" -Action $Action -Trigger $Trigger -RunLevel Highest

For a more integrated solution within your MVC application, Hangfire is excellent despite being a third-party library:

// Install-Package Hangfire
// In Startup.cs
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
    services.AddHangfire(config => config.UseSqlServerStorage("YourConnectionString"));
}

// Schedule the daily task
RecurringJob.AddOrUpdate("ad-sync", () => 
    new BackgroundTaskController().Run(), Cron.Daily);

For modern ASP.NET Core applications, implement a background service:

public class AdSyncService : BackgroundService
{
    private readonly HttpClient _httpClient;
    
    protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken stoppingToken)
    {
        while (!stoppingToken.IsCancellationRequested)
        {
            await _httpClient.GetAsync("http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run");
            await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromDays(1), stoppingToken);
        }
    }
}

When calling internal endpoints:

• Add authentication to your endpoint
• Consider using app-specific credentials
• Validate request origin if possible

Implement proper logging to track execution:

// In your controller
public IActionResult Run()
{
    _logger.LogInformation("AD sync started at {Time}", DateTime.UtcNow);
    try {
        // Your sync logic
    }
    catch (Exception ex) {
        _logger.LogError(ex, "AD sync failed");
    }
}

If you're using Azure, WebJobs provide excellent scheduling:

// In a console app
static void Main()
{
    var host = new JobHost();
    host.Call(typeof(Program).GetMethod("SyncAd"));
}

[NoAutomaticTrigger]
public static void SyncAd(TextWriter log)
{
    // Your sync code
}

When building enterprise applications, we often need to run scheduled background processes. In this case, we have an ASP.NET MVC controller endpoint (BackgroundTask/Run) that performs Active Directory synchronization and updates our database. The challenge is triggering this automatically without manual browser access or external dependencies.

While third-party tools like Hangfire exist, .NET provides built-in mechanisms:

// Option 1: Windows Task Scheduler with PowerShell
$Trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -Daily -At "3am"
$Action = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "powershell.exe" -Argument "Invoke-WebRequest -Uri 'http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run' -UseBasicParsing"
Register-ScheduledTask -TaskName "AD Sync" -Trigger $Trigger -Action $Action

For modern applications, implement IHostedService:

public class AdSyncService : BackgroundService
{
    private readonly IHttpClientFactory _clientFactory;
    
    public AdSyncService(IHttpClientFactory clientFactory) 
    {
        _clientFactory = clientFactory;
    }

    protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken stoppingToken)
    {
        while (!stoppingToken.IsCancellationRequested)
        {
            var client = _clientFactory.CreateClient();
            await client.GetAsync("http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run");
            
            await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromDays(1), stoppingToken);
        }
    }
}

For SQL Server environments, consider a SQL Agent job that calls the endpoint:

DECLARE @Object INT
DECLARE @ResponseText NVARCHAR(MAX)

EXEC sp_OACreate 'MSXML2.XMLHTTP', @Object OUT
EXEC sp_OAMethod @Object, 'open', NULL, 'GET', 'http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run', 'false'
EXEC sp_OAMethod @Object, 'send'
EXEC sp_OADestroy @Object

When implementing scheduled tasks:

• Add authentication tokens to your endpoint calls
• Consider firewall rules for internal service calls
• Implement logging to verify execution
• Set up health checks for monitoring

If using Azure, WebJobs provide robust scheduling:

public static void ProcessTimerJob([TimerTrigger("0 0 3 * * *")] TimerInfo timer)
{
    var client = new HttpClient();
    client.GetAsync("http://myapp/BackgroundTask/Run").Wait();
}