Using Semantic Kernel in the ABP Framework

This guide demonstrates how to integrate Microsoft’s Semantic Kernel SDK with the ABP.io framework. It includes a wrapper implementation to help you create AI-powered plugins for your ABP application services in a clean, modular way.

🏗️ Architecture Overview

The solution consists of two primary modules:

WafiOpenAISemanticKernelModule
Core module that provides integration with Semantic Kernel.
WafiSmartHRAIPluginModule
Sample implementation module demonstrating how to create AI plugins for business entities.

⚙️ Implementation Steps

Follow these steps to integrate Semantic Kernel into your ABP application.

🔹 Step 1: Add the Package to Your HttpApi Project

Add the Semantic Kernel wrapper package:

dotnet add YourApp.HttpApi.csproj package Wafi.Abp.OpenAISemanticKernel

Add the module dependency and configure Semantic Kernel options:
This connects your ABP module with the Semantic Kernel framework and sets up OpenAI credentials.

[DependsOn(
    // your existing dependencies
    typeof(WafiOpenAISemanticKernelModule)
)]
public class YourAppHttpApiModule : AbpModule
{
    public override void ConfigureServices(ServiceConfigurationContext context)
    {
        var configuration = context.Services.GetConfiguration();

        Configure<WafiOpenAISemanticKernelOptions>(options =>
        {
            options.ModelId = configuration.GetValue<string>("SemanticKernel:OpenAI:ModelId");
            options.ApiKey = configuration.GetValue<string>("SemanticKernel:OpenAI:ApiKey");
        });
    }
}

Add the following configuration to your appsettings.json:

{
  "SemanticKernel": {
    "OpenAI": {
      "ApiKey": "your-openai-key",
      "ModelId": "gpt-4"
    }
  }
}

✅ This exposes the /api/OpenAISemanticKernel/ai/ask endpoint automatically, which the chat interface will use to interact with Semantic Kernel.

Step 2: Implement a Chat Interface

In your Web project, create a chat interface to interact with the /ai/ask API. You can refer to the host/Wafi.SmartHR.Web project for a sample implementation.

🔹 Step 3: Build Plugins to Connect ABP Services with Semantic Kernel

1. Add dependencies to the plugin project:

dotnet add package Wafi.Abp.OpenAISemanticKernel
dotnet add reference ../YourApp.Application/YourApp.Application.csproj

Add this to your plugin module class:

[DependsOn(typeof(YourAppApplicationModule))]
public class YourAppAIPluginModule : AbpModule
{
    // ...
}

2. Create AI Plugins for Your Entities

Each plugin class should clearly describe what the AI will get when calling its methods.

📄 Example: YourEntityPlugin.cs

public class YourEntityPlugin : ApplicationService, ITransientDependency
{
    private readonly IYourEntityAppService _entityService;
    private readonly IAuthorizationService _authorizationService;

    public YourEntityPlugin(
        IYourEntityAppService entityService,
        IAuthorizationService authorizationService)
    {
        _entityService = entityService;
        _authorizationService = authorizationService;
    }

    [KernelFunction]
    [Description("Search for entities by name or any relevant property using a keyword or phrase")]
    public async Task<string> SearchEntitiesAsync(string filter)
    {
        if (!await _authorizationService.IsGrantedAsync(YourPermissions.Default))
        {
            return "You are not authorized to access this data";
        }

        var entities = await _entityService.GetListAsync(filter);
        
        if (entities is null || entities.Items.Count == 0)
        {
            return $"No entities found for filter '{filter}'";
        }

        return JsonSerializer.Serialize(entities);
    }
}

🧠 Be sure to give a meaningful [Description] so that the AI knows exactly what this method does.

3. Create a Plugin Provider

Create a provider class to register your plugin with Semantic Kernel. This is a crucial step that makes your plugin discoverable by the AI system.

using Wafi.Abp.OpenAISemanticKernel.Plugins;
using YourApp.AI.Plugin.YourEntities;

namespace YourApp.AI.Plugin
{
    public class YourEntityPluginProvider : SemanticPluginProviderBase<YourEntityPlugin>, IWafiPluginProvider
    {
        public YourEntityPluginProvider(YourEntityPlugin plugin) : base(plugin) { }

        public override string Name => "Your Plugin Name";
    }
}

🔐 Authorization

All requests are protected by ABP’s permission system. If a user doesn’t have the required permissions, they will receive an appropriate message:

⚠️ You are not authorized to access this data.

The authorization check is performed in each plugin method:

if (!await _authorizationService.IsGrantedAsync(YourPermissions.Default))
{
    return "You are not authorized to access this data";
}

✅ Final Outcome

After completing these steps, your ABP application will have a fully functioning AI assistant powered by Semantic Kernel.

The AI interface can be accessed through the /askai endpoint in your web application. When users send questions to this endpoint, the system:

Processes the natural language query
Determines which registered plugins can fulfill the request
Calls the appropriate application services through the plugins
Returns formatted results to the user

Example 1: Employee List Query

Request:

POST /askai
Content-Type: application/json

{
    "question": "Give me the list of employees"
}

Response:

Here is the list of employees: John Doe – Email: john.doe@example.com – Phone: 1234567890 – Date of Birth: January 1, 1990 – Joining Date: January 1, 2020 – Total Leave Days: 20 – Remaining Leave Days: 20. Jane Smith – Email: jane.smith@example.com – Phone: 0987654321 – Date of Birth: February 1, 1991 – Joining Date: February 1, 2021 – Total Leave Days: 20 – Remaining Leave Days: 15

Example 2: Leave Records Query

Request:

POST /askai
Content-Type: application/json

{
    "question": "Give me the list of employee leave records"
}

Response:

Here is the list of employee leave records: John Doe – Annual leave from January 1 to January 5, 2025 (5 days) – Sick leave from March 15 to March 16, 2025 (2 days)\n – Personal leave from June 1 to June 3, 2025 (3 days) Jane Smith – Sick leave from February 1 to February 3, 2025 (3 days) – Annual leave from July 1 to July 10, 2025 (10 days)”