> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.umbraco.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.umbraco.com/ai-in-umbraco/17.latest/using-the-api/embeddings/generating-embeddings.md).

# Generating Embeddings

Generate a single embedding vector for a piece of text. This is the most common operation for search indexing and similarity comparisons.

## Basic Example

{% code title="BasicEmbedding.cs" %}

```csharp
using Microsoft.Extensions.AI;
using Umbraco.AI.Core.Embeddings;

public class EmbeddingExample
{
    private readonly IAIEmbeddingService _embeddingService;

    public EmbeddingExample(IAIEmbeddingService embeddingService)
    {
        _embeddingService = embeddingService;
    }

    public async Task<float[]> GenerateEmbedding(string text)
    {
        var embedding = await _embeddingService.GenerateEmbeddingAsync(
            emb => emb.WithAlias("content-embedding"),
            text);

        // The vector is a ReadOnlyMemory<float>
        return embedding.Vector.ToArray();
    }
}
```

{% endcode %}

## Understanding the Response

The `Embedding<float>` type contains:

| Property    | Type                    | Description                            |
| ----------- | ----------------------- | -------------------------------------- |
| `Vector`    | `ReadOnlyMemory<float>` | The embedding vector                   |
| `ModelId`   | `string?`               | The model that generated the embedding |
| `CreatedAt` | `DateTimeOffset?`       | When the embedding was generated       |

{% code title="EmbeddingDetails.cs" %}

```csharp
var embedding = await _embeddingService.GenerateEmbeddingAsync(
    emb => emb.WithAlias("content-embedding"),
    text);

// Access the vector
ReadOnlyMemory<float> vector = embedding.Vector;
int dimensions = vector.Length; // e.g., 1536 for text-embedding-3-small

// Convert to array if needed
float[] array = vector.ToArray();

// Check which model was used
string? model = embedding.ModelId;
```

{% endcode %}

## Using a Specific Profile

Select a profile by alias directly on the builder. The service resolves the alias for you.

{% code title="WithProfile.cs" %}

```csharp
public class ProfiledEmbeddingService
{
    private readonly IAIEmbeddingService _embeddingService;

    public ProfiledEmbeddingService(IAIEmbeddingService embeddingService)
    {
        _embeddingService = embeddingService;
    }

    public async Task<float[]> GenerateWithProfile(string text, string profileAlias)
    {
        var embedding = await _embeddingService.GenerateEmbeddingAsync(
            emb => emb
                .WithAlias("content-embedding")
                .WithProfile(profileAlias),
            text);

        return embedding.Vector.ToArray();
    }
}
```

{% endcode %}

## Error Handling

{% code title="ErrorHandling.cs" %}

```csharp
public async Task<float[]?> SafeGenerateEmbedding(string text)
{
    try
    {
        var embedding = await _embeddingService.GenerateEmbeddingAsync(
            emb => emb.WithAlias("content-embedding"),
            text);
        return embedding.Vector.ToArray();
    }
    catch (InvalidOperationException ex) when (ex.Message.Contains("profile"))
    {
        _logger.LogError(ex, "Embedding profile not configured");
        return null;
    }
    catch (HttpRequestException ex)
    {
        _logger.LogError(ex, "Failed to reach embedding service");
        return null;
    }
}
```

{% endcode %}

## Next Steps

{% content-ref url="/pages/qu8GYvb7Icuf3oO4oavu" %}
[Batch Embeddings](/ai-in-umbraco/17.latest/using-the-api/embeddings/batch-embeddings.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}


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