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NET Framework
.NET is a software framework that is designed and developed by Microsoft.
The first version of the .Net framework was 1.0 which came in the year 2002.
It is a virtual machine for compiling and executing programs written in
different languages like C#, VB.Net, etc.
It is used to develop Form-based applications, Web-based applications, and
Web services. There is a variety of programming languages available on
the .Net platform, VB.Net and C# being the most common ones. It is used to
develop applications for Mobile, Windows and web. Moreover, it provides a
broad range of functionalities and support.
Origins of .NET Technology
There are three significant phases of the development of .NET technology.
OLE Technology
COM Technology
.NET Technology
OLE Technology: OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) is one of the
technologies of Microsoft’s component document. Basically, its main purpose
is to link elements from different applications with each other.
COM Technology: The technology of the Microsoft Windows family of the
operating system, Microsoft COM (Common Object Model) enables various
software components to communicate. COM is mostly used by developers for
various purposes like creating reusable software components, linking
components together to build applications, and also taking advantage of
Windows services. The objects of COM can be created with a wide range of
programming languages.
.NET Technology: .NET technology of collection or set of technologies to
develop windows and web applications. The technology of .Net is developed
by Microsoft and was launched in Feb. 2002, by basic definition, Microsoft’s
new Internet Strategy. It was originally called NGWS (Next Generation Web
Services). It is considered to be one of the most powerful, popular, and very
useful Internet Technology available today.
This framework contains a large number of class libraries known as
Framework Class Library (FCL). The software programs written in .NET are
executed in the execution environment, which is called CLR (Common
Language Runtime). These are the core and essential parts of the .NET
framework.
This framework provides various services like memory management,
networking, security, memory management, and type-safety.
The .Net Framework supports more than 60 programming languages such as
C#, F#, VB.NET, J#, VC++, JScript.NET, APL, COBOL, Perl, Oberon, ML,
Pascal, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Python, Cobra, ADA, etc.
Following is the .NET framework Stack that shows the modules and
components of the Framework.
The .NET Framework is composed of four main components:
1. Common Language Runtime (CLR)
2. Framework Class Library (FCL),
3. Core Languages (WinForms, ASP.NET, and ADO.NET), and
4. Other Modules (WCF, WPF, WF, Card Space, LINQ, Entity Framework, Parallel
LINQ, Task Parallel Library, etc.)
CLR (Common Language Runtime)
It is a program execution engine that loads and executes the program. It
converts the program into native code. It acts as an interface between the
framework and operating system. It does exception handling, memory
management, and garbage collection. Moreover, it provides security, type-
safety, interoperability, and portability.
FCL (Framework Class Library)
It is a standard library that is a collection of thousands of classes and used to
build an application. The BCL (Base Class Library) is the core of the FCL and
provides basic functionalities.
WinForms
Windows Forms is a smart client technology for the .NET Framework, a set of
managed libraries that simplify common application tasks such as reading
and writing to the file system.
ASP.NET
ASP.NET is a web framework designed and developed by Microsoft. It is used
to develop websites, web applications, and web services. It provides a
fantastic integration of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It was first released in
January 2002.
ADO.NET
ADO.NET is a module of .Net Framework, which is used to establish a
connection between application and data sources. Data sources can be such
as SQL Server and XML. ADO .NET consists of classes that can be used to
connect, retrieve, insert, and delete data.
WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation)
Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) is a graphical subsystem by
Microsoft for rendering user interfaces in Windows-based applications. WPF,
previously known as "Avalon", was initially released as part of .NET
Framework 3.0 in 2006. WPF uses DirectX (which is a collection of APIs for
handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming and
video, on Microsoft platforms).
WCF (Windows Communication Foundation)
It is a framework for building service-oriented applications. Using WCF, you
can send data as asynchronous messages from one service endpoint to
another.
WF (Workflow Foundation)
Windows Workflow Foundation (WF) is a Microsoft technology that provides
an API, an in-process workflow engine, and a rehostable designer to
implement long-running processes as workflows within .NET applications.
LINQ (Language Integrated Query)
It is a query language, introduced in .NET 3.5 framework. It is used to make
the query for data sources with C# or Visual Basics programming languages.
Entity Framework
It is an ORM (Object Relational Mapping) based open source framework
which is used to work with a database using .NET objects. It eliminates a lot
of developers’ effort to handle the database. It is Microsoft's recommended
technology to deal with the database.
Parallel LINQ
Parallel LINQ or PLINQ is a parallel implementation of LINQ to objects. It
combines the simplicity and readability of LINQ and provides the power of
parallel programming.
It can improve and provide fast speed to execute the LINQ query by using all
available computer capabilities.
Apart from the above features and libraries, .NET includes other APIs and
Model to improve and enhance the .NET framework.
In 2015, Task parallel and Task parallel libraries were added. In .NET 4.5, a
task-based asynchronous model was added.
