What is .NET Framework?

Complete Architecture

What is Microsoft .Net Framework?

The .Net framework is a software development platform developed by
Microsoft. The framework was meant to create applications, which
would run on the Windows Platform. The first version of the .Net
framework was released in the year 2002.

The version was called .Net framework 1.0. The .Net framework has
come a long way since then, and the current version is 4.7.1.
The .Net framework can be used to create both - Form-based and
Web-based applications. Web services can also be developed using
the .Net framework.
.Net Framework Architecture
      .Net framework architecture diagram
.NET Components
1. Common Language Runtime
The "Common Language Infrastructure" or CLI is a platform on which the .Net programs
are executed.

The CLI has the following key features:

•Exception Handling - Exceptions are errors which occur when the application is
executed.
Examples of exceptions are:
• If an application tries to open a file on the local machine, but the file is not present.
• If the application tries to fetch some records from a database, but the connection to
the database is not valid.
•Garbage Collection - Garbage collection is the process of removing unwanted
resources when they are no longer required.
Examples of garbage collection are
• A File handle which is no longer required. If the application has finished all
operations on a file, then the file handle may no longer be required.
• The database connection is no longer required. If the application has finished all
operations on a database, then the database connection may no longer be required.
•Working with Various programming languages –
As noted in an earlier section, a developer can develop an application in a variety of .Net
programming languages.

1.Language - The first level is the programming language itself, the most common ones are
VB.Net and C#.

2.Compiler – There is a compiler which will be separate for each programming language. So
underlying the VB.Net language, there will be a separate VB.Net compiler. Similarly, for C#, you
will have another compiler.

3.Common Language Interpreter – This is the final layer in .Net which would be used to run
a .net program developed in any programming language. So the subsequent compiler will send
the program to the CLI layer to run the .Net application.
2. Class Library
The .NET Framework includes a set of standard class
libraries. A class library is a collection of methods and
functions that can be used for the core purpose.
For example, there is a class library with methods to handle all file-level
operations. So there is a method which can be used to read the text from a file.
Similarly, there is a method to write text to a file.

Most of the methods are split into either the System.* or Microsoft.* namespaces.
(The asterisk * just means a reference to all of the methods that fall under the
System or Microsoft namespace)

A namespace is a logical separation of methods. We will learn these namespaces

more in detail in the subsequent chapters.
3. Languages
The types of applications that can be built in the .Net framework is classified broadly into the
following categories.

•WinForms – This is used for developing Forms-based applications, which would run on an end
user machine. Notepad is an example of a client-based application.

•ASP.Net – This is used for developing web-based applications, which are made to run on any
browser such as Internet Explorer, Chrome or Firefox.
• The Web application would be processed on a server, which would have Internet
Information Services Installed.
• Internet Information Services or IIS is a Microsoft component which is used to execute an
Asp.Net application.
• The result of the execution is then sent to the client machines, and the output is shown in
the browser.

•ADO.Net – This technology is used to develop applications to interact with Databases such as
Oracle or Microsoft SQL Server.
Microsoft always ensures that .Net frameworks are in compliance with all the supported
Windows operating systems.
.Net Framework Design Principle
The following design principles of the .Net framework is what makes it
very relevant to create .Net based applications.
1.Interoperability - The .Net framework provides a lot of
backward support. Suppose if you had an application built on an
older version of the .Net framework, say 2.0. And if you tried to
run the same application on a machine which had the higher
version of the .Net framework, say 3.5. The application would
still work. This is because with every release, Microsoft ensures
that older framework versions gel well with the latest version.
The garbage collector runs at regular intervals and keeps on
checking which system resources are not utilized, and frees
them accordingly.
2.Portability- Applications built on the .Net framework can
be made to work on any Windows platform. And now in
recent times, Microsoft is also envisioning to make Microsoft
products work on other platforms, such as iOS and Linux.
3.Security - The .NET Framework has a good security
mechanism. The inbuilt security mechanism helps in both
validation and verification of applications. Every application
can explicitly define their security mechanism. Each
security mechanism is used to grant the user access to the
code or to the running program.
4.Memory management - The Common Language
runtime does all the work or memory management. The
.Net framework has all the capability to see those
resources, which are not used by a running program. It
would then release those resources accordingly. This is
done via a program called the "Garbage Collector" which
runs as part of the .Net framework.
5.Simplified deployment - The .Net framework also
have tools, which can be used to package applications
built on the .Net framework. These packages can then be
distributed to client machines. The packages would then
automatically install the application.
Summary
•.Net is a programming language developed by Microsoft. It
was designed to build applications which could run on the
Windows platform.

•The .Net programming language can be used to develop

Forms based applications, Web based applications, and
Web services.

•Developers can choose from a variety of programming

languages available on the .Net platform. The most
common ones are VB.Net and C#.
Typically, "platform" refers to the actual hardware/software upon
which a piece of software is built or for which it is destined.

Example usage: "I built this app for the Windows platform."
"Framework" refers to a collection of libraries/classes with the
common goal of providing a scaffold on which to build
software.

Frameworks might completely alter how you implement your

program or they might just speed up common tasks. Example usage:
"I built this app using an MVC framework for the backend.“

Example of using both terms together: "I built this app for Android
platform devices using Xamarin, an implementation of the .NET
framework."