Microsoft .NET is one of the most preferred and widely used technologies in the software development industry. It is a set of technologies that work together to solve different business problems. Over the years, this technological ecosystem has evolved extensively. It provides rich set of tools, libraries and APIs for developing different types of applications and solutions for Web, Mobile, Cloud, Desktop, Gaming, IOT, Mixed Reality and much more.
The first version of .NET Framework released in the year 2002 was an attempt to combine the APIs and system level abstractions that most Windows applications needed. Now more than two decades later, it has become a mature and robust framework. It gives developers the confidence and power to develop scalable, flexible, testable, secure and high performance applications using editors and programming languages of their choice. Recently Microsoft released its much awaited framework called .NET Core, which happens to be a complete rewrite of the .NET Framework. Through .NET Core, developers get the flexibility to develop high performance, cross-platform modular applications.
With the advent of .NET Core, Microsoft came with its latest web framework ASP.NET Core that provides loads of benefits to build modern rich web applications. Some of the benefits like smooth support for latest JavaScript Frameworks, combined MVC and Web API Stack, full support for .NET Core and .NET Standard, new project templates, new Razor Pages support, backward compatibility to run on .NET Framework 4.6.1 and much more enable developers to build next generation cloud-friendly web apps. It also came up with easier dependencies and better CLI and Visual tooling that give developers a smooth development experience.
Microsoft provides different types of .NET implementation that provides rich set of tools, APIs and libraries that do the heavy lifting task of compiling and running our applications. The following are the three major frameworks:
.NET Framework: The .NET Framework is Microsoft’s fully mature software development framework that provides tools, libraries and APIs for smoother and faster application development. It enables developers to build applications for Windows, Windows Phone, Windows Server, Microsoft Azure and Web (hosted using IIS or Docker). As mentioned earlier, the first version of .NET Framework (.NET 1.0) was first released in the year 2002 and beginning with .NET v4.5 it has started supporting .NET Standard specifications.
Other than its support for .NET Standard, it has some core libraries and APIs targeted specifically for Windows environment. It provides support for web and desktop application development through its frameworks like (ASP.NET, Windows Forms and Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). The .NET Framework has some core components like Common Language Runtime (CLR), Common Language Specifications, Base Class Library and more that provide many services, including memory management, type and memory safety, security, networking, and application deployment. Developers get the flexibility to develop applications using their favourite programming language.
.NET Core: .NET Core is Microsoft’s latest .NET framework. It is a complete rewrite of the existing .NET framework. The reason behind creating this new framework was to enable easier cross-platform application development, building modular applications and to make .NET open source. Unlike .NET Framework, .NET Core is fully open-source, which means that the features of this framework directly reflect the skills and desires of .NET developers and the community.
This framework focuses more on agile and modular application development through its deep integration with NuGet packages. In the .NET Core application development, you import assemblies via NuGet. This means instead of depending on one large assembly, you only use those feature-centric assemblies that are needed by your application. Other than cross-platform and modularization benefits, .NET Core enables faster and easier development through its command line tools and flexible deployment strategies.
Similar to the .NET Framework, .NET Core comes with Core CLR which provides type system, assembly loading, a garbage collector, native interop and other basic services. It has its framework libraries, SDK Tools and language compilers that enable the base developer experience. It fully supports .NET Standard, which makes its libraries compatible with .NET Framework, Xamarin and Mono.
Mono: Mono is an open source implementation of the .NET Framework. This project started in the year 2001, but the first stable version of this framework was released in 2004. The Mono framework is based upon the open standards for C# language and Common Language Runtime. It allows developers to write cross platform code targeting Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, and iOS.
The Mono framework contains server components like C# Compiler, Mono Runtime, .NET Framework Class Library, which provides a comprehensive set of classes that provide a solid foundation to build applications and Mono Class Library that contains class libraries which can be used for building Linux applications.
Universal Windows Platform: With the advent of Windows 10 Operating System, Microsoft introduced its new development platform called Universal Windows Platform. This platform enables application development for Windows 10 operating system running on various devices like PC, tablet, phone, Xbox, HoloLens, Surface Hub, etc. Other than UWPs Core APIs, it exposes device specific APIs that can be used for applications targeting specific devices. Developers get the flexibility to build UWP applications using a single API and single development package with the language of their choice. Be it C#, Visual Basic, C++, XAML or Vanilla JavaScript, developers can use their preferred language and create apps that can be shipped to Windows 10 targeted devices through Windows App Store.
The core idea behind UWP is to develop applications that give a standard and seamless user experience across different Windows 10 devices. All UWP apps are packaged in a standard format before they are exposed to the world through Windows App Store.
Our team of Certified Professionals include .NET Architects .NET Consultants, .NET Developers, Principal Consultants, Senior Consultants and Architects, Xamarin Developers and Consultants, Xamarin Specialists, UWP Developers, Consultants and Experts can help you develop .NET Applications as per your business requirements. Our team has the expertise backed with years of rich experience developing scalable and modular applications that are easy to test and maintain. Our team remains committed to give their best, to any challenges kept forward.
.NET Standard is a set of formal API specifications that are implemented by all .NET Frameworks. The idea behind creating the .NET Standard was to unite all .NET implementations and avoid future fragmentation. It enables developers to create portable libraries that can be used across all frameworks (ex: .NET Framework, .NET Core, Mono, Unity, Xamarin, UWP, Windows, Windows Phone).
When compared with .NETs previous PCL, .NET Standard is the next generation idea on portability that allow developers to write portable class libraries that is supported across multiple .NET Implementation. Each .NET implementation targets different versions of .NET Standards and each .NET implementation specifies the highest .NET Standard version it can support.
Recently Microsoft released .NET Standard 2.0 which is supported by the following framework versions (.NET Core 2.0, .NET Framework 4.6.1, Mono 5.4, Xamarin.iOS 10.14, Xamarin.Mac 3.8, Xamarin.Android 8.0, UWP 10.0.16299). .NET Standard 2.0 addresses the limitation of it’s previous version (.NET Standard 1.6) and adds more than 20,000 APIs compatible for different .NET implementations.
Microsoft .NET is the most widely used and accepted technology for application development. The development support that .NET and .NET Community provides is far superior as compared to other development frameworks. Our experts, have been leveraging the power of .NET platform for developing different types of applications. Our expertise includes:
Our Microsoft practice is led by a Microsoft Most Valued Professional and comprised of former Microsoft, Google, IBM and Amazon employees. Our hierarchy of consultants include Principal Consultants, Senior Architects, Senior Managers, Lead Senior Consultants, Senior and Junior Level Consultants and Developers. Our experts leverage the power of .NET and master in developing high performance Websites, Web Applications, Mobile Applications, Cloud Applications, IOT apps, Mixed Reality and VR apps and more.
Our experienced and certified .NET professionals can help you design and develop robust, customizable and flexible solutions that suits your business requirements. Our .NET Architects and API Experts know that powerful apps are backed by scalable APIs. We specialize in creating enterprise-level APIs to power your business. Our team of Top UX Professionals and Enterprise Development Experts create user friendly mobile and tablet solutions while maintaining scalability and performance.
Our clients trust us to deliver complicated projects within a short delivery time frame. We have saved our clients millions of dollars and have proven multiple times that we can be more economical than even offshore options. Our Microsoft practice is led by a Microsoft Most Valued Professional and comprised of former Microsoft, Google, IBM and Amazon employees. Our Microsoft practice is heavily involved in open source projects, enterprise, mobile and cloud-based solutions, too. We leverage the power of .NET and master in developing ASP.NET Web Applications, Cloud-based Applications, Mobile Applications, IOT Applications, Mixed Reality Apps and much more. We have not only senior consultants experienced with any technology, but also the architects who created them.
Cazton is composed of technical professionals with expertise gained all over the world and in all fields of the tech industry and we put this expertise to work for you. We serve all industries, including banking, finance, legal services, life sciences & healthcare, technology, media, and the public sector. Check out some of our services:
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