What is ASP.NET
ASP.NET is a web application framework. Developers use it to create web pages and applications. The purpose of ASP.NET is to allow developers to build these web applications with minimal coding required.
What is a Web Form?
So, what’s a web form? A web form is a name for web pages built using ASP.NET. This is a page that an internet user requests using their browser. They can request this by entering a URL in their address bar or by clicking on a link from another web page such as Google search results.
Web forms are written using a variety of languages including HTML and server code.
When someone requests a web page, the ASP.NET framework on the server executes the code and generates the HTML file that the browser reads. As a result, the ASP.NET Web Forms page will present the user with the information on the web page. Essentially, an ASP.NET Web Form is a web page created as part of an ASP.NET application.
ASP.NET MVC
Other than ASP.NET Web Forms, another module for creating an ASP.NET web application is ASP.NET MVC. The “MVC” in this name stands for Model-View-Controller. It’s basically an architectural pattern that separates the web application building process into three components.
ASP.NET MVC Functions
VS .NET has a free version you can use.
These three pieces are the model, the view, and the controller. The model component handles the logic for the application, retrieving and storing the model state in the database. Views are the components that are responsible for displaying the UI of the application.
Controllers are the components that deal with user interaction on the app. This handles how the application responds to user input.
| Component | Function | Notes |
| Model | Handles logic for the application | Directly manages data and rules |
| View | Displays the application UI | Multiple views of information are possible |
| Controller | Handles user interaction responses | Converts inputs to commands |
Ease with the MVC Module
Developers may find it easier to create web applications using the MVC module because of this separation. For cross-platform development, developers can use .NET Core. This is a development platform that is provided by both Microsoft and the .NET community that supports Windows, Linux, and MacOS.
What is Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS)?
Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) is web server software for windows. You may be familiar with Apache, the Linux-based web server. This is what IIS is, but for Windows instead. As it is a web server, IIS is used to host websites and applications on the internet.
IIS comes with a graphical user interface that makes managing websites easy. Web administrators can use the tool to configure and publish their websites. ISS is used to serve ASP.NET applications and websites. But the server can also host basic HTML web pages as well.
IIS Functions
Like other web servers, IIS supports the integration of modules that add custom functionality to the server. For example, you could add a module that caches PHP processes to help PHP scripts run faster.
There are a variety of other modules that can be installed on the IIS server based on what the developers want to accomplish. Such as modules that support the running of multimedia files on a website.
IIS Licensing
One downside of IIS is that it isn’t free to use. On the other hand, the Apache web server is completely free because it is open-source. Instead, use of IIS requires a commercial license. Users will also find that they will have to pay more as the number of users on the server increases.
This is one reason why Windows hosting offered by web hosting companies is usually more expensive than Linux hosting. Developers can install IIS on their own computers to test website projects or host them on their own without using a hosting service.
Visual Studio .NET hosting
Microsoft developers like Visual Studio .NET hosting because it gives them dedicated-level performance and stability in their development platforms. Whether it’s development or testing, Visual Studio .NET hosting is a powerful platform that typically comes with uptime guarantees and worry-free operation.
Additionally, standing up standalone dedicated servers to do the same thing is a time-consuming that is wasteful and potentially risky.
Versioning Control Software (VCS)
The construct is typically stacked with some flavor of versioning control software (VCS) which is a software method of controlling versions that go into development. In a hosted environment, component versioning, reversions, and all things development are easily piped through a web browser URL or development interface.
Visual Studio itself has a number of tools that make development as easy as possible and a popular choice for developers. Upgrade wizards allow code from other sources to be easily imported into the .NET framework.
Microsoft is always improving the platform towards supporting the latest in XML Web Services and the latest in Web services standards.
.NET Framework
Although new editions of this software no longer include the “.NET” in their names, all Visual Studio products still run primarily on the .NET Framework. Check your hosting plan parameters to confirm whether it can accommodate Visual Studio .NET.
One of the best things about Visual Studio .NET hosting is how flexible it is, allowing for many languages, styles of programming, styles of working, multiple platform capabilities, and the ability to lock down key component for team development.
It is often noted how empowering and powerful it can be for developers to be able to use their web browsers to connect and sync up to a hosted copy of this platform and start developing in a short amount of time.
Why should I use a hosted solution for Visual Studio .NET?
While you can still download and install Visual Studio on your own computer, just like you used to in the old days, a hosted solution provides a number of benefits, including flexibility to program from anywhere, additional collaboration features, and increased system resources.
Of course, if you run Visual Studio on your own hosted server, make sure to do your research to find a hosting platform that will provide the best performance. There are also Azure-based hosting plans available, which are optimized for Visual Studio hosting.
What languages can I program in with Visual Studio .NET?
Visual Studio allows you to code in most popular languages, including C#, C++, Java, Python, Visual Basic, and more.
What are XML Web services?
XML Web Services allow different applications from different sources to communicate, using standardized protocols. By passing standardized XML, web services share data and processes across a network, allowing users to interface with the original source without needing a custom GUI or additional programming.
Can I create apps for mobile devices?
Yes. Visual Studio was designed to create applications for desktop, web, mobile, and cloud environments. What’s more, you can utilize the same code to create separate apps for each.
Can I create apps for non-Windows devices?
Yes. Being a Microsoft product, the primary focus for Visual Studio is, of course, Windows devices. However, you can create for other devices either by developing web-based applications or by taking advantage of Visual Studio’s global partner ecosystem, which allows you to utilize cross-platform programs, such as Xamarin, to compile your source code for multiple devices, including iOS, Android, and Mac.
Is Visual Studio integrated with other Microsoft services?
Visual Studio is integrated with a number of other Microsoft services. Visual Studio can be purchased and used with MSDN. You can subscribe to Visual Studio services through Azure, and host your website using Azure. It is optimized for developing applications to run on Windows desktops, the Windows Store, and Windows Phone. It can also be used to create custom business applications that integrate with Microsoft SharePoint and Microsoft Office.
What advantages does Visual Studio offer development teams?
Visual Studio provides a number of features for development teams, including version control, unlimited Git or TFVC repos, the ability to program for multiple platforms using the same code, workflow management, code review processes, automated build processes for continuous integration, change tracking, and group management to set access rights and permission for your various development teams.
Why should a programmer use Visual Studio?
Aside from being a powerful programming environment capable of handling many programming languages, Visual Studio offers a number of conveniences for programmers.
The IntelliSense feature auto-completes code for you, increasing speed and accuracy. Like MS Word detecting potential grammar mistakes, Visual Studio adds squiggly lines under code that may cause issues. There are a number of built-in navigation features to make it easier to find your way around large segments of code. Code Lens allows you to quickly view a code’s call structure, navigate to related functions, and see whether its tests are passing, without leaving your code.
You can adjust your layout, view a complete list of errors, and much more.
How can I manage my Visual Studio applications once they’ve been distributed?
Visual Studio provides a number of tools to monitor performance, analytics, and usage for your websites and apps.
You can set up customizable dashboards to track performance, usage, and any crashes. You can establish tests and thresholds, and set up alerts so that you are notified if something isn’t performing to standards. Response times, request logs, and more are available to diagnose performance problems. And you can create custom analytics to determine things such as where users come from and what parts of your app are most popular, so you can continuously optimize and improve.
What is the difference between Visual Studio and Visual Studio Community?
Visual Studio Community is a free version of Visual Studio. It is identical to Visual Studio professional in terms of features and capabilities. However, it has a much more limited license.
- Individual developers can use Visual Studio Community for free to develop apps.
- Organizations can use Visual Studio Communities for an unlimited number of users, so long as it’s being used in a classroom, for academic research, or to contribute to open source projects.
- And non-enterprise organizations (with less than 250 PCs or less than $1M in annual revenue) can use Communities for up to 5 users.
Is .NET open-source?
Yes. In late 2014, Microsoft made the full server-side .NET stack open-source. This includes ASP.NET, the .NET compiler, and the .NET Core Runtime, Framework, and Libraries. The move to open-source was meant to promote the development of .NET application across Windows, Mac, and Linux.
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