432  .NET Framework Using C++/CLI

Rev. 1.0

 

Microsoft .NET is an advance in programming technology that greatly simplifies application development, both for traditional, proprietary applications and for the emerging paradigm of Web-based services. .NET is a complete restructuring of Microsoft’s whole system infrastructure and represents a major learning challenge for programmers developing applications on Microsoft platforms. NET 2.0 includes C++/CLI, which enables the popular Visual C++ language to fully participate in the new .NET Framework. But learning the new programming language is only part of the challenge. The much greater challenge is learning the .NET Framework and all its capabilities.

 

This three-day course is designed to provide a sound introduction to the .NET Framework for programmers who already know the C++/CLI language and the fundamentals of Windows Forms. It is current to .NET 2.0 and Visual Studio 2005. The course focuses on core portions of the .NET Framework that are common across many application areas.

 

The course starts with an introduction to the architecture and key concepts of .NET. It then discusses class libraries, assemblies, versioning, and deployment, which constitute a major advance in the simplicity and robustness of deploying Windows applications, ending the notorious “DLL hell.” The next two chapters discuss important topics in the .NET programming model, including metadata, reflection, I/O, and serialization. The following chapter continues the discussion of the .NET programming model, including memory management, threading, and application domains.

 

.NET Security is introduced in some detail, with an emphasis on code access. The next chapter covers interoperability of .NET with COM and with Win32 applications, as well as C++ interop, exploiting the capability of C++/CLI applications to contain both managed and unmanaged code. The course concludes with an introduction to database programming using ADO.NET. SQL Server 2005 Express Edition is used in database examples.

 

The course is practical, with many examples. The goal is to equip you to begin building significant applications using the .NET Framework. The student will receive a comprehensive set of materials, including course notes and all the programming examples.

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

 

·         Gain a thorough understanding of the philosophy and architecture of .NET

·         Acquire a working knowledge of the .NET programming model and .NET Security

·         Learn how to implement database applications using .NET

 

Course Duration:  3 days

 

Prerequisites:  The student should be an experienced application developer or architect with a working knowledge of C++/CLI, including building simple GUIs with Windows Forms. Suitable preparation would be Object Innovations’ course 431, C++/CLI Essentials.

 

1.      .NET Fundamentals

What is Microsoft .NET?

Common Language Runtime

Attribute-Based Programming

Interface-Based Programming

Metadata

Common Type System

Framework Class Library

Language Interoperability

Managed Code

Assemblies and Deployment

Web Services

ASP.NET

 

2.      Class Libraries

Components in .NET

Building Class Libraries at the Command Line

Class Libraries Using Visual Studio 2005

Using References

 

3.      Assemblies and Deployment

Assemblies

Private Assembly Deployment

Shared Assembly Deployment

Using SDK Tools for Signing and Deployment

 

4.      Metadata and Reflection

Metadata

Reflection

Late Binding

 

5.      I/O and Serialization

Directories

Files

Serialization

Attributes

 

6.      .NET Programming Model

Memory Management and Garbage Collection

Deterministic Cleanup in C++/CLI

Threading and Synchronization

Application Domains

 

7.      .NET Security

Authentication and Authorization

Configuring Security

Code Access Security

Code Groups

Evidence

Permissions

 

8.      Interoperating with COM and Win32

Mixed Managed and Unmanaged Code

.NET Client Calling a COM Server

PInvoke

 

9.      Database Programming Using ADO.NET

ADO.NET Overview

.NET Data Providers

Using DataReaders

Using DataSets

.NET 2.0 Data Binding

Interacting with XML Data

 

System Requirements

 

Course exercises require Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 and MSDN on Windows XP. SQL Server 2005 Express Edition is required for the database chapter. See the appropriate course Setup Guide for details.

 

 A good minimal hardware profile for this course would have a Pentium 1 GHz or equivalent CPU, 512 MB of RAM, and at least 4 GB of free disk space for tools installation and courseware.