Getting Started with ML.NET: Setting Up a Machine Learning Environment

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By enabling systems to learn from data and make predictions or judgments without explicit programming, machine learning (ML) has transformed a number of sectors. Developers can embed machine learning models into their .NET applications using ML.NET, a Microsoft open-source machine learning framework. To make sure you have everything you need to begin your machine-learning adventure, we will walk you through the process of setting up a machine-learning environment with ML.NET in this post.

Installing Visual Studio

Installation of Visual Studio, a popular integrated development environment (IDE) for.NET developers, is the first step in starting our ML.NET adventure. A user-friendly interface and a variety of tools are provided by Visual Studio to make ML.NET development easier. How to install Visual Studio is as follows:

  • Access the most recent version of Visual Studio that is compatible with your operating system by visiting the official Visual Studio website
  • Run the downloaded installer and adhere to the prompts on the screen.
  • You will be prompted to choose the workloads you wish to install during the installation process. Select the workload “.NET desktop development” to access the ML.NET development-specific components.
  • Launch Visual Studio after the installation is finished to move on to the next action.

Setting Up ML.NET

After installing Visual Studio, let’s set up ML.NET:

  • Start Visual Studio, then choose “Create a new project.”
  • Run a search for “ML.NET” in the project template selection screen’s search field. Numerous ML.NET project templates are available, including “ML.NET Console App” and “ML.NET Model Builder.”
  • Based on your needs, select the suitable project template. Choose the “ML.NET Console App” template, for instance, if you wish to create a console application.
  • Click “Create” to start a new ML.NET project after entering the project’s name and location.

Installing ML.NET NuGet Packages

Installing the necessary NuGet packages is necessary in order to use ML.NET in your project. You can manage dependencies with ease using NuGet, a package management for.NET projects. Installing ML.NET NuGet packages is as follows:

  • In the Solution Explorer, right-click the project and choose “Manage NuGet Packages.”
  • Find “Microsoft.ML” in the NuGet Package Manager window and choose the most recent stable version.
  • To include the package in your project, click “Install”.
  • In addition, depending on your particular ML tasks or requirements, you might need to install other ML.NET-related packages. For instance, you can install the “Microsoft.ML.ImageAnalytics” package if you wish to work with image classification.
  • You are prepared to begin researching and leveraging ML.NET in your project after the packages have been installed.

Exploring the ML.NET Documentation

The ML.NET Documentation is a thorough source that provides instructions and examples for using ML.NET successfully. It addresses a broad range of subjects, such as model training, model evaluation, and model deployment. To aid developers in comprehending and making use of ML.NET’s capabilities, the documentation offers step-by-step instructions, code samples, and descriptions of fundamental concepts. Advanced subjects like model explainability, hyperparameter tuning, and transfer learning are also covered in the documentation. It provides advice on how to manage various data kinds, including structured data, text data, and image data, as well as how to pick the best algorithms and models for particular jobs.

Here are some tips for maximizing the ML.NET documentation:

  • Go to the official page of ML.NET documentation.
  • Learn how to use the documentation’s navigation and structure.
  • Start by reading the “Getting Started” section, which gives you an overview of ML.NET, explains its fundamental ideas, and walks you through creating your first ML.NET model.
  • For more information on specific subjects like data loading, data preprocessing, model training, and model evaluation, consult the documentation.
  • To learn more about ML.NET, make use of the code examples and sample projects offered in the documentation.
  • For updates, best practices, and actual use cases, keep a watch on the community resources and the official ML.NET blog.

Accessing ML.NET Samples

It is advised to examine the ML.NET samples offered by the community to get a better knowledge of its capabilities and how to utilize it successfully:

  • To access the ML.NET samples, go to the ML.NET GitHub repository
  • A variety of ML.NET samples arranged in many categories, including classification, regression, clustering, and more, may be found on the repository page. Select the category you are interested in.
  • You can find a selection of sample projects inside the category folder. Each project exemplifies a distinct machine-learning technique or circumstance. Select the sample that best suits your needs, or look through a variety of samples to learn about various ML.NET features.
  • Using the available choices, clone or download the example repository to your local computer. Cloning the repository will make it simple for you to pull updates and contribute to the project if you are familiar with Git.
  • Once you’ve downloaded the sample project to your computer, build and execute the project as directed. Setting up data sources, customizing parameters, or installing extra programs or dependencies can be required.

After the sample has been successfully executed, you can investigate the code and experiment with various parameters to better understand ML.NET and its potential.

You can learn how to use ML.NET in many areas, acquire practical insights into machine learning techniques, and use the community’s contributions to improve your own ML.NET projects by accessing ML.NET samples.

Wrapping Up

The first step in utilizing machine learning in your.NET apps is to set up a machine learning environment using ML.NET. You can prepare yourself for your ML.NET journey by installing Visual Studio, configuring ML.NET, perusing the documentation and samples, joining the community, and staying up to date with new releases. With the help of Microsoft’s vast support network and ML.NET’s user-friendly design, you can begin creating reliable machine-learning models and gaining insightful knowledge from your data. Happy coding!

UI Development in .NET MAUI: Building Beautiful and Functional User Interfaces

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In the field of software development, designing user interfaces (UIs) that are aesthetically pleasing and simple to use is essential for gaining and maintaining user engagement. Developers now have a potent framework at their disposal to create cross-platform applications with gorgeous UIs thanks to the introduction of .NET MAUI (Multi-platform App UI). In this post, we’ll examine the fundamentals of .NET MAUI UI development and learn how to make contemporary, responsive, and user-friendly user interfaces.

Understanding .NET MAUI

Microsoft’s cross-platform .NET MAUI (Multi-platform App UI) framework enables programmers to design native user interfaces (UI) for software that can run on various operating systems, including Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. It is an evolution of Xamarin.Forms and is built on top of the .NET ecosystem.

With the unified development paradigm provided by .NET MAUI, developers can create a single codebase for their business logic and user interface (UI), which can then be distributed to several platforms. This method saves time and effort because there is no longer a need to build unique UI code for each platform.

The framework offers a collection of controls and layouts that are natively generated on each platform, giving the applications a native appearance and feel. Additionally, it provides access to local APIs and support for platform-specific customization, enabling developers to make the most of each platform’s features.

XAML for UI Design

For the purpose of developing user interfaces in .NET applications, especially those created with .NET MAUI, XAML (eXtensible Application Markup Language) is a declarative markup language. It offers a clear and accessible approach to describing the organization, appearance, and behavior of the UI elements. It is simpler for developers and designers to work together when they can separate the UI design from the application functionality using XAML. You can establish data bindings to link UI elements with the underlying data model, specify attributes and events, and describe the visual hierarchy of your UI using XAML.

With the help of the numerous controls, layouts, and style options supported by XAML, you can design engaging user interfaces. Additionally, it enables animations, resources, and templates, allowing you to design extremely adaptable user interfaces.

Responsive Layouts

Responsive layouts refer to the ability of an application’s user interface to adapt and adjust its appearance based on the available screen space and device orientation. In the context of .NET MAUI, responsive layouts play a crucial role in creating user interfaces that can seamlessly adapt to different screen sizes, resolutions, and aspect ratios across various devices.

To achieve responsive layouts in .NET MAUI, developers can leverage XAML’s layout containers such as StackLayout, Grid, and FlexLayout, along with various properties and techniques provided by the framework. These include setting appropriate constraints, using adaptive triggers, employing adaptive layouts, and leveraging platform-specific APIs to optimize the UI for each device type.

Styling and Theming

Styling and theming are essential aspects of UI design that allow developers to define the visual appearance of their applications. In .NET MAUI, developers can use XAML to apply styles and themes to their UI elements, ensuring a consistent and visually appealing user experience.

Styles in XAML allow developers to define a set of visual properties that can be applied to multiple UI elements. This promotes code reuse and simplifies the process of updating the appearance of UI elements throughout the application. Themes, on the other hand, provide a way to switch between different visual styles based on user preferences or application requirements.

By leveraging styles and themes effectively, developers can create visually appealing interfaces, maintain a consistent design language, and enhance the overall user experience.

Data Binding

Data binding is a powerful feature in .NET MAUI that allows developers to establish a connection between the data and the user interface elements. It enables automatic synchronization of data between the model or view model and the UI, reducing the need for manual updates and providing a more responsive and interactive user experience.

In .NET MAUI, developers can use XAML to define data bindings between UI elements and the underlying data sources. This can include binding UI controls to properties, collections, or commands in the code-behind or view model. By establishing these bindings, any changes in the data source are automatically reflected in the UI, and user interactions can update the underlying data seamlessly.

Data binding simplifies the development process by decoupling the UI from the data, making applications more flexible, maintainable, and scalable.

Performance Optimization

When creating cross-platform apps like those in .NET MAUI, performance optimization becomes a crucial component of application development. Here are some essential factors for performance optimization:

  • Effective Data Binding: When it comes to regularly changing data, use data binding carefully and prevent frequent binding modifications. When applicable, take into account employing one-time or one-way data bindings.
  • Asynchronous Programming: To keep the UI fluid and avoid blocking the main thread, use asynchronous programming techniques like async/await. When possible, move time-consuming tasks to background threads.
  • Caching and Memory Management: Use caching techniques to lessen the need for repeated data retrieval and processing. To avoid memory leaks, appropriately dispose away unused resources.
  • Use UI virtualization techniques for lists and grids to quickly render massive datasets by only loading elements that are visible.

Conclusion

With the help of .NET MAUI, developers can create beautiful cross-platform UIs with less time and effort and a single codebase. .NET MAUI gives you the tools to build stunning and useful user interfaces that provide a wonderful user experience on a variety of devices and operating systems thanks to its robust UI design capabilities, responsive layouts, styling and theming options, support for data binding, and integration with platform-specific features. Accept the potential of .NET MAUI for UI development and you’ll be able to produce outstanding applications that your users will love.

ASP.NET MVC Overview: Building Scalable Web Applications

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Microsoft offers ASP.NET MVC (Model-View-Controller), a potent framework for creating scalable and maintainable web applications. With its extensible architecture and separation of concerns, ASP.NET MVC provides developers with a structured method for building dynamic and reliable websites. The main ideas, elements, and advantages of ASP.NET MVC will be discussed in this article, along with an overview of its essential attributes and an explanation of how it makes it easier to create contemporary online applications.

Understanding the MVC Pattern

The Model-View-Controller (MVC) pattern is the ASP.NET MVC framework’s cornerstone. It is a software architectural design pattern that supports the separation of concerns between the data model (Model), user interface (View), and application logic (Controller). This division makes it simpler to maintain, test, and scale the code. The View takes care of the appearance and user interaction, the Model represents the application’s data and business logic, and the Controller controls the application’s flow.

The MVC pattern enables you to build applications with input logic, business logic, and user interface logic separated from one another while maintaining loose coupling between them. Each type of logic should be placed in the program according to the pattern. The view should contain the UI logic. The controller should contain the input logic. The model should contain the business logic. By allowing you to concentrate on only one part of the implementation at a time, this separation makes it easier for you to manage complexity when developing an application. You may, for instance, concentrate on the view without relying on the business logic.

In addition to controlling complexity, testing apps using the MVC pattern is simpler than doing so with an ASP.NET Web application that uses Web Forms. For instance, a single class is used in an ASP.NET Web application that uses Web Forms to display output and react to user input. It can be challenging to create automated tests for Web Forms-based ASP.NET applications since you need to instantiate the page class, all of its child controls, and other dependant classes in the application to test a single page. Writing tests that specifically target specific components of the application might be challenging because so many classes must be instantiated to execute the page.

Key Components of ASP.NET MVC

ASP.NET MVC is made up of several essential parts that cooperate to produce dynamic web applications:

  • Models are a representation of the data in the application and set out the business logic for modifying and validating that data.
  • Views: Views are in charge of the application’s presentation layer, creating HTML content to display data and gathering user input.
  • Controllers: Controllers interact with models and views, choreograph the application’s flow, and take requests from users and handle them.
  • Routing: ASP.NET MVC employs a routing engine that converts incoming URLs into a list of predetermined controller actions, resulting in a neat and reversible URL structure.
  • Razor View Engine: The Razor view engine, which is ASP.NET MVC’s default template engine, provides a short syntax for creating HTML markup.
  • Helpers: Utility classes known as helpers make routine activities like creating form controls, producing partial views, and navigating URLs easier.

Benefits of ASP.NET MVC

ASP.NET MVC provides the following advantages for creating web applications:

  • Clear separation of concerns is provided by the MVC pattern, which makes it simpler to organize and maintain code by clearly separating data from presentation and application logic.
  • Testability: ASP.NET MVC supports unit testing, which makes it easier to find and fix problems early in the development process because of its modular architecture and distinct separation of concerns.
  • Extensibility: ASP.NET MVC has a high degree of extensibility, enabling programmers to provide additional functionality via filters, model binders, action outcomes, and other means.
  • A robust URL- mapping element that enables you to create applications with understandable and searchable URLs. In addition to supporting URL naming patterns that are effective for search engine optimization (SEO) and representational state transfer (REST) addressing, URLs are not required to include file-name extensions.
  • Rich Ecosystem: ASP.NET MVC is supported by a thriving and active community that offers a plethora of libraries, frameworks, and tools to boost productivity and speed up development.
  • Integration with Other Technologies: ASP.NET MVC works in perfect harmony with other Microsoft products, such as ASP.NET Core for cross-platform development and ASP.NET Web API for creating RESTful services.

Conclusion

By providing a systematic and effective method for creating online applications, ASP.NET MVC enables programmers to write scalable and maintainable code. Developers can accomplish a separation of concerns, increased testability, and extensibility by adhering to the MVC paradigm and leveraging the essential ASP.NET MVC components. It may consequently be more challenging to develop tests for Web Forms-based ASP.NET applications than for MVC applications. A Web server is also necessary for tests in an ASP.NET application that uses Web Forms. It is feasible to test individual components independently of the rest of the framework because of the MVC framework’s decoupling of the components and extensive usage of interfaces. For developers looking to create robust and dynamic online applications, ASP.NET MVC continues to be a popular option thanks to its many advantages and integration options. The tools and flexibility you need to succeed in web development are provided by ASP.NET MVC, whether you are beginning a new project or migrating an old one.

Importance of .NET and C# in 2023

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I have a strong interest in knowing what software development technologies are in demand in today’s market. In light of this ongoing progress and change, I find it fascinating that one of the prevailing themes in 2023 is the continued dominance of .NET development with the C# programming language.

The Stack Overflow Developer Poll shows that despite the rise of other technologies, the.NET framework has maintained its popularity. Although the tech industry is always changing, Microsoft’s main developer platform, .NET has been successful since 2000. I’m confident that .NET and C# will continue to be competitive and important for many years to come given Microsoft’s newly announced desire to continue investing in them.

The adaptability of.NET and C# is something I really like. They can be applied to a variety of projects, including desktop, web, and mobile development. They’re also perfect for creating cloud-based apps, which are hugely significant in the tech world of today. Applications are becoming more reliant on distributed systems as a result of the growth of cloud computing.

The basics of C# and .NET

It started out as Microsoft’s answer to Sun Microsystems and its Java platform, but it has now evolved into an open-source framework for creating various types of applications. .NET has you covered whether you want to write web development code, mobile app code, or even contemporary desktop programs.

About .NET

  • Microsoft developed the.NET software development framework, which offers a platform for creating and running apps across a variety of operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux.
  • From its initial release in 2000, it has developed into a collection of strong tools and frameworks for creating cutting-edge and reliable applications.
  • C#, Visual Basic, F#, and many other programming languages are supported by.NET.
  • The.NET Framework Class Library, a sizable library of pre-built classes and functions, is a feature of NET that boosts the productivity of application development.
  • The Common Language Runtime (CLR), the runtime environment for NET, controls how.NET applications are executed and offers features like memory management, security, and exception handling.
  • NET is cross-platform and open-source.

About C#

  • Microsoft created the contemporary, object-oriented programming language C#.
  • It debuted in 2000 as a component of Microsoft’s.NET framework.
  • Simple, potent, and type-safe describe C#.
  • Building desktop, web, gaming, and mobile applications uses C#.
  • Both static and dynamic typing are supported in C#.
  • It has a garbage collector that controls memory allocation and deallocation automatically.

The Reasons .NET and C# are still relevant

Scalability

Enterprise-level applications are best served by C# and.NET because they are highly scalable technologies suitable for both small and large applications, including desktop, online, gaming, and mobile apps. Because of their adaptability, these technologies can be used to create any kind of application that best meets the needs of you and your company.

Cross-platform development

You can build programs using C# and .NET that can operate on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and even mobile devices running iOS and Android. You may create applications that work on a variety of devices and reach a large audience.

Including Microsoft goods in the integration

If you’re working for a company that significantly relies on technologies like Azure and Visual Studio, mastering C# and.NET will make it simpler to develop and deploy applications on the Microsoft platform. With these talents, you may also be able to work on future AI models like Microsoft’s ChatGPT and Bing AI, which are already gaining ground across a wide range of industries.

Strong demand for jobs in the market

Both large tech organizations and startups are in high demand for C# and.NET developers. Since.NET and C# are now extensively utilized in enterprise-level applications, employers are constantly looking for developers with these skills. Given this demand, dedicating time and effort to learning these abilities can set you apart and significantly improve your chances of landing a job, even in the current unstable economic climate.

Simple to learn

Particularly if you’re already familiar with other object-oriented programming languages like Java or C++, C# is a comparatively simple programming language to learn. You may start building applications fast and effectively without relying on a challenging learning curve thanks to its straightforward syntax, which is designed to be both powerful and type-safe.

Community of active developers

There is a sizable and vibrant developer community for C# and.NET that offers a wealth of learning and development resources, including online tutorials, forums, and documentation. Hence, whether you’re a new or seasoned developer, you may find enough support to aid in your learning and development.

The Outlook of .NET and C#

Finally, the potential for these technologies to advance in the future is intriguing and worth following. Microsoft pledges to keep improving C# to accommodate developers’ changing needs and keep it a cutting-edge programming language.

We anticipate that C# developers will work closely with the.NET library and developer tool teams on innovative projects that will boost the language’s potential while preserving its essential characteristics. I therefore completely anticipate that.NET and C# technologies will continue to be preferred solutions for many high-performance software development projects due to their continued popularity among developers.

Wrapping Up

There is an acute scarcity of highly qualified software developers, particularly those with C# and .NET knowledge. Software development is still a strong professional path with lots of room for advancement, despite recent severe layoffs. There will only be more chances and demand for developing scalable apps in the .NET ecosystem using C# and other programming languages as the technology develops and improves under Microsoft’s stewardship.

ASP.NET too Old For Today? – The Importance of ASP.NET

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Programmers can create dynamic websites, web apps, and web services using the Microsoft-developed and -marketed ASP.NET web application framework. Yet, given Microsoft’s focus on its newest framework version, ASP.NET Core, some individuals wonder if ASP.NET is still a useful technology.

In light of this, the following discussion on ASP.NET explains its evolution and current relevance.

Introduction to ASP.NET

Developers can build dynamic websites, web apps, and web services using the open-source ASP.NET web application platform. To make.NET more appropriate for online app development, ASP.NET was developed for the web back-end.

It was a game-changer when Microsoft published the first version of ASP.NET in 2002 since it made web development considerably simpler and more effective.

The.NET Framework from Microsoft and ASP.NET are frequently confused. The ASP.NET Framework is a web application framework, whereas the.NET Framework is a software framework. In essence, ASP.NET can only be used to create web-based apps, but the.NET Framework can be used to create any kind of program.

Why ASP.NET Is Still Useful for Developers?

Although ASP.NET Core is the upgraded version of ASP.NET, originally known as ASP.NET 5 before changing its name to ASP.NET Core, ASP.NET is still valuable and relevant today.

While having significant drawbacks, particularly when compared to ASP.NET Core, ASP.NET is still useful as a web application framework. The following six factors highlight why developers should continue to utilize ASP.NET:

Less Setup and Configuration Needed

It is simple to use, configure, and create websites and web applications with ASP.NET since it is integrated into the well-known Windows server environment. Some frameworks, in comparison, necessitate extensive setup and configuration.

You must set up a development environment with the appropriate versions of PHP, a web server, and a database, for instance, if you want to use the PHP framework Laravel. For newbies, these criteria can be quite time-consuming and challenging. It’s considerably simpler to build with ASP.NET if you’re using Windows because you don’t have to worry about setting up everything right.

Standard Authentication Procedures for the Industry

Even though it’s an older version, ASP.NET still uses the most recent and secure authentication standards.

For instance, it incorporates widely used authentication methods including Windows, Forms, and Passport authentication. Your web apps will be safe as a result, and user authentication will function normally. It’s also important to note that since these functions are built-in, nothing needs to be configured or set up.

Ability to run Directly In Web Browsers

Microsoft’s native web-development platform is called ASP.NET. As a result,.NET apps can run natively in web browsers. This capability is a big plus because it eliminates the need for third-party frameworks or plugins to run ASP.NET apps. Also, it means that a larger variety of browsers will be easier for your applications to run.

With Microsoft’s Blazor framework, ASP.NET apps may be developed for the web and run natively in web browsers. Blazor executes.NET code in the browser using WebAssembly. As a result, you may create your complete web application, including the front-end user interface, in C# rather than JavaScript (UI). You can share code between the server and the client using Blazor as well. Because you don’t have to write duplicate code for the server and the client, web development becomes more efficient.

Incredible Support Developed by Microsoft

Microsoft actively provides and develops support for ASP.NET, as shown by the abundance of online resources. For instance, the ASP.NET website has a ton of important and beneficial materials, such as documentation, guides, tutorials, and more.

In addition, a sizable developer community continues to contribute to the development of ASP.NET because it is open source.

So long as you’re using a supported version of ASP.NET, you won’t need to worry if you run into any difficulties because Microsoft will be there to help.

Vast Language Support

Programming languages supported by ASP.NET include Visual Basic, C#, and J#. You have not constrained to a single language thanks to its capability, which is a huge benefit. It also implies that you can pick the language that best suits your requirements.

You may create your ASP.NET applications using Visual Basic, for instance, if that’s what you’re more comfortable with.

ASP.NET Core vs. ASP.NET

Understanding the distinction between ASP.NET and ASP.NET Core is essential when talking about ASP.NET.

A continuation of ASP.NET, ASP.NET Core was completely rewritten to be an open-source, cross-platform framework. In contrast to ASP.NET, which can only run on Windows, it can run on Linux, macOS, and Windows.

Sophisticated ASP.NET Core is built on the Model-View-Controller framework, just like ASP.NET. Developers can only choose the ASP.NET Core modules they specifically require for their project because ASP.NET Core supports modular architecture much better than ASP.NET. As a result, ASP.NET Core enables developers to create web apps that are more streamlined and effective. This is because unnecessary code, which can occasionally be the case with ASP.NET, isn’t included.

In the end, ASP.NET Core is a more recent and improved version of ASP.NET. That doesn’t, however, imply that ASP.NET is no longer relevant. On the contrary, developers may still find it to be highly useful.

Wrapping Up

Although ASP.NET Core is the most recent version, many developers continue to utilize the classic ASP.NET since it still provides many useful features. Microsoft provides good support for it as well, so customers won’t have to worry about it aging out. Without needing to set up a development environment, you may create web applications quickly and effectively by using ASP.NET. Furthermore, you can be sure that your apps will be secure and up-to-date thanks to the platform’s ongoing support.

Microsoft Azure Cloud Storage

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Azure Storage is Microsoft’s cloud storage option for use in modern data storage scenarios. Azure Storage offers highly available, massively scalable, dependable, and secure cloud storage for a variety of data objects. Anywhere in the world can access data items in Azure Storage using a REST API over HTTP or HTTPS. For developers building apps or services with.NET Java, Python, JavaScript, C++, or Go, Azure Storage also offers client libraries. Developers and IT professionals can write scripts in Azure PowerShell and Azure CLI to create data management or configuration jobs. Using the Azure portal and Azure Storage Explorer, users can communicate with Azure Storage.

Azure Storage’s Benefits

For programmers and IT professionals, Azure Storage services offer the following benefits:

Strong and Widely Accessible: Redundancy ensures that your data is secure even in the event of brief hardware outages. You may decide to replicate data across data centers or geographical areas for added protection against regional or natural disasters. This kind of data duplication ensures that even in the event of an interruption, the data is still easily accessible.

Secure: Each piece of data written to an Azure storage account is encrypted by the service. You have complete control over who has access to your data thanks to Azure Storage.

Scalable: Azure Storage is designed to be incredibly scalable in order to meet the data storage and performance needs of contemporary applications.

Managed: Azure handles critical problems, updates, and maintenance on your behalf.

Accessible: HTTP or HTTPS can be used to access data saved in Azure Storage from anywhere in the world. Microsoft provides client libraries for Azure Storage in a number of languages, including .NET, Java, Node.js, Python, PHP, Ruby, Go, and others, in addition to an established REST API. Azure Storage supports scripting via Azure PowerShell or Azure CLI. Additionally, the Azure website and Azure Storage Explorer make it simple for you to interact graphically with your data.

Azure Blob Storage and Its Features

Azure Blob Storage is the name of Microsoft’s cloud-based object storage product. Blob storage performs best when used for large-scale unstructured data storage. Unstructured data is data that doesn’t adhere to a predefined data model or standard, such as text or binary data.

Microsoft Azure Blob Storage features –

Access to Unstructured Data and Scalable Storage

Azure Blob Storage allows you to build data lakes to suit your analytics requirements, and it also provides storage so you can build reliable mobile and cloud-native applications. To save money on long-term data storage and to dynamically increase workloads demanding high-performance computing and machine learning, use tiered storage.

Develop dependable cloud-native applications

Blob storage was created from the bottom up to satisfy the demands of cloud-native, online, and mobile application developers in terms of scalability, security, and availability. Use it as the basis for serverless solutions like Azure Functions. The only cloud storage option that provides a premium, SSD-based object storage layer for interactive and low-latency applications is blob storage. The most popular programming frameworks, including as Java,.NET, Python, and Node.js, are also supported by blob storage.

Store petabytes of data effectively

You can cost-effectively store vast amounts of rarely or sporadically accessed data using several storage layers and automated lifecycle management. To avoid worrying about the transition between hardware generations, for instance, utilize Blob storage rather than tape archives.

Build solid data lakes

A highly scalable and affordable data lake solution for big data analytics is Azure Data Lake Storage. By combining the power of a high-performance file system with massive capacity and efficiency, it aids in accelerating your time to insight. Azure Blob Storage’s capabilities are increased by Data Lake Storage, which is built for analytics applications.

Scale up for HPC or out for IoT devices in the billions

Blob storage has the capacity needed to accommodate both the demanding, high-throughput demands of HPC applications and the billions of data points flowing in from IoT endpoints.

Azure Files

You can build highly available network file sharing with Azure Files by utilizing the industry-standard Server Message Block (SMB), Network File System (NFS), and Azure Files REST APIs. The same files can thus be accessed by many VMs both read-only and with write access. The storage client libraries or the REST interface can also be used to read files.

One way that Azure Files differ from files on a corporate file share is that you can access the files from anywhere in the world using a URL that links to the file and contains a shared access signature (SAS) token. Additionally, you can produce SAS tokens, which provide limited access to a private asset for a certain time.

Queue Storage

The Azure Queue service is used to store and retrieve messages. Millions of messages can be stored in a queue, and each message can be up to 64 KB in size. Additionally, queues are frequently used to store asynchronously processed message lists.

If you want to create thumbnails for every image that a customer uploads and you want them to be able to, imagine the following scenario. You could request that your client wait while you create the thumbnails and submit the images. An alternative would be to use a line. When the client is done with their upload, type a message to the queue. Create the thumbnails next, and then have an Azure Function fetch the message from the queue.

A number of storage-related tools and services are offered by Azure. In the Azure Cloud Adoption Framework, under Review your storage options, you may find out which Azure technology is suitable for your situation.

Features in C# 10 Which May Help Every Developer

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C# 10 is the latest version of the C# programming language, widely used for developing desktop applications, web applications, games, and other software. C# 10 was released in November 2021 and introduced several new features and improvements over the previous version, C# 9. Some notable features of C# 10 include file-scoped namespaces, global using directives, improved support for interpolated strings, and extended support for pattern matching. Additionally, C# 10 consists of a number of performance improvements and other enhancements designed to make it easier and more efficient for developers to write high-quality code. It is one of the oldest and fast-growing programming languages in the world. Today we will discuss some top features in C# 10 that will help developers write code faster and prettier.

Using Global

The amount of code you need to write will be greatly decreased by this brand-new feature. You may be aware that the beginning of every C# program contains a list of “using” statements that are required for the implementations. However, this can occasionally be repetitive, especially if you’re working with ASP.NET, where a lot of this code gets recycled and acts as “noise” for programmers.

The global keyword is a further brand-new C# 10 feature. If you utilize them internationally, you can select global use for the entire project. In actuality, it is suggested that you create a separate file, such as using.cs, that provides these specifications. This suggests that the remaining project files could be condensed as they don’t have to contain all of these uses. This is referred to as “vertical (space) wastage” by C# developers.

Strings with constant interpolation

With the introduction of string interpolation in C# 6, it is now simple and convenient to apply syntax to a string. Typically, an interpolated string is made up of both strings and expressions. The expression is executed and the resulting string value is added in its place when an interpolated string is resolved to a string.

Back then, only strings could be interpolated; a string that has been declared as a constant cannot be. However, this capability of string interpolation is now available for strings that have been defined as constants in C# 10, with the restriction that only constant strings may be utilized in the expression.

Extended property patterns

A new feature called extended property patterns is very useful when dealing with nested properties. In the past, weren’t constructors used more explicitly? Nowadays, heavy builders are rarely made; instead, businesses use light builders, where the values of the properties are supplied immediately. In the most recent version of C#, 10, “Required” is a new term for properties. This allows users to make a property mandatory while defining a class. If you try to construct an object without the necessary property, you’ll receive an error at compilation time.

Namespaces for Files

The global keyword C# eliminates vertical waste, and the use of file namespaces eliminates horizontal waste. This feature’s primary goal is to fix the indent issues; however, it’s more of a visual improvement that should make your code appear lot nicer. The namespace can now be declared at the file level using this functionality.

To make use of this capability in all upcoming classes, perform the following actions in Visual Studio 2022:

  • Right-click the project first. Then, select New EditorConfig under Add.
  • Open the Editor configuration file at this time.
  • Click the Code Style tab.
  • Save the file after switching Namespace declarations from Block Spaced to File Scoped.
  • The file-scoped format will be used going forward for creating new CS files.

Checking for Null Parameters

The Null Reference Exception is one of the biggest mistakes your code may make. To avoid this kind of problem, your application architecture must be perfect and function parameter checks must be numerous. We might be able to avoid this problem and enhance the readability and resilience of our code thanks to this new functionality. The goal of the new C# version is to simplify this problem for us. Just after the parameter name, type “Bang bang” by placing two exclamation points. The program will automatically check to see if the newObject is null. The ArgumentNullException would be produced right away if the newObject value is null.

Enhanced #line pragma

The newest version of C#, 10, contains a new format for the #line pragma. You won’t likely use the new layout, but you will still see its impact. More precise outputs are now possible in domain-specific languages (DSLs) like Razor thanks to the advancements. These upgrades allow the Razor engine to enhance the troubleshooting process. You’ll see that debuggers can now highlight your Razor source more accurately.

Terms for the Field

Self-implemented properties have been since C# 3 and are not a new feature. The get and set attributes of the property are the only ways to access the private, anonymous field that the compiler creates once the program has been compiled. One of the exciting features of the current version of C# is an init accessor. With such an accessor, immutable objects gain a lot more flexibility by enabling the caller to change members while creating the object. The field introduced in the most recent edition is a new keyword in the C# programming language. In general, a new field would not be required as of C# Current version 10. This keyword could be used by the init accessor as well.

Conclusion

In this article’s discussion of the new C# features, we learned about some of them. Some of these seem to be substantial improvements, and they seem to have an effect on how we approach and develop C# projects.

Updates to ASP.NET Core in .NET 7 Release Candidate 2

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On October 11th, 2022, Microsoft released.NET 7 Release Candidate 2. It is supported in production as the last release candidate (RC) for.NET 7.

Visual Studio 17.4 Preview 3 has been used to test.NET 7 Release Candidate 2. If you want to test out.NET 7 with products from the Visual Studio family, we advise using the preview channel builds. We advise using the most recent Visual Studio 2022 for Mac preview if you use macOS.

We want to highlight the key concepts of .NET 7 in this post and give you resources to delve further into the specifics. For a more thorough list of each enhancement and feature added to .NET 7 Release Candidate 2 you can check the previous posts from .NET’s official website.

C# 11

The most recent version of C#, C# 11, is now accessible in.NET 7.

They openly create and develop C#. To view the most recent C# feature requests and meeting notes, connect to them on the CSharpLang repository. As soon as work is scheduled, you can check the Feature Status page to see how things are going. Create a C# project and set the LangVersion property to Preview to experiment with the C# 11 preview features.

Libraries & SDK

The.NET libraries are always getting better. New APIs with completely new features are frequently added. Existing APIs are receiving performance upgrades, which will benefit you if you simply upgrade. New libraries are being created to help you with your daily tasks. Every new version of.NET brings a wealth of enhancements to the.NET SDK, which contains the essential tools for designing, developing, and maintaining.NET projects. Numerous improvements were already present in earlier preview. To read more about new SDK features, see the following:

Re-enable Reflection Fallback For System.Text.Json source generation

.NET 7 introduced an intentional breaking change which removes silent fallback to reflection-based serialization in System. generators for Text.Json sources. Early customer feedback indicates that a significant number of users have (mostly unintentionally) come to depend on the fallback behavior.

Despite the fact that a workaround for the breaking change has been documented, it still calls for a code change, which may not always be possible. Starting with.NET 7 RC 2, you can use the provided AppContext compatibility switch to globally re-enable reflection fallback. To enable reflection fallback once more for all source-generated contexts in your app, add the following entry to the project file for your application:

<ItemGroup>
  <RuntimeHostConfigurationOption Include="System.Text.Json.Serialization.EnableSourceGenReflectionFallback" Value="true" />
</ItemGroup>

See the post on .NET runtime configuration settings for more details on using AppContext switches.

Implementation of Generic Math interfaces correctly

The.NET runtime ensures that user code correctly implements the.NET Generic Math interfaces that use the Curiously Recurring Template Pattern (CRTP). It specifically issues a warning if a type that implements the CRTP pattern and the.NET Generic Math interfaces fails to fill the generic type parameter with the type itself.

For example:

public readonly struct DateOnly : IParsable<DateOnly> // correct implementation of IParsable<TSelf> interface
{ ... }
public readonly struct MyDate : IParsable<DateOnly> // Warns: "The 'IParsable<TSelf>' requires the 'TSelf' type parameter to be filled with the derived type 'MyDate' " the type parameter TSelf
{ ... }

Some built in operators added in .NET 7 for System. System and IntPtr. In.NET 6 and earlier, UIntPtr behave differently from user-defined operators. Some operators that used to throw when the context was unchecked while overflowing are now only allowed to do so when wrapped in checked context, and some operators that did not previously throw in checked context are now only allowed to throw when the context is unchecked. The analyzer alerts it when it finds the code that might be responsible for those behavioral changes.

For example:

checked
{
    intPtr2 = intPtr1 + 2; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the operator '+' will throw when overflowing in a checked context. Wrap the expression with an 'unchecked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."

    intPtr2 = intPtr1 - 2; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the operator '-' will throw when overflowing in a checked context. Wrap the expression with an 'unchecked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."

    void* ptr = (void*)intPtr1; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the explicit conversion '(void*)IntPtr' will throw when overflowing in a checked context. Wrap the expression with an 'unchecked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."

    intPtr2 = (IntPtr)ptr; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the explicit conversion '(IntPtr)void*' will throw when overflowing in a checked context. Wrap the expression with an 'unchecked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."
}

intPtr1 = (IntPtr)longValue; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the explicit conversion '(IntPtr)Int64' will not throw when overflowing in an unchecked context. Wrap the expression with a 'checked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."

int a = (int)intPtr1; // Warns: "Starting with .NET 7 the explicit conversion '(Int32)IntPtr' will not throw when overflowing in an unchecked context. Wrap the expression with a 'checked' statement to restore the .NET 6 behavior."

Support

The release of.NET 7 is covered by Standard Support. There is no change to the support duration despite the fact that this is the new name for what was previously known as Current. The Standard Support period for.NET releases with odd numbers is 18 months. The 36-month length of Long-Term Support (LTS), as well as its name, have not changed. For more information, see our.NET and.NET Core Support Lifecycle document.

Wrapping Up

.NET is loved for it’s simplicity of C# cause everything can be completed quickly and easily (in C#, everyone who can program can program). Similarly, the Jit itself is intuitive in the way it applies compiler techniques. Finally, a shoutout to SuperPMI.

Releases of .NET include products, libraries, runtime, and tooling, and represent a collaboration across multiple teams inside and outside Microsoft. Give .NET 7 Release Candidate 2 a try and tell us what you think!

Amazon RDS vs Azure SQL: Key Differences

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The world of database management has undergone a significant change as a result of multinational corporations switching to cloud-managed databases. However, it can be difficult to meet the needs of the modern world, particularly for on-premise deployments. In contrast, managed cloud databases are relational database services that are scalable and created for the cloud.

Microsoft Azure and Amazon AWS are both great choices for deploying MS SQL Server databases. The dawn of a new era has indeed been heralded by these databases. Prior to selecting an Amazon AWS or Azure migration, it is crucial to compare features, benefits, and limitations. In this article, we’ll examine these well-known databases and offer advice on which one would be best for your company.

Which one is Better?

Cloud computing enables businesses to increase innovation, reduce capital expenditures, increase scalability, and improve teamwork. Naturally, businesses that are unprepared for these changes risk falling behind. The most reputable cloud competitors competing for a bigger share of the cloud pie are AWS and Azure.

Starting with how they present their SQL Server database services, the two cloud service goliaths have a glaringly different service philosophy. Microsoft makes use of the binaries from SQL Server 2019, the most recent iteration. It guarantees that your application always uses the most recent binaries. In contrast, Amazon provides a versioning model that is largely fixed and allows you to select the version you want to use. The following are the main distinctions between Azure SQL and Amazon RDS:

Platform

The cloud-based database products from Microsoft are created with the cloud in mind. For instance, Azure SQL is a service that runs natively on the Microsoft cloud infrastructure.

Although it does not run natively on the cloud platform, Amazon RDS is cloud-capable. Therefore, the majority of MySQL applications should function normally in Amazon RDS.

Performance

As Azure SQL is tier-based, each level is divided into performance tiers ranked by Microsoft’s Database Transaction Units and tailored to a variety of workloads. In order to ensure maximum utilization, Microsoft customers can address workload fluctuations through hosted databases.

Database instances are allotted in Amazon RDS to determine resource allocation. To easily distinguish costs, you must pay for computing and storage separately. Furthermore, Amazon RDS improves query performance.

Features

A versatile, reliable, user-friendly, and stable solution is Amazon RDS. Users can choose as many tools, zones, regions, and replicas as necessary. Users prefer Microsoft products’ enhanced GUI and better integration. However, they think Microsoft can make a lot of security features better.

Users of Microsoft Azure appreciate how easily the platform integrates with on-premises SQL Server, the darknet stack, and table groups. The solution provides simple firewall settings and a very user-friendly interface. Additionally, there are a lot of on-premises features that the cloud might not provide.

Target Market

Microsoft Azure primarily targets enterprise apps with databases that are 5 GB or smaller. Although Azure SQL appears to be limited, there are more details than just the targeted clients.

Amazon RDS, on the other hand, targets a wider user base and provides a high level of flexibility. Per database instance, up to 1 TB of storage is permitted.

Deployment

The biggest difference between Azure SQL and Amazon RDS occurs at this point. Database servers for Azure SQL are not virtual. Instead, they are logical containers that are tailored to the needs of the customer. Additionally, Azure SQL is multi-tenant and does not support specific server-level customization.

Azure focuses on cloud performance rather than hardware in order to fully utilize the intended benefits of cloud computing. Microsoft’s emphasis on only charging for what a customer needs is a good thing. Amazon RDS, on the other hand, offers relational database services using EC2 instances.

RDS is able to allocate resources to databases while provisioning storage space separately thanks to this design. RDS’s factor costs are different from Azure SQL’s because storage is charged separately from computing. The RDS standard level offers storage of up to 6 TB.

Cost

When compared to Amazon RDS, Azure SQL is much more affordable because its databases can be automatically replicated across a variety of systems, providing read scale-outs and a transparent fail-over mechanism in case of hardware failure. However, Amazon RDS has turned off replication on all of its MySQL instances.

As a result, SQL Azure doesn’t provide a substitute for Amazon RDS’s distinctive on-demand snapshot-based backup approach. Instead, when a disaster strikes, data in SQL Azure is automatically backed up and restored. Once more, the user is unaware of this, which contributes to the feature’s high availability.

Scaling

With a storage limit of just 10 GB per database, Microsoft Azure SQL is both highly scalable and cost-effective. As a result, it eliminates the chance that a single overburdened database server will cause performance problems. Additionally, Microsoft’s concept of the shared database has improved performance and scalability with the most recent addition of elastic pools.

Computing and storage fees are charged separately by Amazon RDS. As a result, expanding a database’s size on the Amazon platform is simple. Additionally, the growth of an RDS single database is made simple by Aurora’s ease of automatic scalability as a database product.

Additionally, Amazon RDS supports read-only horizontal scaling, which enables you to add replicas to improve query performance. The Elastic Database tools, on the other hand, are used by Azure SQL to orchestrate a sharding strategy.

Wrapping Up

Azure SQL and Amazon RDS are in fierce competition to provide the best customer experience. A more server-oriented model with robust backward compatibility for apps is offered by Amazon RDS. How you choose between Amazon RDS and Azure SQL largely depends on the kind of technology you already employ. On the other hand, Amazon RDS works best for you if you have a LAMP stack.

Consider the benefits of moving your database to the cloud if you’re still unsure which option to choose. But once more, it depends on your budget, flexibility, and tech preferences. So, when selecting a database system for your business, keep these things in mind.

ASP.NET Authentication: Overview

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.NET is a developer platform made up of tools, programming languages, and libraries for building many different types of applications. The base platform provides components that apply to all different types of apps. Additional frameworks, such as ASP.NET, extend .NET with components for building specific types of apps.

ASP.NET is an open source web framework, created by Microsoft, for building modern web apps and services with .NET. ASP.NET is cross platform and runs on Windows, Linux, macOS, and Docker. The server-side web application framework ASP.NET, also known as Active Server Pages Network Enabled Technologies, is free to use. It is intended for use in web development to create interactive websites, programs, and services. Let’s take a closer look at ASP.Net Authentication.

What Is ASP.NET Authentication?

Microsoft’s ASP.NET is an open source framework for creating contemporary web sites, services, and applications. It is supported by Linux, macOS, Windows, and Docker. IAuthenticationService is the foundation of the ASP.NET authentication framework. The service can authenticate users in ASP.NET applications thanks to registered authentication handlers.

ASP.NET Authentication Concepts

Authentication Schemes

A scheme for authentication identifies the authentication handler in charge of generating the appropriate set of claims. The names of authentication handlers and the particular configuration settings for each handler’s instance are known as authentication schemes. Schemes can be used to discuss authentication and challenge or forbid associated handler behavior.

Authentication Handler

The actions of an authentication scheme are carried out by authentication handlers. From AuthenticationHandler <TOptions> or IAuthenticationHandler, handlers can be derived. Authenticating users is its main objective. The associated authentication scheme’s configuration and the context of incoming requests will influence how the authentication handler responds.

The handler creates an AuthenticationTicket object, which represents a user’s identity, if the authentication is successful. A “failure” or “no result” is returned if the authentication fails. The handler offers ways to thwart or oppose actions taken by a user. Unauthorized users will be denied access, while unauthenticated users will be presented with a challenge.

Authentication Challenge

When unauthenticated users try to access a resource that needs authentication, the authorization system takes an additional precaution known as authentication challenges. For instance, if an anonymous user clicks on a login link or requests access to a restricted resource, the IAuthenticationService may issue a challenge. The challenge is issued by the authorization system using a default authentication scheme (or a specified scheme if one exists).

Forbid Action

If authenticated users attempt to access resources without the required permissions, the authorization system triggers the ‘forbid’ action for authentication schemes. Users are informed by forbidden actions when they have been authenticated but are denied access to a resource. The following situations, for instance, may result in the system forbidding authentication:

  • An access-restricted page is redirected to by a cookie authentication scheme.
  • A 403 (forbidden) error is returned by a JWT bearer scheme.
  • A page where users can request access to a protected resource is the destination of an authentication scheme.

ASP.NET Core Identity

An API that supports UI login features is called Core Identity. You can manage a variety of user data elements with it, such as user profiles, passwords, roles, tokens, and claims. Users can create accounts using the login information from ASP.NET Core Identity. A supported external login provider, such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, or Microsoft accounts, can also be used to create accounts.

The SQL Server database that houses usernames, profile information, and passwords is typically used to configure Identity. A different persistent store, like Azure Table Storage, is also an option.

Providers of authentication for each tenant

There is no integrated method for multi-tenant authentication in ASP.NET Core. We advise customers to think about Orchard Core or ABP Framework for multi-tenant authentication even though they are able to create one using the built-in features.

Orchard Core is an ASP.NET Core-based multi-tenant, open-source, and modular app framework and an app framework with a content management system (CMS) added on top. ABP Framework supports various architectural patterns including modularity, microservices, domain driven design, and multi-tenancy. See ABP Framework source on GitHub.

ASP.NET Multi-Factor Authentication

During a sign-in event, multi-factor authentication (MFA) asks the user for multiple forms of identification. Passwords are frequently used as the first identification factor, and a fingerprint scan, a FIDO2 key, or a verification code sent to the user’s phone can be used as the second factor. Adding MFA as a requirement for an application greatly increases the security of authentication.

Using ASP.NET Core Identity offers native support for 2FA (2-factor authentication). Set the IdentityUserTKey> to enable or disable 2FA for a specific user. Property TwoFactorEnabled. When utilizing ASP.NET Core Identity, cMFA with the Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) algorithm is additionally natively supported. This approach is compatible with authenticator programs like the Google Authenticator and the Microsoft Authenticator.

Users accessing sensitive pages in an ASP.NET Core Identity application can be forced to use MFA. This is beneficial for programs with various levels of access for various identities. Users can log in using their password, for instance, to view profile information, but administrators need MFA to access admin pages.

Wrapping Up

Finding a user’s identity is the first step in user authentication. We take this action to make sure they are who they claim to be. Once we are confident in our ability to trust them, we can log them into our app and give them access to resources that are intended for logged-in users only. Now that you know how to authenticate and log in a user to an ASP.NET application, hopefully you are off to a good start.

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