.NET development: advanced C# programming

Module 1: review and advanced use of .NET

• Overview of .NET version 5 architecture.
• The role of C# in the .NET framework.
• New features in .NET 6.
• Comparing C# code with C++ and Java.
• The Roslyn compiler and C# compiler options in .NET projects.
• Creating a dynamic-link library (DLL).
• Review of C# fundamentals.

Module 2: optimising C# code

• Processes, threads and handles for optimisation.
• Requirements for code execution: access tokens, access control, virtualisation, etc.
• Processing modules, assemblies and types with CLR profiling APIs.
• Using the heap and stack with .NET and its components.
• Advantages and disadvantages of unmanaged code.
• Using pointers in C#.
• Introduction to and analysis of unmanaged code.

Practical exercises:

• Use unmanaged components.

Module 3: creating and building a Windows service

• Comparing a Windows service with a service application: demonstration.
• Introduction to ServiceBase functions: OnStart, OnRestart, OnStop, OnPause, etc.

Module 4: choosing a web service architecture

• Main types of web services.
• Installing .NET services on an IIS web server.
• Creating a SOAP web service.
• Using SOAP and WSDL.
• Creating a REST web service.
• Using a REST web service in AJAX with jQuery.

Practical exercises:

• Create and deploy an ASP.NET architecture for data exchange with ADO.NET.
• Create and deploy a REST architecture for data exchange with Entity Framework.

Module 5: network interaction with sockets

• Review of networking terminology.
• TCP and UDP development concepts.
• Defining sockets for application development.
• Introduction to Sockets functions: listen, bind, accept, send, receive, etc.
• Implementing data transmission and reception.
• Server-side and client-side C# code.
• Using connection pooling for multiple clients.
• Implementation with .NET Remoting.

Practical exercises:

• Create a client-server application.

Module 6: integrating Windows Communication Foundation (WCF)

• Introduction to service-oriented architecture (SOA).
• Implementing a WCF service contract interface.
• Introduction to and use of endpoints.
• Creating and configuring a server-based WCF service.
• Bidirectional communication.
• Creating and configuring a WCF service without a server.

Practical exercises:

• Create a chat application with WCF.

Module 7: integrating Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF)

• Overview of Windows Presentation Foundation.
• Review of Windows Forms.
• Implementing WPF.
• Establishing a migration and compatibility plan.
• Overview of Blend and WPF tools.
• Setting up asynchronous and sleep functions.
• Implementing layout and user controls.
• Introduction to data binding.
• Creating a service application using the Visual Studio Windows Service project template.
• Configuring service properties: canShutdown and canStop.
• Starting a Windows service.
• Testing the service from the dashboard.

Practical exercises:

• Create and start a Windows service.
• Monitor the service through Windows logs.

Module 8: multithreading in C# with .NET

• Parallel programming concepts.
• Composition and structure of a multithreaded program.
• Thread management techniques.
• Common operations in a C# program.
• The thread lifecycle.
• Programming with threads and thread pools.
• Introduction to parallelism and the Task Parallel Library.
• Implementing parallel loops.
• Technical aspects of C# multithreading: memory, blocking, synchronisation, etc.
• Using Visual Studio 2022 tools.

Practical exercises:

• Set up and configure threads within a Windows service.

Module 9: understanding communication in .NET

• Main communication systems.
• Core .NET infrastructure.
• Main APIs: sockets, web services, WCF, etc.
• The importance of delegates in network programming.
• Data interaction with data binding.

Practical exercises:

• Create a WPF contact manager.

Module 10: creating custom user controls

• Setting up an event handler.
• Configuring attributes: Category, Browsable, DefaultEvent, etc.
• Using user controls through Windows Forms.
• Validating user input.
• Drag-and-drop use of custom user controls.
• Creating dynamic user controls.
• Adding design-time support and additional functionality to custom user controls.

Practical exercises:

• Create WPF user controls for the contact manager.

Module 11: programming with LINQ

• Introduction to Language Integrated Query.
• Using query and processing functions beyond conventional databases.
• Using LINQ in a C# application.
• Managing object collections with LINQ to Objects.
• Managing XML documents with LINQ to XML.
• Mapping C# types to database records with LINQ to SQL.
• Querying datasets with LINQ to DataSet.
• Creating queries from a conceptual model with LINQ to Entities.
• Optimising LINQ performance.

Practical exercises:

• Implement business classes and a database with LINQ to Entities.
• Process data with LINQ.
• Search an XML file using LINQ to XML.