.ASMX and Remoting are Toast: Getting Started with Windows Communication Foundation (WCF)

By: Richard Hale Shaw

NET Web Services (.ASMX) are great -- so long as you don't mind that they lack high fidelity to .NET data types, have no built-in support for security or transactions, and only offer HTTP/SOAP endpoints. Oh, yeah, they can be kinda slow. .NET Remoting, on the other hand, can service binary protocols, offers greater fidelity to .NET data types, and is relatively performant. But Remoting isn't cross-platform where .ASMX services are, and still doesn't directly address security or transactions. And neither .ASMX services nor Remoting objects are compatible: each has its own, distinct programming model.

Enter WCF: while "packaged" into Windows Vista, WCF is a .NET 3.0 technology that runs on Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP. And what .ASMX and Remoting lack, WCF delivers: it directly addresses security and transaction issues, and offers a single programming model while supporting both binary and SOAP endpoints. In this session, Richard will introduce key WCF concepts geared to .ASMX and Remoting programmers who're ready to begin migrating to .NET 3.0.