WCF Reference

This section provides detailed reference documentation for Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) in the .NET Framework 3.5. It includes information on namespaces, classes, interfaces, enumerations, and other programming elements that are essential for building distributed applications.

Core Concepts

Understanding the fundamental building blocks of WCF is crucial for effective development. This section offers a deep dive into:

Namespaces: Explore the organization of WCF types within their respective namespaces.
Classes: Detailed API documentation for all WCF classes, including constructors, properties, methods, and events.
Interfaces: Specifications for WCF interfaces and their implementations.
Enumerations: Definitions and usage of WCF enumeration types.
Attributes: Information on attributes used for configuring WCF services and clients.

Key Namespaces

The following are some of the most important namespaces within WCF:

System.ServiceModel: The core namespace containing fundamental WCF types.
System.ServiceModel.Channels: Types related to the WCF channel model, message processing, and transport.
System.ServiceModel.Description: Types for describing and manipulating services, endpoints, and behaviors.
System.ServiceModel.Dispatcher: Types for customizing message dispatching and endpoint behavior.
System.ServiceModel.Security: Types for configuring and managing security in WCF services.

Commonly Used Types

Here are some frequently encountered types and their brief descriptions:

`ServiceHost`

The ServiceHost class is used to host a WCF service. It manages the lifetime of the service instance and its endpoints.

public class ServiceHost : System.ServiceModel.Channels.CommunicationObject, System.ServiceModel.Description.IServiceDescriptionBuilder

`ChannelFactory`

The ChannelFactory class is used to create client channels for communicating with a WCF service endpoint.

public class ChannelFactory<TChannel> : System.ServiceModel.Channels.CommunicationObject, System.ServiceModel.ICommunicationObject

`Message`

The Message class represents a WCF message, which is the unit of communication between services and clients.

public abstract class Message : IDisposable

`EndpointAddress`

Represents the network address of a WCF endpoint.

public class EndpointAddress

Note: For comprehensive details on each type, please refer to the specific documentation for the class, interface, or enumeration. This page serves as a high-level overview and entry point.

Further Exploration

Dive deeper into specific areas of WCF by exploring the following:

Tip: When developing WCF applications, it's highly recommended to use Visual Studio's IntelliSense and Object Browser, which provide direct access to this reference documentation within your development environment.