.NET Core Fundamentals

This tutorial delves into the core concepts and fundamental building blocks of .NET Core. Understanding these principles is crucial for developing efficient and robust applications.

Key Concepts

1. The .NET Core Platform

.NET Core is a free, cross-platform, open-source framework for building many different types of applications. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It is designed for building modern, cloud-based, internet-connected applications.

2. The Common Language Runtime (CLR)

The CLR is the execution engine of .NET. It provides services such as memory management (garbage collection), type safety, and exception handling. Your .NET Core code is compiled into an intermediate language (IL) which is then compiled into native machine code by the Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler within the CLR.

3. Assemblies and Modules

Code in .NET is organized into assemblies, which are the fundamental units of deployment, versioning, and security. An assembly is typically packaged as a DLL (Dynamic Link Library) or an EXE (executable).

4. Garbage Collection

.NET Core uses automatic memory management through garbage collection. The garbage collector automatically reclaims memory that is no longer being used by the application, preventing memory leaks and simplifying development.

Core Technologies

5. C# Language

C# is a modern, object-oriented programming language developed by Microsoft. It is the primary language used for .NET Core development, known for its strong typing, safety features, and rich set of libraries.

6. NuGet Package Manager

NuGet is the package manager for .NET. It allows you to easily find, install, and manage third-party libraries and tools that extend the functionality of your .NET Core applications.

Example of adding a NuGet package using the .NET CLI:

dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json

7. .NET Standard

.NET Standard is a formal specification for .NET APIs intended to be available on all .NET implementations. It ensures that libraries built against .NET Standard will work on any .NET Core and .NET Framework application.

Your First .NET Core Application

Creating a Console Application

Let's create a simple "Hello, World!" console application:

Open your terminal or command prompt.
Navigate to a directory where you want to create your project.
Run the following command to create a new console application:
```
dotnet new console -o HelloWorldApp
```
Navigate into the new project directory:
```
cd HelloWorldApp
```

Open the Program.cs file. It will contain code similar to this:

using System;

namespace HelloWorldApp
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Hello, World!");
        }
    }
}

Run the application:
```
dotnet run
```

You should see "Hello, World!" printed to your console.

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