What’s New in .NET 9: Enhancements in WebSocket APIs and MAUI?

September 13, 2024
What’s New in .NET 9: Enhancements in WebSocket APIs and MAUI?

Microsoft has made significant strides with the .NET 9 framework, which has reached the release candidate stage. This marks a pivotal phase as the software development community anticipates the final release in November. With enhanced WebSocket APIs, improved compression options, and upgrades within the .NET Multi-platform App UI (MAUI), .NET 9 promises to elevate developer experiences. Let’s delve into the key updates and what they mean for developers.

Enhanced WebSocket APIs

Advanced Control with New APIs

The latest iteration of .NET brings substantial improvements to WebSocket APIs. Developers now have access to new APIs such as ClientWebSocketOptions and WebSocketCreationOptions, which enable more refined control over WebSocket connections. This advancement allows sending WebSocket pings and taking action if the peer does not respond within a predetermined timeframe, resulting in more reliable connections.

The previous versions of .NET allowed developers to set a KeepAliveInterval to avoid idle connections but without the ability to enforce peer responses. With the introduction of these new APIs, developers can now specify response enforcement criteria, greatly enhancing the robustness of WebSocket communications. This brings about a marked improvement in connection reliability, especially in applications requiring persistent and stable connections, such as real-time data feeds and interactive web applications.

The increased control provided by these new APIs significantly benefits scenarios where connection stability is critical. Developers can now implement more effective monitoring and management strategies for connections, minimizing the risk of disruptions due to unresponsive peers. This is particularly useful in environments where consistent data flow is essential, such as in financial or communication applications, where any downtime can result in significant consequences. By allowing developers to set precise parameters for connection handling, .NET 9 helps ensure that applications remain responsive and reliable, even in the face of potential network issues.

Improved Compression Options

The release candidate introduces ZLibCompressionOptions and BrotliCompressionOptions, providing developers with enhanced control over compression levels and strategies. These updates go beyond the generic CompressionLevel available in earlier versions, allowing for more precise fine-tuning of data compression.

This granular control means that developers can now optimize their applications’ performance and efficiency, ensuring better resource management and faster data transmission. For example, by adjusting the compression strategies to match specific data types or transmission requirements, they can achieve a balance between compression ratio and speed that best suits their application’s needs. This results in more efficient use of bandwidth and storage, reducing latency and improving overall user experience.

Furthermore, the ability to fine-tune compression settings makes it easier to address diverse application requirements, from high-performance, low-latency real-time applications to those prioritizing data size reduction. The enhanced control over compression options provided by ZLibCompressionOptions and BrotliCompressionOptions allows for a nuanced approach to data handling, enabling developers to optimize their applications for specific operational criteria. This shift towards more customizable and adaptable solutions reflects Microsoft’s commitment to providing tools that empower developers to create more efficient, responsive, and user-friendly applications.

Enhancements in .NET MAUI

Quality Improvements

.NET MAUI, the framework for building cross-platform applications, receives significant attention in this release. Microsoft has focused on improving product quality through expanded test coverage, comprehensive end-to-end scenario testing, and rigorous bug fixing. These initiatives were emphasized across the seven preview releases, leading to this release candidate.

These quality enhancements ensure a more stable and reliable development framework, catering to the growing demand for robust cross-platform applications. By extensively testing and refining each aspect of the framework, Microsoft aims to provide developers with the assurance that their applications will perform consistently across different devices and operating systems. This approach helps developers avoid common pitfalls and reduces the likelihood of encountering critical issues during deployment.

The emphasis on quality improvements reflects Microsoft’s understanding of the challenges developers face when creating cross-platform applications. By prioritizing comprehensive testing and refinement, they not only enhance the reliability of .NET MAUI but also simplify the development process for programmers. This focus on creating a solid and dependable platform allows developers to concentrate on designing innovative features and functionality rather than dealing with foundational issues and inconsistencies. As a result, the overall development experience is improved, leading to higher-quality applications and more satisfied end users.

VS Code Extension Upgrades

Another notable improvement is the update to the .NET MAUI Visual Studio Code extension. This enhancement includes upgrades to the HorizontalTextAlignment.justify property, enabling developers to horizontally align text within Labels. This seemingly minor yet impactful change facilitates the creation of more visually appealing and correctly formatted user interfaces.

By refining these aspects, Microsoft showcases its commitment to enhancing developer tools and overall user experience in creating cross-platform applications. These upgrades help developers achieve a more polished and professional look for their applications, improving both aesthetics and usability. Attention to such details can significantly enhance the end user’s experience, making applications more intuitive and visually cohesive.

The refined Visual Studio Code extension also incorporates several other usability and performance improvements that streamline the development process. These enhancements aim to reduce the time and effort required for developers to build and test their applications, thus boosting productivity. By providing more intuitive and efficient tools, Microsoft supports developers in their efforts to deliver high-quality, feature-rich applications more rapidly. This continued focus on developer-centric updates highlights Microsoft’s dedication to fostering a productive and enjoyable development ecosystem.

ASP.NET Core and Distributed Tracing

SignalR Distributed Tracing

With .NET 9, ASP.NET Core continues to evolve, particularly in the area of distributed tracing. The first release candidate builds on the initial support for SignalR distributed tracing introduced in preview 6 by adding an ActivitySource named Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR.Client, which ensures that hub invocations create a client span.

This development means that client-to-server hub invocations now support context propagation, allowing for more comprehensive distributed tracing. This feature aids developers in tracing the path of invocations from the client through the server, facilitating debugging and performance optimization. By being able to follow the entire invocation path, developers can more effectively identify performance bottlenecks and troubleshoot issues.

The introduction of comprehensive distributed tracing capabilities in ASP.NET Core underscores Microsoft’s commitment to providing robust and reliable tools for modern web development. This enhanced tracing functionality allows developers to gain deeper insights into their application’s performance and behavior, enabling them to make informed decisions about optimization and improvement. Such advancements are particularly beneficial in complex, large-scale applications where understanding the flow of data and operations is critical to maintaining efficiency and performance.

HttpClientFactory Logging Modifications

In the interest of security, .NET 9 modifies how the HttpClientFactory handles logging events. LogLevel.Trace events will now omit header values by default. This change minimizes the risk of sensitive information being exposed in log files, thereby enhancing security.

This thoughtful modification underscores Microsoft’s dedication to safeguarding developer environments while maintaining robust functionality. Preventing the logging of potentially sensitive data such as headers is a crucial step in protecting against unintended data leaks, which can be a significant security concern in many applications.

Balancing security with functionality is a crucial aspect of modern software development. By making these logging modifications, Microsoft demonstrates its awareness of the importance of protecting sensitive information in development and production environments. This change helps developers maintain secure logging practices without sacrificing the detailed information necessary for debugging and monitoring application performance. As security concerns continue to grow in the software industry, such proactive measures play an essential role in building and maintaining trust among developers and users alike.

New Command Introductions

dotnet workload History Command

A practical addition to the .NET SDK in this release is the dotnet workload history command. This feature enables developers to view a history of workload installations and modifications. It lists workload versions and installation dates, helping developers track changes over time.

This command proves invaluable for maintaining consistency across development environments and ensuring compatibility between different workload versions. By providing a clear historical overview of workload changes, developers can swiftly identify and rectify any discrepancies that might arise during the development process.

The dotnet workload history command is particularly useful in collaborative or large-scale projects where multiple developers and environments are involved. Having a reliable record of changes helps teams coordinate more effectively, ensuring that everyone is working with compatible and up-to-date tools. This level of transparency and control is crucial for maintaining a smooth and efficient development workflow, ultimately leading to higher-quality software delivery.

Broad Trends and Emphasized Themes

Microsoft has made substantial progress with the .NET 9 framework, which has now reached the release candidate stage. This is a crucial juncture as the software development community eagerly awaits its final release scheduled for November. Among the notable advancements in .NET 9 are the enhanced WebSocket APIs, which aim to provide more robust and efficient real-time communication options for developers. Additionally, the framework boasts improved compression features, which can optimize application performance and data transfer speeds. Another significant upgrade is within the .NET Multi-platform App UI (MAUI), a toolkit designed to allow developers to create native user interfaces across multiple platforms using a single codebase. These enhancements collectively suggest that .NET 9 is poised to significantly improve the developer experience by offering more tools, better performance, and greater flexibility. As the release date approaches, developers are keenly interested in how these updates will impact their workflows and projects, setting a new standard in software development.

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