Application Upgrade and
Interoperability Using Visual Studio .NET (Visual Basic .NET)
Course 2571—Two days—Instructor-led
Introduction
This two-day
instructor-led course provides students with the base knowledge required to
upgrade applications to the Microsoft .NET platform. It also provides students
with the knowledge, skills, and guidelines required to upgrade Microsoft Visual
Basic applications to Microsoft Visual Basic .NET; facilitate interoperability
between components created for the COM platform with components created for the
.NET platform; upgrade ASP applications to ASP.NET. The primary tool and
language used in this course are Microsoft Visual Studio .NET and Visual Basic
.NET.
This course
is intended for experienced professional developers who have been building
COM-based applications and are now moving to the .NET platform. The audience
will be expected to be proficient using Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0, and have a
practical working knowledge of Visual Basic .NET.Additionally, Information
Technology (IT) managers who are key decision makers for corporate technologies
will benefit from some sections of this course.
After
completing this course, students will be able to:
|
• |
Determine
whether an application will benefit from upgrading to the .NET platform, and
if so, identify the strategy to be used for upgrading. |
|
• |
Upgrade
Visual Basic 6.0 applications to Visual Basic .NET. |
|
• |
Use COM
components from .NET Framework applications. |
|
• |
Use .NET
Framework components from COM applications. |
|
• |
Use
unmanaged DLL functions from .NET Framework applications. |
|
• |
Upgrade
ASP applications to Microsoft ASP.NET. |
Before
attending this course, students must have:
|
• |
Experience
developing COM-based applications in Visual Basic 6.0. |
|
• |
Practical
working knowledge of Visual Basic .NET. |
|
• |
Practical
working knowledge of the .NET Framework. |
There are no
Microsoft Certified Exams associated with this course.
The student
kit includes a comprehensive workbook and other necessary materials for this
class.
Module 1:
Getting Started with Upgrading
This module
briefly reviews the client/server and n-tier architectures for distributed
applications and then analyzes the process of upgrading existing applications
to the .NET platform. This module also provides an overview of some of the
topics that will be covered in more detail throughout the rest of this course.
Lessons
|
• |
How .NET
Affects Application Development |
|
• |
Is Upgrading Necessary? |
|
• |
Costs and
Benefits of Upgrading |
Lab 1.1:
Assessing Applications for Upgrade to the .NET Platform
|
• |
Assessing
the Fabrikam, Inc., Application |
|
• |
Assessing
the Northwind Traders Application |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Describe
the recommended architecture for developing distributed applications. |
|
• |
Select and
justify an approach to upgrading an application. |
|
• |
Identify
the costs and benefits of upgrading an application to the .NET platform. |
|
• |
Create a
preliminary plan that identifies a strategy, tactics, and rationalization for
upgrading an application to the .NET platform. |
Module 2:
Upgrading to Visual Basic .NET
This module
guides you through the entire process-cycle of upgrading Visual Basic 6.0-based
applications, including COM and COM+ components to Visual Basic .NET. It
explains how to develop a plan for upgrading your applications; prepare an
application for upgrade by updating features that cannot be automatically
upgraded; upgrade the application by using the Upgrade Wizard provided by
Visual Basic .NET and fix upgrade issues that the wizard identifies.
Lessons
|
• |
Planning the Upgrade |
|
• |
Preparing for the Upgrade |
|
• |
Using the Upgrade Wizard |
|
• |
Upgrading COM+ Components |
Lab 2.1:
Upgrading a Visual Basic 6.0-based Application
|
• |
Preparing
the Presentation Tier for Upgrade |
|
• |
Upgrading the Presentation Tier |
|
• |
Preparing
the Business Tier for Upgrade |
|
• |
Upgrading the Business Tier |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Develop a
comprehensive plan for upgrading your application. |
|
• |
Prepare a
Visual Basic 6.0 application for upgrade. |
|
• |
Use the
Upgrade Wizard, review the results, and address issues. |
|
• |
Upgrade
Visual Basic 6.0-based applications and COM components to Visual Basic .NET. |
|
• |
Upgrade
Visual Basic 6.0-based COM+ components to Visual Basic .NET. |
Module 3:
Using COM Components in .NET Framework Applications
This module
explains how to call existing COM components from .NET Framework applications
by means of the COM interoperability service provided by the .NET Framework.
The concepts, procedures, and guidelines for preparing COM components for
interoperability and using them in .NET Framework applications are provided.
Lessons
|
• |
COM vs. .NET |
|
• |
Preparing
COM Components for Interoperability |
|
• |
Deploying
and Testing COM Components for Interoperability |
Lab 3.1:
Using COM Components in .NET Framework Applications
|
• |
Generating
a Strong-Named Assembly |
|
• |
Testing the COM Component |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Call COM
components from .NET Framework applications. |
|
• |
Identify
performance, security, and threading issues related to using COM components
for interoperability. |
|
• |
Deploy and
test COM components in the .NET environment. |
Module 4:
Using .NET Framework Components in COM Applications
This module
explains how to call .NET Framework components from COM applications by means
of the COM interoperability service provided by the .NET Framework. The
concepts, procedures, and guidelines for preparing .NET Framework components
for interoperability and using them in COM applications are provided.
Lessons
|
• |
Preparing
.NET Framework Components for Interoperability |
|
• |
Registering .NET Framework Components |
|
• |
Debugging .NET Framework Components |
|
• |
Deploying .NET Framework Components |
Lab 4.1:
Creating and Registering .NET Framework Components for
Interoperability
|
• |
Creating a
.NET Framework Component |
|
• |
Registering
a .NET Framework Component |
Lab 4.2:
Deploying and Testing .NET Framework Components
|
• |
Deploying
a .NET Framework Component |
|
• |
Testing a
.NET Framework Component |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Create or
modify .NET Framework components for interoperability with COM. |
|
• |
Register
.NET Framework components for use with COM. |
|
• |
Call .NET
Framework components from COM applications. |
|
• |
Debug
calls between Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 clients and .NET Framework
components. |
|
• |
Deploy
.NET Framework components in the COM environment. |
Module 5:
Using Unmanaged DLL Functions in .NET Framework Applications
This module
explains how to call functions implemented in unmanaged non-COM dynamic-link
libraries (DLLs), such as Microsoft Windows API DLLs, from a .NET Framework
application. As an alternative to calling Windows API functions from managed
applications, this module briefly explains some of the .NET Framework classes
that you can use to achieve equivalent functionality.
Lessons
|
• |
Calling Unmanaged DLL Functions |
|
• |
Making Advanced Calls |
|
• |
Using .NET
Framework Classes Instead of Windows API |
Lab 5.1:
Calling Unmanaged DLL Functions from Managed Code
|
• |
Calling a Function |
|
• |
Using a Callback Function |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Call
functions in unmanaged DLLs that are not COM-based, including Windows API
DLLs. |
|
• |
Create
wrappers for unmanaged functions. |
|
• |
Pass
structures to unmanaged functions and use callback functions. |
|
• |
Use .NET
Framework classes instead of Windows API functions, if an equivalent exists. |
Module 6:
Upgrading to ASP.NET
This module
explains the reasons for upgrading your Web application to Microsoft ASP.NET,
explains how Microsoft Active Server Pages (ASP) and ASP.NET can function
together, and describes how to upgrade the ASP and Hypertext Markup Language
(HTML) pages in your existing applications to ASP.NET.
Lessons
|
• |
ASP vs. ASP.NET |
|
• |
Upgrading
HTML Pages to ASP.NET |
|
• |
Upgrading
ASP Pages to ASP.NET |
Lab 6.1:
Upgrading ASP Applications to ASP.NET
|
• |
Adding ASP
pages to an ASP.NET Project |
|
• |
Converting
an ASP Page to an ASP.NET Web Form |
After
completing this module, students will be able to:
|
• |
Run ASP
and ASP.NET pages side-by-side in an application. |
|
• |
Upgrade an
HTML application to ASP.NET. |
|
• |
Upgrade an
ASP application to ASP.NET. |