InteroperabilityBecause computer systems commonly require interaction between ne

wer and older applications, .NET Framework provides means to access functionalit
y implemented in newer and older programs that execute outside .NET environment.
Access to COM components is provided in System.Runtime.InteropServices and Syst
em.EnterpriseServices namespaces of the framework; access to other functionality
is achieved using the P/Invoke feature.Common Language Runtime engineCommon Lan
guage Runtime (CLR) serves as the execution engine of .NET Framework. All .NET p
rograms execute under the supervision of CLR, guaranteeing certain properties an
d behaviors in the areas of memory management, security, and exception handling.
Language independence.NET Framework introduces a Common Type System, or CTS. CTS
specification defines all possible datatypes and programming constructs support
ed by CLR and how they may or may not interact with each other conforming to Com
mon Language Infrastructure (CLI) specification. Because of this feature, .NET F
ramework supports the exchange of types and object instances between libraries a
nd applications written using any conforming .NET language.Framework Class Libra
ryFramework Class Library (FCL) is a library of functionality available to all l
anguages using .NET Framework. FCL provides classes that encapsulate a number of
common functions, including file reading and writing, graphic rendering, databa
se interaction, XML document manipulation, and so on. It consists of classes, in
terfaces of reusable types that integrates CLR.Simplified deployment.NET Framewo
rk includes design features and tools which help manage the installation of comp
uter software to ensure that it does not interfere with previously installed sof
tware, and that it conforms to security requirements.SecurityThe design addresse
s some of the vulnerabilities, such as buffer overflows, which have been exploit
ed by malicious software. Additionally, .NET provides a common security model fo
r all applications.PortabilityWhile Microsoft has never implemented the full fra
mework on any system except Microsoft Windows, it has engineered the framework t
o be platform-agnostic,[17] and cross-platform implementations are available for
other operating systems (see Silverlight and Alternative implementations). Micr
osoft submitted the specifications for CLI (which includes the core class librar
ies, CTS, and the Common Intermediate Language),[18][19][20] C#,[21] and C++/CLI
[22] to both ECMA and ISO, making them available as official standards. This mak
es it possible for third parties to create compatible implementations of the fra
mework and its languages on other platforms.